L'attirail

Well it has been years sincve this incident occured. Happened around 3 years back. Had been seeing too much of rap and was too excited to be a popular rapper. I had been dreaming of rapping in front of thousands of people. People were striving to get my autograph . I was driving away in a ferarri looking out of the glass. Then came the harder part ; to learn how to actually rap. I started with wrting rap songs soon to realize I was writing more of what could be called kindergarten poems. Sometimes with much effort I would sweat out to make up a rap which my friends would can more of a literature piece instead of a rap. I was nowhere getting close to writing a rap.

Then surfed the internet. Spent hours reading how to rap and write rap songs. Well one day while chatting I got an important tip ; observe and copy. Well , I started out by observing musics videos on TV. I wrote down the meaning of their songs. Then tried to convert each sentence into lyrics. But alas I was again into poetry and not rap. After a little brainstorming I found out what I was missing. The fact was that I had to use street language to rap. After all rap was an invention of the street culture.

I then started replacing all the good and smooth words from my ‘poetry to rough street language and wallah ! I had half a dozen good raps.  Read more...

“…Handel, Mozart, Beethoven, and Liszt all excelled in improvisation, which was then referred to as extemporization…”

Classical music is a sophisticated art form where talking during performances (much less to the musicians) is frowned upon. Yet in jazz, it is very common for the audience to speak to musicians during performances as a way of complimenting their improvisational skills.

Elements of jazz can be found in gospel, country, pop, R&B, movie soundtracks, and other musical forms. However, when the average person uses the word “jazz,” they may not understand the culture or the language.

Many people associate improvisation with jazz and vice-versa. However, improvisation has been an integral part of classical music history, stemming back to the medieval period in Gregorian chants. These chants used additional melodies above the Cantus Firmus (fixed melody in Latin), which were improvised by Medieval musicians to glorify God. In the later periods, improvisation was used in performances outside of churches. J.S. Bach, Handel, Mozart, Beethoven, and Liszt all excelled in improvisation, which was then referred to as extemporization. Bartok’s “Mikrokosmos” were originally improvised as were Beethoven’s famous sketch books (which he later used in formal works).

Near the beginning of the 20th Century, improvisation disappeared in the Romantic Period as performers began mastering composers’ works note for note; the art of improvisation was eventually lost. Schubert’s impromptus, contrary to their title, were not improvised but written out methodically. Playing classical music well is a skill requiring great discipline and talent, but the same can be said for jazz. Both disciplines use the same musical alphabet, yet have somehow managed to create different nomenclatures for each respectively.  Read more...

Music and sound healing is not a new concept. Cultures throughout the world have used music to empower, energize, heal and soothe the body, mind and spirit since time immemorial. It is no accident that Apollo, the Greek god who is credited as being the father of medicine, is also the father of music and the inventor of the lyre.

Music and healing are part of each other, and current research is pointing to that more and more. Recent studies have shown that music can slow down and help balance brain waves, reduce tension and stress by affecting endorphin levels, reduce physical tension by changing the vibrational frequency of cells, and even evoke feelings of love and inner peace.

Of course, if music can slow down your body’s rhythms and effect soothing, peace and healing, it can also have the opposite effect. A well-chosen set of music can help energize you and prepare you to work hard and be creative. Studies have also shown that athletes working out and practicing to music use more energy, stretch themselves further and burn more calories than those who work without music.

There’s a great deal of information available now about music and healing. Sound healing, music therapy, and the power of sound to effect changes in the mind, body and spirit are becoming more and more accepted. It’s sometimes difficult to tell how much is true and how much is marketing hype.  Read more...

One word describes the CD Inventions and Dimensions from Herbie Hancock… AWESOME!

It’s a rare day indeed that I get a CD from an artist that I can truthfully say does not have a bad track in the bunch. I’m more than happy to announce that’s exactly what I must say about this one. There simply is NOT a bad one in the bunch. No fillers here at all, with each song standing tall on it’s own.

Inventions and Dimensions is a pleasantly varied, mix of 6 tracks that are very well written songs by this clearly talented artist. With many of the songs displaying a lot of the kind emotion that makes for a really great listen. Seemingly drawing from what I can only imagine are him own real life experiences. At different points touching on the most real emotions like love, heartbreak, pain, failed relationships and unattainable romance. They’re all here.

Overall Inventions and Dimensions is an outstanding release. What I call must have music. I give it two thumbs up and is most definitely a worthy addition to any Jazz collection. Truly an outstanding Jazz CD. One of those that is completely void of any wasted time, as each track is simply superb.

While this entire CD is really very good the truly standout tunes are track 3 – Jack Rabbit, track 5 – A Jump Ahead, and track 6 – Mimosa.

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If you are a music lover and have not jumped on the bandwagon to download music online, you are missing out. It is simple and cost effective to download music online, regardless of your taste in music. While this is great news for music lovers, the problem is that there is an overwhelming amount of websites from where you can download music. With so many websites to choose from, it is difficult to know which website to select. Consider the following tips when picking out a website to download music so you are sure to find the best website for you and your music needs.

Free Downloads are Not Usually Best

Most people who want to download music first look for a website that offers free music downloads. Unfortunately, people who download music from free sites usually experience a number of problems, including a limited catalog of songs to choose from, terrible sound quality, slow download speeds, downloads that never fully go through, and opening up their computer for hackers, spyware, adware, malware, and virus attacks.

Most free music download websites are file-sharing websites where users open their computer up to other users to download music from. Opening up your computer to others is dangerous. When something can be downloaded, something can also be uploaded. This means, when a user taps into your computer to download one of your songs, they can also upload a number of harmful things that could crash your computer.  Read more...