03/10/2024
In honor of Ornette Coleman's birthday (yesterday) here's my advice to anyone who's interested in his music but doesn't feel like they "get it"...
Try listening to his phrases one at a time, as separate statements. He's really incredibly "melodic", and one phrase at a time can be really catchy and digestible. It's just that he's not constrained by a specific song structure or chord progression, so he can truly take those melodies anywhere.
Also, try listening to something like this piece while you do something else, without "listening hard" and trying to decide if you like it or not. See how you like the experience of just letting it flow, without thinking so hard about it...
Ornette Coleman - Peace
Ornette Coleman – The Shape of Jazz to Come Record Label: Atlantic ▪ Release Date: 1959 ▪ Style(s): Avant-gardeOrnette Coleman - Alto Sax ▪ Don Cherry - Corn...
09/23/2023
Love this and agree wholeheartedly!
Opinion | We’re Teaching Music to Kids All Wrong
The problem isn’t getting instruments into students’ hands. It’s keeping them there.
05/02/2021
The Face of Solo Guitar Is Changing. It’s About Time.
The Face of Solo Guitar Is Changing. It’s About Time.
Since the heyday of John Fahey, the genre has been seen as the province of white men. A new generation of diverse players is rapidly changing that.
03/10/2021
Congratulations to my awesome long time student Peter Lindholm for being selected for the 2020 NAfME All-National Honor Ensembles Guitar Ensemble! They weren't able to perform live this year due to Covid, but they produced this amazing virtual performance. Music starts at 15:00...
2020 NAfME All-National Honor Ensembles Guitar Ensemble Virtual Performance
Learn more about the NAfME All-National Honor Ensembles: nafme.org/ANHEGävlebocken Copyright 2020 Darin Au. All Rights Reserved.Productions d'Oz/SOCAN
12/01/2020
Kind of an odd thing to post here but in 2012 I learned something from my one and only experience as an actor (so far!!) which I was able to relate to music as well.
Ever since this experience I tell my students that when it comes to "drama" in music, like dynamic or tempo changes, pauses etc..."if it doesn't feel exaggerated to you as the performer, the listener probably won't notice at all". I remember I was particularly nervous about the death scene where I'm crawling across the floor in agony. Granted I'm not a naturally dramatic person but I was terrified of overacting and making a fool of myself. It took several takes, with the director repeating "okay, that was good but give us a bit MORE!" and "just about there, just need a little MORE!". By the end I just felt ridiculous and if the crew hadn't been so professional (and time conscious) I would've thought they were messing with me. But finally they said "alright, got it, that's a wrap!". I had no objective idea of what it was gonna look like, but when I finally got to see it I realized I could have given them even MORE!
America Unearthed: 200-Year-Old Murder Revealed (S1, E9) | Full Episode | History
After his famous expedition to map the American West with William Clark, Meriwether Lewis recorded details of the adventure in a journal and intended to publ...
11/29/2020
Julian Bream was one of my first guitar heroes. My dad studied classical guitar around the time I was born and had a fantastic three record set which I listened to over and over. And he took me to hear him at Orchestra Hall when I was a young teen. This video makes me appreciate him more than ever. It's hard enough just to technically execute music like this but it means nothing if you can't bring beauty and expressiveness to it. The students are great (especially the woman at 27:00!) but when Bream picks up his guitar you hear a true master, way beyond technique...
Julian Bream Masterclass 1978: Isaac Albéniz Granada & Sevilla
From BBC web: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p01gyvc1/Julian_Bream_Masterclass_Julian_Bream_Festival/ First Broadcast: 04 Jan 1978
11/18/2020
I love this short video by my first guitar instructor, Lawrence Zbikowski.
Dissecting the Language of Music
In his current project, with the working title By Crystal Fountains: Music, Language, and Grammar, Professor Larry Zbikowski tries to illuminate the differen...
11/17/2020
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25 years of the Z.Vex Fuzz Factory: how the iconic fuzz pedal was conceived during a single, feverish night in the '90s
Maverick effects maker Zachary Vex recalls how tragedy led to triumph in the creation of his most famous pedal
10/22/2020
Winter is coming! Don't forget to give your guitars some humidity!
How To Keep Your Guitar Humidified | Sweetwater
Check out the How To Keep Your Guitar Humidified page at Sweetwater — the world's leading music technology and instrument retailer!