Home Recording Studio How To Start

Regarding an inexpensive but effective home recording studio, the first thing to do is to carefully go over your budget, because once you get going it will be the little bits and pieces that can nickel and dime you to death. Know how much you can safely spend without putting yourself into financial jeopardy. So many people talk about getting financial backers but that isn't always the best answer since they will often want the lion's share of any rewards plus interest until the debt is paid back in full. Backers are also very impatient about repayment and don't want to hear excuses as to why you had to pay your Rent before you pay them! When it comes to Bank loans, the Banks usually look at the music business as if it were smoke, something that you can see but cannot touch or hold in your hands.

They are very practical and cautious when it comes to giving out money for the music industry despite the incredible amount of money that is generated every year from it. Unless you have a lot of collateral to back such a loan, wait until you can show regular income from your initial endeavors first. Thinking big is fine, but starting out small and wisely is the best policy in putting together your own studio. The terms "Starving Artists" and "Starving Producers" come from the usual way of supplying your musical interests by means of a Day Job until you can wisely transition from one to the other. Almost everyone does it and there is no shame in admitting it. Only the most obnoxious of industry professional will criticize you for it.

The next subject to ponder is what you will use your home studio for. Is it for your own solo material, a band, or are you planning to take on clients? Each situation can vary greatly depending upon the quality and workload you are seeking from your studio. As an example, I have worked, managed, recorded and produced in 7 recording studios ranging from simple but effective equipment in a basement, all the way up to a current multi-million dollar recording facility here in Connecticut. Please note that as you move up in the degree of Studio you work in, your abilities, ears, and skills also need to improve dramatically! But the good thing is that if you start out small and determined to succeed, and keep an open mind to learning from others, you can eventually develop into whatever level you wish to as long as you can handle it. Recording Schools are invaluable for learning the recording industry, but they are not inexpensive, so you may wish to invest in books and videos about recording first. They can be purchased from many local musical instrument stores and national chains, including mail order.

Another option is to try to develop a relationship with someone experienced that can act as a Mentor, it can be invaluable to you and that person can help to further advance your career with their knowledge and influential assistance. The rule of thumb is that everyone in the business knows somebody else in the business at higher levels of power and success. But as with any professional in any field of business, be respectful, honest, humble, tactful, and become an "invited guest" as opposed to a character that they will regret knowing! So after figuring out what level of experience you are at now and what you wish to use your studio for, it is time to start making a shopping list. If you are a beginner or even an experienced veteran, the best choices would be either a good home computer with lots of memory since there are many great programs that you can purchase along with the proper interface equipment, or purchase an all-in-one Recorder/Mixer/CD Burner unit. My suggestion is that when it comes to efficiency and cost effectiveness, the all-in-one units are outstanding and can create some wonderful results if you take your time to study and learn the functions, and then practice with them. The better ones are advisable and can range from approximately $800 to around $4000 to purchase. These units usually include extremely useful options and functions such as built in effects and editing programs, processors, mixers, and CD burners that can be very expensive if purchased separately. Since technology has improved so much over the years, these types of units can sound as if you recorded in a full blown recording studio. While they won't replace a professional recording studio with all of the bells and whistles, not to mention seriously sound-proofed recording rooms, you can purchase and own the all-in-one units for much less than the cost of recording a full CD of songs in a major studio.

To give you an example of this, while I often work in a big studio, I have my own Roland all-in-one unit and record my own clients I manage, song write, and produce music for on it. This way, I don't have to worry about paying for recording time costs or high utility bills that go hand in hand with a big studio. I can take as much time as I wish or that my clients need without watching the clock and can still get the results I want without the added pressures. Since I do know what I am doing and have a lot of experience recording and Producing, I recorded my Country Artist "Miss Marie" Wuhrer's first CD "Bad Reputation" on it and it received airplay in approximately 75% of the US and many Record Label inquiries to boot!!! So the all-in-one units can be quite cost effective while returning professional quality results, and they are also very portable if need be. Portability can be a major plus! The next issue on the list is to get some very good recording microphones and perhaps a few stage microphones for good measure. Consider a minimum of a vocal and an instrument microphone. The recording ones are Condenser microphones and they require phantom power to operate them, which is simply a low voltage power source from 9 to 18 volts. This can come from putting batteries in the microphone or is usually included in the all-in-one units as standard equipment power supplies. The stage microphones are called Dynamic microphones and just require connection to a preamp or mixer channel input. Never run phantom power on dynamic microphones or you could easily and quickly damage them or the power source itself. Remember, if you plug the microphone into the unit and it doesn't work in any of the channels as is, then you probably have a condenser microphone and must press the "phantom power" button to turn on the phantom power unit so the microphone will operate. Most decent condenser microphones have a Led light that comes on to show when it is in operation.

Condenser microphones are extremely sensitive and can pick up stray noises in the room so be careful when they are on during recording as to not have a very noisy environment you are working in. While it is crucial to "clean" your recorded tracks one-by-one of any stray sounds such as breathing noises BEFORE you mix them into the final result, there are times when you can't remove excessive noise and must accept it or do the track over. Keep it quiet around you and you will save yourself a lot of time and trouble. All microphones have sensitivity specs, and to avoid a lengthy explanation here and distortion when you are recording, look for a microphone that has a 40 decibel or higher rating for sensitivity. This way, if you have a loud singer you won't overdrive the microphone easily and get distortion in the vocal tracks. Next, you have to determine where you are going to record, especially if it is in your home. Most studios are in the basement areas and require deadening of the room to make it quiet for recording. When using an all-in-one unit, you can do most of your recording directly into the mixer/recorder without worrying about the noise you or others are making, it is all very quiet. This is especially true when using a drum machine instead of an actual Drummer and live drums! Except for vocals and live drums, you can record a full song in a bedroom while your family members or roommates are in other rooms and they won't even hear you doing it! If you do designate a specific area, your recording room should not get too hot or too cold, and dampness is not good for any electronic equipment so be careful. When going for the cheap but effective recording studio, you can put up heavy rugs on the walls or use other deadening material to quiet down the room accordingly. Whether you are making a formal recording studio or a simple one, always remember to use Non-flammable materials to deaden the room to avoid a potential disaster.

To continue with our list, I recommend getting good headphones for yourself and some spares for others to use, as well as a headphone amplifier that will run multiple sets of headphones. For the best results, you should use the same brand and model closed back headphones which are essential for recording with live microphones. Semi-open or open-backed headphones allow the sounds coming through to be picked up and fed back into the microphone and recorder. The more isolation the headphones offer the better. Last in the chain would be a pair of powered studio monitors for playback and mixing. The best ones have the Bass ports in the front so they can be used in any location if necessary. The ones with Bass ports in the rear require a reflex action off of a wall for sound quality and this may not be practical for a home studio. As with all of the equipment I mentioned, there are many good brands and models out there and the costs vary greatly. Be ringer, Samson, and Event make some great units for home studios, and the bigger the Bass speaker i.e.: 6 or 8 inches, the better the quality of the sound you'll get in final mixing and playback. I don't recommend getting subwoofers until you really know what you are doing and can get a great mix on regular speakers. If you cannot mix on regular speakers, then adding subwoofers won't help the final product and usually makes it sound horrible. And if while you are mixing your final product the dogs in your neighborhood are howling and running for cover, then Turn down the volume and back off on the Bass and high treble frequencies. If you blow out your hearing, it is gone forever. For optional equipment in your arsenal, a fairly inexpensive boom box is a great tool to have after making a mix. When I finish a mix of a song, I usually make both a CD and a cassette copy of it and play it on a good stereo, a cheap boom box, and a car radio just to see if it sounds good and fairly consistent for quality. If it sounds good on all of them, then I know that I have a good mix for the final product. I also have a separate stand alone CD burner that I can use to make copies while I am using the all-in-one unit for other songs and projects, rather than tying up the unit's built in CD Burner for making multiple copies other than a Master copy. They cost from $200 to $500 or more, but I find it invaluable for my needs.

Other than some patch cords, spare microphone cables, telescoping microphone stands, music stands, a good comfortable rolling chair, decorating your recording room to taste, and some blank CDs to put product on, you should be able to get some very good results with your projects at a reasonable cost with these recommendations. As your skills improve, you can always upgrade your equipment and studio to fit your needs and dreams. Think toward the future career you are seeking and not just for showing off! I've seen some very basic equipment outdo some much more expensive setups. The main goal is to concentrate on getting good results.

Besides, as you begin to make your fortune, you can hire professional studio designers and builders to create your dream Palace. And please don't forget to cover yourself legally if you are a Studio for hire. Write down ALL recording dates and notes about what transpired during them rather than relying on memory or hear-say, keep track of expenses compared to profits, and write down on the receipt you give the client that the final product is what he or she asked for and accepted as complete and both you and the client need to initial it. This is extremely important for every situation, but especially when a client wants to keep bad musicianship or singing on a project that you would never have kept yourself even if you were tone deaf! Once that client takes the product from you and lets friends and family criticize it accordingly, You will be blamed for letting it get out of your door like that and not the client for wanting it that way and refusing your subtle hints to change it during the recording session such as uncontrollable laughter or vomiting. If that client later chooses to sue you to get his or her money back and it goes before a Judge or Jury with NO Music Industry experience or taste, your note on the signed, dated and initialed may be all that saves you from getting ripped off and having to pay back what you legitimately earned. Good luck to all of you and God Bless.

About Author:
Wayne I. Johnson-Wildcard Music Productions and Artist/Model Management-Waterbury, Connecticut. Singing contest site http://www.tune97.com

Article Source: http://www.ArticlePros.com

Natural Guitar Talent - The Top Guitar Myth - Are Guitar Virtuosos Born Or Made?

Join us as we take a look into a popular guitar myth on the subject of natural talent. We will be discussing how natural talent is not a replacement for hard work and for learning the proper skills. You will learn the benefits to perfecting your skills by practicing along with guitar backing tracks.

A pretty common phrase that's thrown around a lot in the guitar community and just about every other style of music is the term natural talent. Some people never excel in mastering their particular instrument because of the myth that in order to be good you have to have natural talent.

That's not to say that some people aren't naturally gifted as a musician or guitarist, because there are quite a few who guitar players who take to the instrument quickly. Many musicians do have a natural talent for their instrument or style, but that do not mean that only these individuals can learn and master the guitar. Anyone who picks up a guitar and has the drive, determination, passion, and dedication can learn and become an excellent guitarist.

Mastering the guitar simply requires an individual to apply themselves to learning the necessary tools and skills to effectively create music that expresses who they are and what they are about. If you want to master the guitar you have to put in the time to learn all the tools, techniques, and skills that a guitar player needs to play effectively.

This myth makes accomplished professional guitarists seem as if they just
magically knew how to play, and neglects the fact that they sacrificed many
hours of practice to learn and perfect their skills. There are no guitar
virtuosos who haven't put in hours of practice and study to cultivate their talents and skills.

The truth is that even the most talented guitarists had to study, learn, and practice. There are a lot of different ways to practice and cultivate your skills. One of the most beneficial ways to practice your talents and skills is to practice along with guitar backing tracks. Playing with guitar backing tracks can help you perfect your skills and apply your newly learned knowledge. Guitar backing tracks can also help you develop better tone by strengthening your accuracy. Such tracks are available from retailers such as Planet of Rock

Using backing tracks are also beneficial for making practice sessions more enjoyable. Instead of running endless drills, you can play along with a whole band and perfect your improvisation techniques as well. Backing tracks for guitarists can also be used to play live shows and other types of gigs as well.

About Author:
Eugene Walker - For over 1000 Professional Guitar Backing Tracks, check out Planet of Rock , The #1 Secret Weapon For Guitarists. Eugene is the founder of Planet of Rock Music Studios - www.PlanetofRock.com. He is a professional guitar teacher and has founded Planet of Rock to provide affordable Guitar Backing Tracks for guitarists worldwide.

Article Source: http://www.articledashboard.com

Viral Marketing For Your Music - Internet Success

Traditional radio airplay, standard brick and mortar distribution and being signed by a major record label are no longer the only means of getting your music noticed.

Thanks to digital distribution and the massive appeal and easy access to the Internet, unknown musical talent now has a chance at real success. Additionally the indie musician is not stuck with the costs of making an entire CD. They can make a single and post it on the Internet, gaining huge success from one song.

With a little know how and marketing sensibility any upstart musician or experienced musical act can now achieve success, great success in fact on their own. Recently, while a guest on the Sirius Satellite Radio Show The Good Life, I spoke with the host who told me that his two teenage boys get most of their music off the Internet and never listen to regular radio anymore.

Why? Because they can obtain music from acts they wouldn't be allowed to listen to on traditional radio. They're tired of the same old bands and singers being played over and over again. "Most don't have any talent, they're just showpieces." This isn't the first or the last time I've heard that statement from teenagers and adults alike.

For the indie artist who wants to reach a broader market (and you must have a good product) and receive more exposure for their product on the Internet, the first thing you need to do is market, guerrilla market and then market some more. How do you do that? There are many ways that I mention in my book, The Indie Guide to Music, Marketing and Money but here are a few simple suggestions:

• Join music boards and start in on the discussion. At the end of each of your posts make sure to put who you are and your website. Add something to the conversation, don't spam. Write helpful hints and post them on the boards, etc. If the boards don't allow tags but they do allow you to post your email address, make sure it's something with your website at the end. Have a real email address but DON'T use your main email because it will be Spammed.

• Start networking at local musician meetings and songwriter / artists forums in your region. You can find them on the Internet. These meetings host artists such as yourself who get together on a regular basis to discuss the music scene and present their latest creations. It's also a wonderful place to get the pulse on gigs you can join in on and new marketing ideas.

• You know all that annoying spam snail mail you receive with pre-paid postage envelopes inside? Why not save the envelopes and put a little note inside that states since they were kind enough to share their information with you, you're returning the favor. Also, with any bill or any correspondence you send out that's official, include a one sheet or little card that has a blurb about you and your music (watch the weight; you don't want to add more postage). Make sure to put your website on whatever material you have.

• Start your own podcast and post it on all the podcast sites.

• Why not send your music to different podcasts. Ask permission first. Send them to your site where they can hear a sample or two and if they are receptive to playing your music on their podcast, send it along. If they use your music in their podcast you may have gained new fans and sold more CDs.

The most important thing you can do is to play live. Go to Wal-Mart, Starbucks and other local shops and ask if you can put on a free concert there. Anywhere and any place that will let you play, do! Make sure to have a sign up sheet where people can sign up for your newsletter. Then create a newsletter and send it out once a month at the most. This is a form of "Buzz Marketing" also known as "Viral Marketing." At the end of the letter make sure you include your web page of course. Tell your fan base they can pass it along to whoever they want.

This is a very very tiny list of things you can do. The time for the indie musician is now. Take advantage of it! Many blessings to come your way.

About Author:
Jaci Rae's grit brought her from a poor childhood to a successful writer & performer. Author of The Indie Guide to Music, Marketing and Money and Winning Points With The Woman In Your Life One Touchdown At A Time. http://www.jacirae.com/

Article Source: http://www.articlecache.com

Networking, Communicating and Marketing

Do you want a career in music? You might say yes, but how do I get started? Musicians, bands, singers, songwriters - all music artists must learn the "simple" art of communicating who they are and what they do beyond the music and lyrics. Indies have to be able to network and market themselves with other musicians, their fans and music business persons in this music career path. It's always best to start early and gain the knowledge to make the path easier.

If you are not blessed with natural charisma, are shy in public, and don't understand marketing basics, we offer the following two articles by Kevin Sinclair of http://www.musicianhome.com. They are Six Steps To Mastering The Art Of Great Conversation and Marketing - Back To The Basics with an occasion note in brackets [ ].

Six Steps To Mastering The Art Of Great Conversation

Becoming a great conversationalist takes proper planning and hard work. But, mastering the art of conversation is worth it. Outstanding conversation gets noticed and so does the person behind it.

Have you ever been to a social event and watched someone with an "Aw Shucks, I'm from a farm down home" look about them because they can't string two words together. They may be too shy or just have nothing to say. Either way, it's not pretty. In most cases it's not because a person can't hold a conversation, it's because they haven't prepared for conversation. As with everything in life, great conversationalists understand this simple but important tenet: proper planning prevents poor performance (P5).

The following six steps should help you be better prepared when you next enter a room full of people.

Say something

Readers are leaders and good conversationalists. Keep up to speed with the latest events happening in your world through newspapers, television and radio. There's always something topical happening ... make sure you know about it and that you have an opinion on it.

Ooze with confidence

Confidence is a massively attractive trait. People like talking to confident, authoritative and powerful people because it makes them feel safe. You'll attract more people to you than bees to a honey pot if you can appear confident.

Eye contact is critical

Make sure that you establish good eye contact when speaking to someone. Not the Charles Manson "thousand yard stare" kind of eye contact ... that's just scary. Never break eye contact when you're busy making an important point. If you start looking like a sneaky, edgy Coyote, it puts doubt on your integrity and on the validity of your words. So does touching your face, nose and ears whilst speaking. This just makes you look like a fibber. This normally happens when you're not sure of yourself or your subject. Sigmund Freud once said that the body oozes deceit.

Compliments help you make friends

We all love compliments don't we? Make the compliment sincere, brief and specific. Most important of all, the compliment must be based on fact otherwise it just becomes empty flattery. For instance, if you saw someone helping an old lady carry her groceries to her car, your compliment would go something like this: "When I saw you helping that old lady with her groceries the other day, I realized that you're a kind and thoughtful person." That compliment is based on evidence.

However, if you say, "That's a beautiful red tie you're wearing ... wow, you're a real go-getter and confident person." Well, that's just plain old flattery, isn't it? Wearing a red tie is certainly not evidence of any kind of personality trait, is it? Of course, if someone compliments you, you should react in an appropriate way. When you receive a compliment, simply smile and say "thank you". By doing this, you do wonders for your confidence and you acknowledge the thoughtfulness (and courage) of the person who complimented you.

Become a great listener

Any conversation should follow the 80/20 rule. You do 20 percent of the talking and the rest of the time you're listening. People like to talk, so let them talk. It makes them feel important and it turns you into a friend. And, the bonus is that they think you're a great conversationalist. Sometimes its hard to get someone to open up. You can get them talking by ...

Asking great questions

Ask elaborating questions that force a person to open up. Here are some examples: "Really?" "How did that make you feel?" "That must have been exciting. Tell me more."

Try some of these tips next time you're at a cocktail party or conference and become the person people want to listen to.

About Author:
Kevin Sinclair is the publisher and editor of besuccessfulnews.com, a site that provides information and articles on how to succeed in your own home or small business.

Marketing - Back To The Basics

Too many entrepreneurs and small businesses dive right into the thick of operations without following basic marketing principles. In business, as in most things, it pays to occasionally take a step back and evaluate the bigger picture. Drafting a very basic marketing plan can help you focus on the right activities, target the right customers and set the best prices.

The STP Process

STP is an acronym for Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning. It represents the highest level of your marketing plan. Ideally, you should start this process before your product or service is ever brought to market. It can still be a worthwhile exercise for and existing product though.

Segmentation [customer=fan base]

Segmentation is simply a fancy way of saying that you need to identify your customer. Think of every possible customer. Now, start slicing that population into smaller, more defined segments (thus the name segmentation). It's best to start big here - for example: split individuals from businesses. Now, go into each segment and divide it further. You could split individuals further by sex, age, socio-economic status, geographic location, interests and hobbies and so on. At this point, try not to pigeon-hole yourself by prematurely selecting segments. Remember, you're trying to find meaningful groups of potential buyers that will exhibit similar buying behavior.

Your goal is to identify opportunities. Once you feel that you have subdivided the market finely enough, then you need to evaluate those segments. Try to quantify how large those segments are, how reachable they are and how unique they are from one another (i.e. is there considerable overlap from one to the next?).

Targeting [fanbase and/or music industry]

The next step in the process is to look at the segments you've created and make some decisions about which segments of the market you are going to go after. One of the first decisions you will have to make is whether to target a "mass" market or instead whether your marketing efforts will be more focused. That is to say, are you going for a larger, less defined segment or a smaller more defined segment. The general trend over the last decade has been to go after more defined segments. The extreme here would be to go after a "niche" market which is just a fancy term for a highly defined, fairly small segment. The reasoning being that there will be less competition for those segments.

The segment you choose will have a profound effect on everything else you do. You need to carefully evaluate the most appropriate route for you business. When deciding between different market segments, you will want to try and identify the competition for that segment, the potential value of the segment (i.e. how large is it, how expensive will it be to reach it with advertising, etc.).

Positioning [placement of your music]

You've segmented the market and you've chosen the segment that you are going to go after. The last part of your marketing plan will help you define how you are going to "position" your product or service to your selected target market. This is where you will invoke another handy acronym called the 4P's - Product, Price, Promotion, and Place.

Product [you and your music]

You need to focus your product towards your selected target. What do the people/firms in your segment want or need? If you are working with an existing product, you need to make sure it fits your intended target market. If it doesn't, can it be altered so that it does? It's critical to match the right product with the right customer.

Price [gigs, CDs, merchandise]

Pricing your offering is an art. You must consider many factors, such as the stigma different price points carry - for example, being too inexpensive sends a message that your product may be junk. It's also critical to consider the competition here. It makes little sense to target the same market with a similar product at the same price as your competitors. Entire books have been written on the subject of pricing. The important thing to keep in mind is that you can't lock yourself into a cost plus profit margin way of thinking. Instead, consider the price independently at first in terms of your competition and the value your offering brings to the customer.

Promotion

This is what most people think of when they hear the word marketing. As you can see though, it takes a fair amount of work before you get to this point. Promotion is simply how you intend to get the message to your customers about your offering. Will you use commercials, magazine advertisements, radio, the internet, mass mailings?

Place

Lastly, you need to think about how you will bring your product to market. This is sometimes referred to as marketing channels. That is to say, will you sell directly to the customer or will you sell to distributors or retailers who will then sell it to customers? Where geographically will you sell your product? Will you sell entirely on-line or in a traditional brick-and-mortar location?

Bringing it all together

You probably already have some or most of your marketing plan in your head. However, following this tried-and-true process can help you formalize your marketing strategy and can help you to identify holes in your business and it sometimes can help you identify opportunities that you might not have thought to exploit.

About Author:
Kevin Sinclair is the owner of Personal and Business Success Resources, Be Successful News, Net-MLM-Profits.com, MusicianHome.com, and my-personal-growth.com - all web sites focused on providing you with relevant information to help you succeed in your business, or life.

Note: Do a simple Artistopia Blog search here for more great articles by Kevin Sinclair

Get Your Music Heard in Commercials and TV

Can you Talk the Talk?

I've worked in film and video for the last several years and have always been the one to place most of the music in commercials and TV shows I work on. What's surprised me throughout my career is discovering some musicians who know how to talk the talk, and some who don't. In my line of work, I would never know if a musician was a college student or a seasoned professional, provided they packaged their work and presented themselves correctly. So how can I tell? What do I hear?

Consequences of Not Talking the Talk:

The talk isn't always verbal, sometimes it comes in non verbal cues. They may not have a label on their CD or it's crinkled or smudged or looks like it was run off from my Apple II C computer in 1985. Presentation is important in that I should look at a CD in my hands and not even notice it. I don't want to think twice about it. And if I do notice it, the artwork is either amazing or it looks like a five year old put it together.

Jewel cases are often cracked. Perhaps this happened in route, but it's easy enough to buy a few padded envelopes to take care of this. And actually I prefer cases with spines so I can group the CD's I like together. This makes it difficult to do with skinny cases. They get lost in the shuffle, I have to take them off the shelf to see what they're called and ultimately they fade away into a jumble of discarded music.

I like CD's that come in groups. A mini box set of tracks for commercials and TV. The variety is what matters. A rock, pop, hip-hop, acoustic, and mellow collection of CD's makes life easier. I'm not forced to listen to the same thing over and over again. The single CD's that come in from musicians give me pause. The music might be fantastic and I wonder when they're going to send more. I often work with the same clients over and over again and they don't want to hear the same selection of music for every spot or show we do. I need fresh variety and the musicians who keep sending me their work are the ones who succeed.

Another headache I frequently encounter is when the tracks aren't laid out to spec. A simple beat of tone two seconds before the song starts would suffice and without it, my job is twice as hard. Maybe the play list or the duration of the song is missing from the jacket and I'll have no idea if I'm working with :30 tracks or 2:00 tracks. If I'm in a rush, I'll just skip over it completely and go onto the next CD.

And when the talk does come in verbal cues, that's the ultimate telltale sign. I might call a musician to find out if they have other work that sounds similar to a track I like. Maybe I just need the tempo quickened or a little more percussion. The musician will often blurt out "How much am I going to get paid?" before my clients have even decided if they want to use the track at all. It's not uncommon for a track to be used on a commercial until right before it airs. We may nix it because the melody needs to be reworked or the client may change their mind at the last minute. A seasoned musician would know this. They would understand payment isn't even discussed by me at all, that the producer on a commercial sends out all the contracts and payment.

Or, in their excitement they'll gush on about how this is the first time they're music has ever been bought and you can practically hear the tears bubbling over. While this is all very special, for them, I don't really have time for it. Throw yourself a party instead.

The Professionals:

But when I come across a professional, I know it. They're calm, they know the drill, they're happy to accommodate a fast turn around. They don't gasp when I say I need it the next day, or even in a few hours. And if they can't accommodate, they're direct about it. They don't stammer. They tell me when they can get it to me if at all. And if they can't help me out at all, they offer to send more tracks over as soon as they can for future use and wish me luck on my project.

I can tell from these professionals that they didn't just end up trying to compose for TV and commercials by chance. They researched it, they set up shop to specifically cater to my industry. Sure, they may be in a band and looking at their work for hire as a day job until they get signed, but they never let me know that. They don't make me feel as though they're doing me a big favor by lowering their standards for my product and client. They exude experience, whether they have it or not.

Their CD's are laid out to industry expectation. I know how long their tracks are, they don't name them obscure names like A Farewell to John Lennon. Instead they're called what they sound like. Jazzy Nights and Acoustic Melodies. Although not the most creative names, I like knowing I can flip over the CD and immediately recognize if this track might work just based on its name.

But more importantly I feel their confidence and faith in themselves. There's nothing worse than working with a musician who is unsteady on their own feet. Selecting music is a small part of my day. I might spend a half an hour in my week looking through CD's and I want it to work. I want to hear your best, I want to know that when I press play I might find the perfect track. If a musician makes my life easier, that's when I know I'm working with a professional.

About Author:
Susan http://yourmusicheard.com

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com

How to Promote Your CD

Congratulations! Your debut CD is now recorded, replicated, packaged, and ready for market. It’s an amazing feeling to see the fruit of your labor in front of you, nicely packaged as a CD that’s ready to be sold alongside the big wigs in the industry. One small problem: you don't have the backing and capital that the big wigs do to promote your CD... and you just know your CD can be a huge success in the market.

Promoting a CD can seem like a daunting task at first, especially if you haven't done anything like this before. Here are a few tips and ideas on how you can get started promoting, and selling your music CD.

1. First, you should plan a launch party. Tell all your friends and fans when the CD is going to launch, and generate some buzz. Let local papers and shops know as well, and have them help you spread the word.

2. Network - tell everyone you know about your new CD. Ransack that mental Rolodex of yours, and hit everyone you know, and tell them to do the same. Believe it or not, this is probably your best resource!

3. Have a website before your CD launches, and use it to promote your CD. Set up a page on Myspace and other similar sites that allow navigators to sample your new tracks.

4. Look into setting up an email list for your fans. Before the CD launches, send out an email letting everyone know. It’s cheap, it’s easy and it’s a fast way to get the word out about this and other upcoming events.

5. Write a press release and put it on your website. You can find lots of examples and instructions of how to do this online.

6. Contact the music reporter(s) at your local newspaper(s). Don't leave out the smaller papers - sometimes they are the heart and soul of the local music scene.

6. Offer a free copy of your CD to local radio stations. Remember the school stations - they frequently tend to favor local artists. If they play it, it could pay off quite well for you.

7. Approach internet radio stations, and offer them the rights to play your CD for free. Every time they play a track, you receive free advertising.

8. Call DJ's and DJ companies and offer a free copy. If they play your CD, that's more free advertising.

9. Get a barcode for your CD. This can help encourage retailers to sell your CD.

10. Get your CD sold at online distributors, such as CDBaby.com or Amazon.com

11. Sell merchandise with your name or the band's name on it. This is not only a little extra revenue - it's great advertising.

12. Find out if there is a music show on your local TV stations, and see if you can be featured.

13. Cross-promotional deals - Talk to another similar band, and work out a cross-promotional deal. ie. They promote your CD at their shows, and you promote their CD at your show. Or even better...

14. Work out cross-promotional deal with several bands. Each band contributes a track or two to a sampler CD. Then each band gives away the sampler CD as a "bonus" with every CD they sell of their own.

15. Naturally, you should promote your CD at every show you play

There are lots of things you can do to realize your dream faster. These are some simple ideas on how you can begin to promote your CD, and get the word out to your future fans. Good luck!

About Author:
Rashi Singh is with Duplium Corporation, a CD Duplication company based in Dallas and Toronto. Duplium provides top quality CD and DVD Replication, customized printing and packaging, and full-scale fulfillment solutions. Visit http://www.duplium.com for more information or to receive a quote.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

MP3 Encoding Technology

The MP3 is a complete godsend for anyone who enjoys and appreciates good music. Not only does it afford users the convenience of purchasing music online and ripping from purchased CDs, it also provides the utmost ease in portability. There are more MP3 players on the market than I can name. These players allow you to download hundreds and in some cases thousands of MP3’s to take along with you anywhere. I create MP3 CD’s containing up to 120 of my favorite songs for my listening pleasure in my car. But how can so many audio files get stored on my 800MB (Megabyte) CD?

MP3 Encoders and MP3 converters are the software that creates MP3s by using an MP3 compression and decompression algorithm. For example, an average 3 minute WAV file can be as large as 15MB. Using MP3 encoders and MP3 converters, a large WAV file can be cut down to a much smaller and more portable MP3 file of about 3MB.

MP3 stands for MPEG Audio Layer 3. At layer 3, psychoacoustics principles are used to find and remove all unnecessary sound data, leaving behind only the crucial audio data. By unnecessary sound data I mean all of the stuff that we humans don’t hear anyway. Most people can’t hear sounds above 16 kHz so why would you want it hogging your disk or hard drive space? Non-music audio such as speeches, sermons, audio books and comedy albums, can be reduced even less based on this.

Compression occurs after the essential data has been separated from the redundant data. At this stage, the same amount of data can be stored using fewer bits and less space. The bit rate is the ratio of the number of bits transferred between two devices per second. The higher the bit rate, the higher the sound quality. The lower the bit rate ratio, the lower the sound quality. 192 Kb/s is the most popular bit rate used in peer-to-peer networks. For the most part, MP3 converters and encoders today use variable bit rates. This allows for much better quality audio because the bit rate conforms to the dynamics of the audio frames being stored which in turn keeps more of the important music data.

There are dozens of MP3 compressor and encoder software programs available online and at stores. Some of the main encoding engines are: LAME, Blade Enc, Fraunhofer Encoders and Xing. Deciding which MP3 encoding engine technology is right for you depends on your individual needs and preferences. Blaze Media Pro is an excellent option if you're looking for a powerful, yet easy to use, all-in-one multimedia solution.

About Author:
Mansi Gupta writes about MP3 encoder. Learn more at http://www.blazemp.com/downloads.html.

Article Source: http://www.articlecity.com/

For more information on MP3 Encoding check out the following links:

Fact and Fiction About Digital Audio By Craig Anderton
http://www.harmony-central.com/articles/tips/digital_audio/

Free Your Music: How to Convert Digital Audio Files by Bruce Fries

Creating quality audio-files using Windows, L.A.M.E., Ogg Vorbis
http://jthz.com/mp3/

MP3 Encoding Guide
a.k.a. "How to encode perfect-sounding MP3s"
http://www.nolody.com/mp3/

The Main Reasons You Are Not Getting A Record Deal

For mostly stupid reasons, a lot of unsigned artist might feel that getting a record deal with a major or independent label is easy to do, and with a contract success will be guaranteed. And to do this, they feel that all they have to do is send out a few demos and BAM there it is like magic, but thats not the case cause over a million artist send in demos every year and over a million are rejected. So I will give you the major reasons why.

Reason Number 1 - Sending unsolicited recordings

Sending unsolicited recordings before you send out any demo packages you must always call, email, mail or fax the record label and ask permission to send in your demo package, cause most record companies do not accept demos just sent out of no where, just for the simple fact that you can send them your demo, and then a month later an artist comes out with a song similar to yours, and then you would be able to sue cause you could say that they got the idea from the demo that you send in, so for the record companies protection they keep track of whos demo CDs that they listen to, just to protect them from a lawsuit (note that all unsolicited demos will be returned without being opened) so dont waste your money on mailing the CD.

Reason Number 2 - The packaging

The next reason has to do with demo packaging cause 50% of all the demos sent out to record labels, look cheap with tape all over the envelope, or some messy hand writing with graffiti of their Rap group on the front and back, and the envelope without a return address are some of the main symptoms of poor packaging, but an overall poor quality in the packaging of the demo and the package will not be opened regardless of the music, cause they feel that if the package is of poor quality then the music and the artist are also of that same type of quality.

Reason Number 3 - Your press kit is weak

This one has to do with the contents of the package, as far the press kit it self cause this is what they look at first, before playing your demo. The press kit must include a biography, an 8x10 photo of the artist or group, and a demo CD, the first parts of the press kit are the most crucial to getting your song played, and the first of the two which is the picture and this needs to be of a good quality as far as the look of the picture and the quality of the paper.

(Please do not use a picture printed from your computer, Which may cause automatic rejection)

And the other part is the bio and after glancing at your picture and only if the picture is acceptable they will then begin to look at your bio and this should be a good look into the people behind the music, including where they came from, how they started in music, what they have done, in music and where they plan on going with their music.

(Please do not hand write your bio, For which may cause automatic rejection)

A failure to make a quality press kit will definitely hurt your chances of getting your CD played, and that is only half the battle, so it would be advised that you duplicate a good cd with printed labels.
(Please no handwriting on the CD)

Reason Number 4 - No contact information

No Contact Information on any thing. All material sent out must include the same contact information as far as your name, address, email, and phone number on the bottom of your bio, place this information on the bottom of the picture and on the demo CD, plus try to include a business card as well. Basically saying that, if the record labels do not know how to reach you, then they wont reach you. So it would just be a waste to even listen to the CD if they cant call you back.

Reason Number 5 - Your demo is wack

Now that we have gotten the A&Rs attention it now boils down to the demo CD, and first of all if your demo is wack then thats just it you are totally wack don't get mad or complain just accept it and move on to a new career, but if you are not wack and just misunderstood then the next few reasons should help you out of a slump.

Reason Number 6 - Poorly recorded material

Number 6 is a reason that sometimes is beyond an artists control, and it has to do with the quality of the recording of the CD, and its due to the fact that the recording industry is like the car industry, where the more you pay for a car then the better the car functions, but all cars not matter how much you pay do the same thing, Drive! And thats the same in music with studios where the expensive ones function better than the garage studios, but they basically do the same job.

So the main ways to record good music no matter where you record, is to first remember sound levels, please do not record your vocals or the beat to loud into your computer and do not burn the CD with the songs very loud, cause it would be better to turn up the volume on a low volume song than it is to turn down a song where the sound is to distorted from being burn on the CD to loud, and another sure fire way get a good sound is to find a good engineer to mix down your music. Plus it is always a plus to consider some digital mastering which would in turn make your CD ready for radio or video play.

Next in this section I want to talk about the format of the songs and how the vocals were recorded. Like 3-4 double and ad-lib tracks covering the main vocals of the song so the listener can barely understand, another bad thing is to have to long of an intro into the song where the beat is just playing or the artist is just talking for more than 8 bars. Then you need to cut that out of all your songs (demo wise) and get straight to the point weather you put a hook first or you start with a verse, do not let the intro go on for more than 4 bars.

Reason Number 7 - Picking the wrong type of songs

Reason number 7 has to do with you picking the Wrong type of songs to put on your demo CD, and the worst type of song off the top is a slow song. Unless you are vocalist and your main focus is to sing slow songs or ballads for the market that your are trying to sell records in, then it is best to be avoided especially if you plan on entering the mainstream market of record sales, cause in this business of music a majority of the time, it is accustomed to record singles for radio play, cause lots of radio play equals a high number of record sales for that album, and if an A&R cannot envision your music on the radio or playing in the club.

They would not be able to see you as an artist that can sell records. Now just try to think about how many slow songs are big on the radio right now. Not to many huh? Another thing to consider when choosing the songs for your demo is to eliminate to explicit lyrics from the music cause it kills all chances of it being played on the radio. I even remember an instance where a certain well know A&R took a demo he received to a club the same night he got it and had the Dj play the song to watch the crowd react to the music, and the response was so good that he signed the artist to a major label deal two days later. So you need to be ready.

Reason Number 8 - To many songs

Now we are at number 8, and it is to have too much material, just remember that a demo CD is not an album, so you do not need to put any skits on your demo or long shot outs to your crew and then do not put To much material on your demo, just because you and your friends think that all the songs are equally good, please dont fool your self, cause when you put to many songs, you start to test the patience of the A&R and it first shows a lack of professionalism and more of a desire to have your music heard than it is a desire to sell records.

Believe me that there is a big difference between the two. So try to understand that record companies are working hard to sell records and they are not here to share the art of music with the world. So just try to limit it to 3 or 4 songs and nothing over 5 minutes long.

Reason Number 9 - Sending the wrong music to the wrong label

Now we have reason number 9 and this one happens quite a lot and its when an artist sends their demo to any record labels and it has to do with reason number 1 where you need to call the labels and find out if they produce your type of music. Cause wouldn't it be a waste of time for a country singer to send her demo to def jam records. Where there will be a very high chance that she will be rejected due to the fact that this certain record company might not produce or even know how to market and sell that certain type of music. But then again the major labels can handle pretty much anything.

Still it is advised that you do your research by going on the companies websites and check the rosters of artist that have already signed to the labels and see if your style of music fits in or if there is any room for you being a new artist. Where you might see 7 rappers out of 8 artists on a certain label, then that company may not be looking to sign any rappers at the moment until they can release the artist they already have. But then again if you are that good then other artist will not stand in your way, where the label might release your album first. You can never tell.

Reason Number 10 - You are just not what they want

You must remember that this industry is ran by people and not a machine that always makes the right choice, and you can actually have a all the bases covered and came with a damn near perfect demo package and still the A&R wasn't feeling it. Then don't be discouraged cause the person you gave your demo to could have been having problems at home, or about to be fired from that company or thinking about leaving, and they just couldn't hear that good marketable music, or they had already signed enough artist for the year.

And a few major reasons is a lack of development in the image, sound, and star quality of the artist, no experience in live performances or ever selling records as well as a lack of team players like a manager, agent and entertainment lawyer, cause it is always a major plus for a record company to see other professionals believing in your project as much as you do, to where it helps the record company believe in you as much.

About Author:
Keishon Martin is the founder of KeyWorldWide Inc. which owns and operates www.GetRichinMusic.com, www.AllVidCity.com, and www.GetMoneyMoney.com - visit their websites

Singers and Bands - The Artist Showcase

After attending countless artist showcases through the years as a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency, I’ve decided to touch on some practical ideas that will help promote your artist career and give you an increased chance at a possible record deal. After exploring much of the information available online, I determined to stay with easily grasped concepts and ideas that would help artists avoid some of the common mistakes.

First let’s make it clear that not every act deserves an artist showcase, at least not in the light of pandering to record labels in an ongoing campaign to secure a record deal. If you’ve read any of my articles, you know I try to tell it like it is and so once again, I will not shy away from the truth that not every artist deserves an outlet to showcase their “talent.” The reason is not simply because the band is no good, but because maybe there is not a maturity or serious quality from the members or a definitive goal in place that everyone is rallying around. Other reasons may include lack of a unique playing quality or an act that is simply playing cover tunes. Let’s talk about cover tunes for a minute.

Don’t play cover tunes unless they are specifically asked for, or unless you are a cover band playing wedding gigs, etc. If you are truly looking to get a record deal, then showcase your own music. This notion that your audience can relate to you and your band simply because you are playing music that everyone knows is false and misguided logic. Would you have cared, the first time you heard one of your favorite groups, that you knew any of the material – I bet not. You were so into the music and groove you wanted to hear more and buy the record. You think of big groups today that at one point were nobody, and just imagine hearing them for the first time, would it have mattered? – I bet I’m right again. Moral of the story, play your own music.

Before you begin to look at the possibility of a showcase, look at your objectives. Each showcase doesn’t necessarily have to be about the record deal, but that should certainly be your ultimate objective and therefore, everything that you bring to the table ought to encompass and revolve around that goal. For example, you might showcase a particular groove and set of songs, which you would like to take out on the track and test. Is the audience really digging it or is it not you. Likewise, you can showcase for a lesser goal, but yet an important stepping stone to a record deal signing like pushing upcoming events or visibility to obtain additional bookings, etc.

As you start planning a showcase, who will attend? – Friends or will music industry personnel be present? Each artist showcase ought to be driven by a marketing approach. Do you have an artist logo, professional bios, pictures and press kits made? These can not be a “friend of the group did it for us,” looking press kits. They have to shine and look pro like music industry individuals are already in play and are looking at your act. Don’t overlook these elements. You might check out artist press kits, bios and press blurb writing at ReelMusician.com.

How will you go about promoting your showcase? You have to look beyond stapling flyers to telephone polls, etc. Have you thought about creating a jingle or station ID or local radio personality piece for free in hopes that you will get some radio and TV exposure? You ought to look at local radio stations and write a mix according to the style of the station and your band – see if you can’t get some promotion that way. Cable TV advertising is fairly inexpensive. You might consider going in with everyone in the band and buying some advertising from cable or local TV stations.

If you don’t already have it, and I’m sure most do, get your web site up and going and make sure that you have a page for upcoming events along with pictures, bio, contact page. Websites do not have to be expensive. You can get your website hosted for $5 - $10 a month. You most likely won’t get a lot of traffic, but you will get credibility with the public and within the music industry crowd – This will prove to be invaluable later on down the road.

What will your showcase consist of and what can you do to stand out from the crowd? Your act needs to look like they’ve been at this for years with a comfort level exuding from who the band is. How long is the showcase? You’ve heard the old expression, always leave the crowd wanting to hear more. Far better to do a rather short showcase with knock out tunes then a lengthy, drawn out, can’t wait to get out of there, gig. Work with your song lineup and tweak the number and length of your set at rehearsal until it feels right. Have everything figured right up front. Who’s going to speak when and try to hit all of the “what ifs,” as much as you can. You want this showcase to “wow” the listeners and create some momentum and energy.

Re-think your image and make sure that it matches who you are. People are not that stupid and can almost immediately recognize when an image is forced and manipulated and not natural to the group. Better to have a natural image, true to who you are, than an image that you think just has to go with your style of music.

In closing, make each and every showcase count, with calculated marketing and a thought through line-up so when the music industry execs start showing up, they have something to go back to the office with!

About Author:
Mr Gauger is a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency and is the founder of http://www.ReelMusician.com You may contact the author at tgauger@reelmusician.com or 615-300-5030. In addition, Free e-books "The Jingle Singer’s Guide," and “Secrets To Great Song Demos,” may be downloaded at http://www.ReelMusician.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

Article Series – Genres: Metal and Rock

Classic Heavy Metal Music by Deon Melchior

Millions of Americans, whether they actually lived in the era or not, love classic rock. There are thousands of classic rock radio stations around the country. With all of the popular rock bands around there is still no comparison to the music known as classic rock. Classic rock entailed a wide variety of different music styles including some heavy metal music.

There are many heavy metal fans. These fans are often known as metal heads. While there are still a few heavy metal bands around today, but it is apparent that the heavy metal scene is not exactly what it used to be. There are many groups that try to play heavy metal music, but their music can not always be considered straight up heavy metal.

Many modern day bands are known for trying to combine a number of music genres together. When hip hop music first became popular there were a number of bands who were trying to incorporated heavy metal and hip hop music together. While many music listeners enjoyed this combination there were many who were outraged.

Even with some fans outraged there were many bands who still continued to combine multiple music genres; however, a number of true heavy metal bands stuck to their roots and continued to support only the heavy metal music genre. This was not just an event that happened with heavy metal. There are many other music genres, including country music and pop music, that have been combined together.

What makes a true heavy metal band? Well many metal music players and music lovers would come up with a number of reasons, but many individuals claim that it has to do with the musical instruments played and the way that they are played. There are many heavy metal band that were famous for their loud playing guitars. Other band members of the band included a singer, a drummer, and a base player.

During the classic rock years many heavy metal bands were referred to as hair bands. This was because many band members wore long and outrageously styled hair. In addition to their hair, the outfits of many earlier heavy metal bands were something that is rarely seen today.

It is rare to find a band that is solely labeled as a heavy metal band anymore. There are bands that may be considered a sub-genre of heavy metal. Many heavy metal music styles are also referred to as hard rock or progressive rock. Even though heavy metal may not be what it used to be back in the day there are still many individuals who enjoy listening to new rock bands. If the new music does not meet their satisfaction they can always turn their radio on to their local classic rock station to experience the real stuff.

About Author:
Deon Melchior is the Editor and Publisher of Article Click. For more FREE articles for your ezine and websites visit ArticleClick.com. Article Click is a free content article directory.

Rock Music Has Many Genres by Kati Makat

Rock music is a popular from of music that is accompanied by instruments like drums, guitar and bass. Rock music in itself has many styles that were incorporated by musicians who loved this music. One can come across rock music where instruments like synthesizers, piano and organ is also used. Rock music began in the early fifties in United States and the United Kingdom and like all popular music has it own loyal fan following. Rock music was subsequently mixed with many other elements of music to give their own touch to rock music. Rock song subsequently over the years had many new genres added in its fold.

So in 1970s jazz was blended with rock to create jazz rock music, and then it was blended with folk music resulting in folk rock and later Latin, soul and funk music also had its influences on rock music at times. Today we have different categories under rock music and some of the popular ones are heavy metal rock, progressive rock, blues rock, soft rock, punk rock and techno rock among others. In the 1980’s and 1990’s many new additional genres of rock music such as Brit pop rock, Indie rock, alternative rock, hard rock and grunge style rock were introduced. The United Kingdom is another country where rock country flourished and British rock is also as famous as American rock music all over the world.

One of the greatest rock music band The Beatles is from Britain and they are famous worldwide for their songs and rock music. Through 1970 Pink Floyd was the most influential band in the rock music scene. This group had four artists and all of them were from Britain. The kind of rock music that Pink Floyd was sang was known as psychedelic rock. The folk scene combined with rock gave the new term folk rock. Here all the traditional songs were combined with the instruments that were traditionally associated with rock music. This genre of music was pioneered by Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie. Some of the other popular rock folk rock music artists include Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and The Band.

Progressive rock is one genre of rock music which went beyond the established musical norms and was more experimental in nature. Singers and musicians that were associated with this genre loved to experiment with different types of instruments, beats, musical forms of type of songs. Bands that played progressive rock music borrowed elements from jazz, folk, electronic and classical music to experiment with rock that turned out to be very successful. Some of the bands that were into singing progressive rock included Camel, Can, Barclay James Harvest, King Crimson, Magma and Yes among many others. Music be it of any kind rock music, house music, gospel music, folk music or country music each has its own touch and of course its own group of loyal followers.

About Author:
Kati Makat loves all kinds of music like rock, hip hop, country, pop, rap and reggae. She refers http://www.ez-tracks.com as one of her favorite sites for downloading music, free MP3 downloads, online music, Rock Music.
Article Source: http://www.isnare.com

Article Series – Genres: Japanese and Arabic Music

Japanese Music by Tom Takihi

Music in Japan is called ongaku, which when directly translated can be taken to mean as sound for comfort. Although mostly identified nowadays by the outside world for its pop, “bubblegum” type of songs, Japanese music is essentially an eclectic combination of musical influences from all over the world. Much as it is steeped in local tradition and history, the scales, instruments and styles however were borrowed and loosely adapted from neighboring countries such as China, Korea and Indonesia and has evolved to integrate Western musical styles such as jazz, rock, ska and reggae.

There is a definitive emphasis on words rather than the instrumentation and one East Asian musical scholar has attributed this to the Japanese “love for storytelling and preoccupation with ritual.” Some examples of this would be the shomyo, or Buddhist chanting and the Japanese folk songs or min’yo. There are all sorts of min’yo but can be generally categorized according to occasions when they are sung. There are work songs, religious songs, songs used during special gatherings like weddings, funerals and celebrations and songs for children or lullabies. These songs are most often passed or transmitted through family generations. One old form of traditional music coming from the Ainu people in northern Japan would be the yukar, or mimicry – a form of epic poetry or epics in songs.

Most Japanese music genres even up to the present make use of the shamisen, or a three-stringed musical instrument most commonly referred to as the Japanese guitar. In kouta, or short songs typically sung by geisha and nagauta or long songs as those performed in Japanese theatres noh and kabuki, the shamisen provides the backbone for instrumentation. An evolution from the jiuta or the earthy, classical style of shamisen music and developed by blind musicians Shirakawa Gunpachiro and Takahashi Chikuzan is the tsugaru-jamisen where there is more free improvisation and flashy fingerwork on the instrument.

Another instrument most often used in Japanese music is the taiko, or the Japanese drum. This percussion instrument dates as far back as the 6th and 7th centuries, and during periods of war was used mainly to keep the enemies at bay and to communicate commands to the warriors. The taiko comes in various sizes and is usually an integral part of the musical ensembles especially during festivals. There are other traditional Japanese instruments like the biwa, a short-necked fretted lute; the ryuteki, a flute made of bamboo and used in gagaku which is the style of music associated to the Japanese Imperial Court; the kokyu, a string instrument played with a bow which has a shape, sound and fabrication unique to Japan unlike the shamisen. The kokyu has even figured in non-traditional genres such as Japanese jazz and blues.

Developments in the late 19th and early 20th centuries opened the ears of the Japanese people to new genres such as the enka, the Japanese version of American melodramatic country ballads, Western pop or kayokyoku. Kayokyoku later on evolved to J-pop or Japanese pop - a style with a more definitive Western influence. With rock and roll sweeping the whole world in the 1960s and 1970s, J-rock or Japanese rock invaded the Japanese music scene as well. More noteworthy however is how Western classical music and jazz has flourished in Japan to the point where the country has produced several famous musicians like Sadao Watanabe for jazz, composer Toru Takemitsu and conductor Seiji Ozawa. Japan is also identified as one of the most important markets for these types of music.

About Author:
Tom Takihi is the owner of Japanese Music Website. To gain more information please visit http://www.japandiscovery.com/leisure/music/index.html
Article Source: http://www.isnare.com

Contemporary Western, Middle Eastern Music And Arabic Music by Eric Starr

The music of the Middle East and the Arabic nations dates back thousands of years, and has influenced countless other musical traditions. Contemporary Middle Eastern music combines the traits of traditional Eastern folk music with popular music of the Western hemisphere, including elements of classical music. Ghazal, Qawali, Maghrebi, Kahleeji and Arabic Pop are just a few of the numerous styles of music emanating from Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and the Persian Gulf in the musics early modern forms, Middle Eastern composers integrated their folk styles with Western influenced orchestras, though currently the trend has turned back toward smaller ensembles. Pre Western Middle Eastern music utilized smaller ensembles.

Traditional Middle Eastern rhythms covered a wide array of odd time signatures. However, as a result of Western musics influence, a large portion of contemporary Middle Eastern music is composed in duple or other meters containing even numbers. Thus, the first two following drum set patterns are written in 4/4. Their overall sound and rhythm serve as accurate examples of traditional Middle Eastern music adapted for the drum set. Like the 5/4 time signature, 7/4 meter is relatively easy to count. It's normal to count a song in 7/4 in one of three ways: 1) count all seven beats per measure; 2) count a measure of 4/4 followed by a measure of 3/4; 3) count a measure of 3/4 followed by a measure of 4/4.

The Arabic nations music along with Middle East music dates back thousands of years, and has influenced countless other musical styles during its evolution. Instruments such as the Oud - a pear shaped stringed instrument, Persian Tars - a plucked and strummed instrument, similar to an Oud, with a sound board of stretched skin rather than wood, Neys - wind instrument, Qanouns - horizontal instrument with many strings, resembling a dulcimer and Kamenches and Rebabas - both fiddle like, bowed instruments, still characterize this musical genre. Notable Arabic musicians include Kazem el Saher, Nawal el Zoughbi, Najwa Karam, Assi el Hillani, George Wassouf, and Amro Diab. Middle Eastern rhythms were originally devised in antiquity on frame drums, the Arabic tabla, the dumbek, the darabuka, finger cymbals, and other traditional percussion instruments. Though an authentic Middle Edstern ensemble still contains such instruments, the drum set is often used in modern day Middle Eastern ensembles.

Probably the most famous rock song written in 7/4 is Pink Floyd's "Money". As with other styles, there are countless variations and embellished drum grooves to play in 7/4. The tempo range is similar to that of 5/4, with quarter note equal from one hundred to one hundred and thirty two beats per minute. The 5/8 meter is often more difficult to feel than 5/4 or 7/4 because its normally played at a faster tempo. One practical way of counting this meter is to sound out all five eighth notes per measure. However, due to its faster tempo, it may be more practical to break down the meter into two separate groupings, either a 3 plus 2 grouping or a 2 plus 3 grouping. The pulse of 5/8 meter is often brisk, with eighth note equal from one hundred and ninety two to three hundred and twenty beats per minute.

About Author:
Eric Starr - Like many Jazz drummers Eric is using Tama Drums www.drumsoloartist.com/drumstore/Tama_Drums.php, Meinl cymbals www.drumsoloartist.com/drumstore/Meinl.php and a few African Drums www.drumsoloartist.com/drumstore/African_Drums.php in his setup. Eric is an member of Drum Solo Artist where he is answering drum related questions, and helping drummers with tips and advice.
Article Source: http://www.victortunggal.com

Article Series – Genres: Christian and Pop Music

The Many Genres of Christian Music by Justin Palmer

We all probably know a couple religious hymns, but today's fast-paced society is changing, and so is the style of music we listen to. Christian music has developed tremendously over the last century to represent the changing style of music that we enjoy. Contemporary music offers up-to-date music styles with the same traditional Christian message within the lyrics. In fact, Contemporary Christian music is growing quickly in popularity, and so is the number of subgenres offered to those interested in listening. In this article we discuss a few of the newer genres in Christian music.

Contemporary

Contemporary music literally covers all genres of new age Christian music, but is most commonly associated with a new movement of Christian music that has alternative rock, pop, and country sounds. The contemporary movement began in the 1960s, with this type of music then referred to as Jesus music. Some Christians dispute whether or not the contemporary tones fit into their religion, but contemporary is a popular genre that gives Protestant listeners an alternative faith-based style of music. The growth of contemporary styles has been strong since the mid 1990s, and newer artists and subgenres help to continue the expansion of Christian music.

Hip Hop

Christian hip hop, or gospel rap, is a unique genre of Christian music. Due to the often sinful nature of mainstream rap lyrics, it has been a tough road for Christian rap artists to gain popularity. However, beginning in the 1990s Christian rap has become popular with the younger generation looking for an uplifting form of music that reflects their urban lifestyle. The most popular innovators among Christian hip hop artists would likely be DC Talk, who took the music scene by storm in the late 1980s before making a switch to a more pop sound in the mid 1990s. Christian hip hop is a fabulous way for Christians to spread their faith to kids from the street and other youth looking for a fresh music genre.

Gospel

If gospel music does not fill your sole with spirit, then I am not sure what can! Gospel music is uplifting, inspiring, and fun to listen to. When most think of gospel music, churches in the south come to mind. In fact, gospel music has been thought to have started during times of slavery in the late 1800s. The genre of gospel became more defined and gained popularity in the first quarter of the twentieth century, and is now listened to worldwide. Gospel music is known for its strong vocals surrounded by electric guitars, bass, and drums. Gospel music thrives today and is certainly considered a staple of Christian music.

Christian Rock

Christian rock music covers a lot of ground with many different subgenres contained within the rock category. The "sex, drugs, and rock 'n roll" explosion in the 1960s certainly made many Christians wary of jumping into the rock scene, but by the early 1970s Christian rock bands began to separate themselves from a demonic image, and instead produced Christian lyrics with rock tones. Today many bands are considered Christian rock artists, some more devoted to the Christian title than others. Although some might not realize this, the band U2 was a catalyst for Christian rock in the 1990s based on their enormous success beginning in the 1980s.

This is hardly a complete list of Christian music genres, but sampling some of these genres will give you a good taste of the great listening Christian music offers. Finding your favorite genre is important and will certainly enhance your experience. Being able to listen to your favorite Christian bands at home or on the go is a relaxing way to worship throughout the day.

About Author:
Justin Palmer runs the online store for http://www.C28.com where you can find Christian clothing, music and more. The C28 Christian music store, http://www.c28.com/new-christian-music-store.asp, has the hottest selection of today's Christian music!

Pop Music by Mary Rose

Pop music is a liberal and vague category of modern music not marked by artistic considerations but by its promising audience or future market. Pop is music composed with calculated objective to influence the majority of its contemporaries.

In contrast to music that calls for education or arrangement to appreciate, a significant characteristic of pop music is that anyone is able to enjoy it. Artistic concepts such as complex musical form and aesthetics are not a matter in the writing of pop songs, the key aim being audience satisfaction and commercial triumph. Although the aim of pop music is to sell records and do really well in the charts, it does not require wide acclaim or commercial success. There are bad or unsuccessful pop songs.

Originally the term was an abbreviation of, and synonymous to, popular music, but developed around 1954 to express a particular musical category. The stylistic origins of pop music is folk, jazz, R&B, rock and roll, traditional pop music.The typical instruments are electric guitar, bass guitar, drum kit and keyboard. The cultural origins date back to 1950's in the United States. It is popular worldwide since 1960s.

The standard format of pop music is the song, usually less than five minutes in length. The instrumentation can range from an orchestra to a lone singer. In spite of this wide choice, a standard lineup in a pop band includes a lead guitarist, a bassist, a drummer (or an electronic drum machine), a keyboardist and one or more singers, generally not themselves instrumentalists.

Pop songs are generally conspicuous by a heavy rhythmic element, a mainstream style and traditional structure. The most common modification is strophic in form and focuses on memorable melodies, catchy hooks and the appeal of the verse-chorus-verse arrangement, with the chorus sharply contrasting the verse melodically, rhythmically and harmonically.

Lyrics in pop compositions are usually simple and speak of universal experiences and feelings, moving away from incomprehensible or debatable issues.The international appeal of pop was evident in the new millennium, with artists from around the world influencing the genre and local variants merging with the mainstream. As of 2008, pop music is now currently the most popular style of music of youth culture, making competition with hip hop, dance and country.

About Author:
Mary Rose has authored several books including books related to music and harmony. For more information login http://www.casanads.com/bm/me.htm

Articles Source: http://www.articlecity.com

Article Series – Genres: Jazz and The Greatest Rock Song

Jazz Music: The Many Styles by Goodness Maseko

The essence of the appeal of Jazz music has expanded and became reinvented from the use of elements found in African drumming, spiritual and hymn music, bluegrass hillbilly music, blues, impressionist, and classical traits to newer sounds. Jazz music became popular from radio and underground clubs that influenced other parts of the world. For instance, Europe's French Jazz scene created Gypsy Jazz and South America's Brazilian and Afro-Cuban Jazz sounds. Not only did make it's mark on the world, but it also found its way back to its roots through urban contemporary gospel music of percussion as well as brass instruments.

Hard Bop-From the middle of 1950's the church's spiritual and gospel roots of African style returned to the Jazz music which assisted in the making of Rhythm and Blues. One example of this music is Davis' work titled "Walkin".

Mainstream- From the 1950's era, Jazz improvisation changed from single line melodic ornamentation to chordal which appeared again as a loose form of Jazz music in the later part of the 1970's and 1980's. This style was influenced by the cool, classical, and hard bop Jazz styles.

At this time, Jazz music moved away from the basic melodic element of the piece to produce a more abstract chordal sound of dissonant tones, and chromatic patterns. The dissonant tones in Jazz music can be heard when two tones are played simultaneously in a clashing manner that can either sound strange or terrible depending on how the tones of the chord fit together as melody notes from a particular key. Clashing sounds can also occur from the use of lowered fifths and raised fourths.

Smooth Jazz- From the 1970's and 1980's Jazz became a lighter pop style of fusion which begat muzak an electronic form of popular music on the radio. This music made popular by Kenny G., Najee and Grover Washington Jr. is played in many businesses to entertain customers.

Today's jazz music

With jazz music today, musicians of the electronica age were St. Germain, Jazzanova, Portishead, Apex Twin and more who used live Jazz music to beats. The Cinematic Orchestra and Julien Lourau from Europe's France were very successful with this style of music. However, those musicians who master keeping the traditional Jazz music combined with new elements are the most loyal to the style from which it came. In the millennium, Jazz elements became a part of the American Pop scene with the artist Norah Jones, and Christina Aguilera, Amy Winehouse.

Rhythm and Blues music is a product of Jazz music that describes funk and soul. The musicians who successfully made their mark with this sound of jazz, boogie-woogie gospel, bebop and blues reinvented R&B into contemporary styles. Artist such as Robert Palmers, Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, Prince, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Keith Sweat, Mariah Carey, En Vogue, Guy, Jodeci, Mary J. Blige, Levert, Teddy Riley, Justin Timberlake, Aaliyah, Missy Elliot, Lauren Hill, Brian McKnight, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis are a few of the many people who've made this music popular. Later on Pop artist like Pink, Britney Spears and Gwen Stephanie used R&B musical elements in their songs. The wheel of the evolvement of Jazz music keeps turning into new styles, yet turns back at different times toward the root where it began.

About Author:
Goodness Maseko - If you want more information and tips on fun, games and entertainment click here: Global entertainment center and get more general entertainment. Please bookmark the website for future reference.
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The Greatest Rock Song of All Time by Terry Mansfield

Rock and roll music originated in the American South in the early 1950s and then quickly spread throughout the rest of the country and ultimately the world. By the late '50s and early '60s, rock and roll had become what many thought was the most popular genre of music in the western world. It has largely maintained a very high level of popularity since then, despite evolving over time into various sub-genres that are now lumped together under the generic term "rock".

In the more than 60 years since rock and roll burst onto the national and international music scene, there have been literally thousands upon thousands of rock songs recorded (performed in English but also in many other languages) that we have loved, liked, were indifferent to, found pretty irritating, outright hated, or had a wide range of other responses to. The vast majority of these songs made absolutely no lasting impression on our musical psyches. But a small percentage did stand out in the crowd in a positive way, some so much that they were head and shoulders better than all the rest. And an even smaller percentage of those were so great that they have stood the test of time and entered the pantheon of greatest rock songs ever, depending on whom you ask, of course.

But of all the great songs, which one truly rises above all the rest to claim the title of "greatest rock song of all time"? The answer is part of what appears to be a never-ending debate and there's certainly no shortage of people willing to offer up their candidate. No doubt you have your own personal choice but for now let's consider what some other folks think.

If you like poll results, you'll be interested to learn that The Rock and Roll Report said that in a 2004 poll conducted by Planet Rock, a digital radio station in Britain, Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heaven was voted by over 70% of respondents as the greatest rock song ever recorded. Not so fast, chimed in "Eric" when he saw the list with Stairway to Heaven sitting at the very top, saying that he has "for many years declared to all who would listen to me that the best rock 'n' roll song of all time is Louie Louie by the Kingsmen." But the editors of DJ Zone Magazine agreed with the Planet Rock poll results and think Stairway to Heaven is the all-time best.

Not to be outdone, Rolling Stone Magazine compiled its own list in 2004, getting a lot of input from a lot of people, and Stairway to Heaven didn't even make it into its Top 5 (in fact, it didn't even make it into its Top 10). The number one spot went to Bob Dylan's Like a Rolling Stone. However, "Drifter" posted a comment in which he heartily disagreed with their choice of Dylan's song, asking pointedly: "In what sense is Like a Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan--working in the folk-song mode--even a rock and roll song?" Good question.

John Lennon's Imagine was number 1 in Virgin Radio's list of All Time Top 500 Songs published in 2004. Imagine that? And in 2000 MTV's music video sister cable TV station VH1 ranked (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction by the Rolling Stones at the very top of its list of 100 Greatest Rock Songs. While two of "Todd M.'s" friends ("Chuck C." and "Hank S.") agreed with VH1's choice of number 1, many of his other friends didn't, with a range of choices for the top spot, including songs such as The Beatles' Let It Be, Cinnamon Girl by Neil Diamond, Voodoo Chili by Jimi Hendrix, Purple Haze (also by Hendrix), Hound Dog by Elvis, and various other selections in what turned out to be a pretty eclectic list of choices for best rock song of all time.

Now what does all this prove? Well, not very much except that everybody has an opinion of what they think is the all-time greatest rock song, and these opinions are pretty darn subjective. Even different polls will come up with different songs at the top, proving that it's very difficult to gain a consensus on this subject or practically anything else, for that matter. Nonetheless, these lists are fun to make and fun to read and ponder. If nothing else, they bring back fond or not so fond memories of the many songs that we have encountered along the way and which have become an indelible part of our life experience.

So what's your own personal choice for the Greatest Rock Song of All Time?

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