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Archive for June, 2009

People are always telling you that you have a great passion for music. So you are sitting in your living room with your stereo blaring and your innter voice tells you that it is time to start making beats yourself. Sampling beats might be a good way to start your beat making career. However, be aware that you might have to deal with copycopyright infringement.

The internet is loaded with beats and people are gathering reputations for some of the work they are doing creating beats that are getting used in the music industry. Whether you are looking to make beats for others to use, or if you are just looking for a way to make your own beats for your own entertainment you will still need the computer software necessary to create quality beats. Of ciouourse, you can pay for a beat making software, but there are ways you can get downloadable beat machines onls online.

As you examine the various downloadable beat machines trying to decide which ones offer the best beat maker software, you should definitely make it a careful and well thought out process. If you see beat maker software that is free take into account the old saying if it’s too good to be true it probably is. Supposed free beat maker software can be the costliest in terms of dealing with viruses and adware among other potential problems. One problem with free beat maker software is that million of people are using the same software and you might end up having the same beats. When it comes to quality software you will have to pay out some money but you’ll appreciate it in the long run.

When you decide which beat maker you should get, make sure that it is one that is suitable for newbies and pros alike. A program that is limited to how many platforms it can be used on is definitely one to avoid at all cost. Remember this should be a program that is fun to enjoy either alone or sharing it with others. It is helpful to read user comments before buying a software product.

If after you’ve tried all the above and still are unable to find what you are looking for the ultimate website for beat making is HowTo Make Music Online.

To download an incredible cutting edge music sequencer with mp3 export capability and for comprehensive music production tutorials with different keyboards go to Make Music Online

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After many years of performing in excess of seventy weddings a year I feel quietly confident in advising couples on the right live wedding music for their celebration. A live wedding band can come in all shapes, sizes and styles and should reflect something of the couple’s personality and the type of day they wish themselves and their guests to experience. They can be used at various times of the day to change the tone of that particular portion of the proceedings. Some wedding bands can provide live wedding music for all parts of the day. Jazz not Jazz has such bands on their roster of musicians and they are much in demand.

When can live music be used in the wedding? Live music can be used for the ceremony, for the drinks reception, during the meal and for dancing after the meal.

What type of live wedding band would one use for the ceremony? Probably not a full band at this point. In a church an organist can play. He or she could be coupled with a flautist or a classical trumpet. Many people like to personalize the wedding music at this point and have a friend to play piano, a guitar or sing. We have been asked, many times, for a brass ensemble to provide the live wedding music at this point and these bands have been most effective at creating a celebratory atmosphere as well as being wonderful at playing hymns for the wedding service. Two guitars playing light classical music for before, during and at the end of the service create a wonderful pastoral atmosphere. Being quiet they focus the guest’s attention for the service ahead.

We are now at the reception. The wedding party has arrived and champagne and Pimms is being handed out. Are you indoors or outdoors? Is it summer or out of season? If it is summer you will be outdoors enjoying the rain and gales so typical of the British summer! Your wedding music needs to be acoustic. The wedding band needs to be able to run in and out as the weather dictates!

A jolly jazz band is perfect. Stripy blazers, banjos and sousaphones. In all the years of live playing and performing, I have found this type of live wedding music never fails to put a smile on the wedding guest’s faces. The music they play is uplifting and celebratory. The tunes are well known, light and uncomplicated and the music can be played live by three or four musicians in a small space with no electricity. An alternative is a saxophone led swing trio. Jazz not Jazz have two all girl jazz/swing trios who are both incredibly accomplished, are great company and are extremely experienced in playing for wedding parties. Great bands playing great music. Again, live wedding music, available acoustically or with amplification depending whether they are to be used indoors or out.

Most importantly the music creates a wonderful ambiance and backdrop for wedding guests to chat and catch up with old friends. The wedding band isn’t doing a concert at this point, they are adding to the atmosphere. If the wedding is out of the summer season and the party is in doors, don’t worry, these jazz trios/quartets can play very gently. Remember, Jazz Not Jazz musicians are amongst the best in the country and playing at a lower level is no problem for them.

The guests have been called into dinner. You probably have an hour and a half to an hour and three quarters to eat and savour the speeches. The last thing needed is a loud wedding band playing. I would always stress a solo piano at this point if music is required at all. If you are having music after the meal then the pianist can be employed for both tasks. There is usually a reduction in price if this is the case. Some pianist’s sing and this can add a great touch to the atmosphere at this time. For the speeches ask to hire a radio mike direct from us ti will give much better sound. It will invariably be a fraction of the cost of the hotels sound equipment and being wireless can be handed round.

Dinner is over, the speeches have ended. There is always a half hour hiatus while people stretch their legs, loosen their belts and retire to the loo! This is the perfect time for the evening wedding band to put up their equipment for the music for the evening. Which kind of musical direction do you wish to go in? Do you want live wedding for swing and lounge music? Rat Pack? Music by Frank Sinatra and Jamie Cullum? Do you want Jump Jive or Salsa? Do you like music from the Blues Brothers film or from the Commitments?

My experience has been that the most successful weddings have incorporated elements of all types of live wedding music. Remember, you will have guests of all ages and tastes. For some Jamie Cullum is perfect. Others are soul fans and adore Stax, Motown and Seventies funky sounds. Music is a little like your favourite food. Too much of one type and you will be soon sick of it. Ring the changes. Have a wedding band that can play all styles. Jazz not Jazz have major representation for The Roadhouse Five, and they are such a band. They normally start with some quiet background swing. Playing Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin classics along with more modern artists such as Michael Buble` and Jamie Cullum. In the first set your guests are still talking to old friends, meeting new friends and enjoying the day. The wedding music, although live, is probably still background ambience and adding to the happy atmosphere. Set two changes this dramatically.

Your guests are relaxed, they have enjoyed your hospitality (they have had a drink or two, let’s not beat around the bush) and they are ready to party. This is the time for the bride and groom to have their first dance. Everyone is ready, gathering around the dance floor and ready to join you.

You will have discussed your first dance with the wedding band leader when discussing your wedding music requirements. Don’t worry if the song is not in the wedding bands existing repertoire. If they are good, (dare I mention The Road House’s Five ability in learning client’s song requests?) then it should not pose a problem for the band. After the first song the serious business of celebrating gets underway. From now on you want a band that gets your guests on the floor, keeps them there and has them shouting for more at the end of the night.

Let’s recap and offer a few tips:

(1) Wedding music can change as the day progresses

(2) Get a wedding band that offers variety

(3) Favourite styles of music for evening celebrations include Swing and Lounge, Rat Pack, Soul and Classic pop. Jazz not Jazz can supply a band that does one style all night or more often, offer a band that mixes all the different styles.

(4) Get a band that can put cd`s on between sets, you want to keep the atmosphere going when the band takes a break.

(5) Should you feed the band? It is not expected but very appreciated when a wedding band is on site for most of the afternoon and evening and away from places that sell food. Tell us if it isn’t convenient and the band can make their own arrangements.

(6) Let us know if you want a band for dancing and/or background listening. It has a great effect on the costs. Let us know where your party venue is. How big is the room? For the wedding music to be at its most effective it really helps to know how many people you need in the wedding band. Size of venue and number of guests will have a direct bearing in the size of the wedding band.

(7) Is the fee you charge inclusive? Yes it is. Obviously we have a standard model. Most wedding band performances are with a five piece wedding band playing three sets of music over a four hour period. These will be priced at the standard rate. There are factors which add costs and these include: distance, number of extra musicians and extra sets.

(8) Talk to us about your favourite music. The best way we can get a flavour of what kind of wedding music to play is by discussing what music and what style of band you enjoy. What cd`s have you bought recently and which tracks do you like the most.

(9) When should I book? As soon you find the band you like. Many people will book wedding bands like holidays, a year in advance to avoid possible disappointment! I am still taking calls from people trying to book a particular band for their wedding on a Saturday in September this year. Often the band in question has been booked up for a very long time. Don’t assume this will always happen though. Always check, you may be lucky!

I hope this has been of some help. People can sometimes underestimate the importance of the right wedding band playing the right wedding music. People don’t go home extolling the virtues of the napkins or the flowers, the standard of the service or the commodiousness of the marquee. They instead, rave about what a fantastic band you had, how they played some brilliant numbers, how tired they are from dancing all night and how they wished it could have carried on for longer.

About the author: Jeff Williams is the director of Jazz not Jazz Live music agency and an experienced Jazz musician based in South London. He is one of the few agents to represent the Roadhouse Five, one of the most successful live wedding bands playing music in the South East of England and beyond. See http://www.jazznotjazz.co.uk for more details.

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This year, the Karaoke player was voted the “#1 most irritating invention” in the British Inventors Society poll of 2,500 Brits. “Seeing the karaoke machine at the top of that list made me smile,” admits BIS director Kane Kramer. “When people are singing karaoke they are enjoying themselves, but as a member of the audience you are just watching somebody who can’t perform – and isn’t particularly pleasant to listen to – for as long as you can bear it. It is anti-social. You might have 10 people who want to sing some karaoke, which means 150 people have to suffer it.” Despite the snooty opinion of our overseas cohorts, American Idol has made the karaoke club into a cash cow and spawned an increased demand for at-home karaoke systems.

It seems everyone is claiming to have “the best karaoke player on the market.” With so many contenders, it can be hard to choose. Today, karaoke songs can be played on portable systems, DVD players, CD players, PCs and Playstation consoles. The smart karaoke system consumer should first be honest with him or herself and ask, “What am I going to use this thing for?” If it is for killer karaoke parties, then an all-in-one machine like The Song Station is the ideal choice. This amazing karaoke system has been featured in Rolling Stone Magazine, People Magazine and on NBC, and enjoys high Epinions ratings. Ranging between $207 and $259, the system has 53,000 built-in tracks from around the globe, but also accepts DVDs, special karaoke CDGs, CD+Gs, VCDs and MP3s, and plays all in high-quality Dolby Digital.

Consumers receive two free microphones, a pedestal karaoke song search unit, large speakers and additional amplifier connections. Up to ninety-nine songs can be scheduled, just like at a karaoke club, and sixty favorites can be stored for quick retrieval. This product can be purchased at www.thesongstation.com.

Another way to experience karaoke songs is to buy a karaoke player that doubles as a video game console. For instance, Playstation and XBox offer “Karaoke Revolution,” a game which lets singers belt it out with cover bands to see if they can properly match the pitches and harmonies like the pros. There are a number of different modes, allowing for duets, solos or party modes. In one particular mode, users can earn platinum and gold records, create a rock karaoke avatar, buy clothes and equipment and unlock new songs. A sing and dance mode works sort of like Dance Dance Revolution, with the added singing component. There is even an “American Idol” edition, where Paula Abdul judges the performances. The XBox edition provides access to Xbox Live, with limitless downloadable upgrades.

For kids, the GPX Karaoke Machine can be purchased from Best Buy for just $30 and will play the music, as well as the video (CD+G) and comes with a microphone. Hello Kitty also has a fun pink-and-white karaoke player for $50 that plays karaoke CDs and Barbie has a “Hits 2 Go”CD boombox for $30 or a better quality Emerson Radio Barbie CD+G system for $75, which can all be purchased at www.amazon.com. For the older kids, The Singing Machine SMG-137 Karaoke System is reasonably priced from $45 to $88 and looks more like the traditional karaoke machine, with built-in speakers, two microphone inputs, a top-load CD/CD+G drive and basic balance/echo/volume/auto voice controls.

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Sure you can be the life of the party or someone who is really adored by music lovers or, the list goes on. You can play exceptional music through the playing of your guitar. And people would scream out “Play More!” That would be really nice isn’t it? Do you like the idea? Well, read very carefully as this article states some of the most exciting and fulfilling advantages when you have learned to master the techniques and chords in the phase of guitar music.

Advantage #1

Playing a guitar enhances your brain to work and to initiate such signals that commands your hands on mentally memorizing where to put your finger on a particular fret, pressing on the right chord and engaging in the proper manner of strumming.

Advantage #2

The pleasure of gratification is satisfied. Thus, your self-esteem is working its way through your personality. A psychological book once said, that man has to satisfy basic needs to be able to advance to the highest level which is the self-realization. Something like that.

Advantage #3

Let’s face the fact that a guitar is one of the most convenient instruments there is. You can’t bring your drums wherever you go. It would be exhausting on your part to carry a drum set around your campus and constantly beat it. It can cause so much distraction. Whereas if you have been a full pledged guitarist your whole life, you could play music where you can.

Advantage #4

Being able to drag your guitar around town, might as well earn something from it. A talent like that would hardly go unnoticed. Playing along the streets of downtown is not really the idea but if you consider it, then yes, you could try. You could ask some of your friends to back you up.

Advantage #5

You, yourself, is a unique individual. With any given ten people only one becomes a pure musician. And by some luck, that person is a guitarist. Or can be someone with pure musical talent who can play not only the guitar but similar instruments or some percussion ones. Some say it is learned but true talent comes from deep inside. It is that spirit within you that makes you distinct.

Advantage #6

Nobody can call you a loser with no specific talent. Yes, you could flunk all of your exams and miss every graded recitation during class hours but when school or house parties come, you are the star. Even an A+ won’t come close to the recognition you can achieve from being an accomplished artist.

Advantage #7

You are the “it” guy. Everyone can hate you or mess you up. But the moment you have learned to become a master in your own craft, everyone will recognize how good you are. Even those who never or didn’t know you will find an effort to. People will love you for the talent that you are.

More advantages are seen by simply playing the guitar. Playing is one thing but mastering is another. So if you are still struggling to play such tunes, don’t give up that dream. Although it may be only a hobby or past time, you never know, with skill, it may take you to new heights. Something brighter. Something more intense. Something close to stardom.

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For those who want to sing karaoke but don’t have any music, they will likely browse online, perusing the expansive collection of CDs, CD Gs and DVDs. DKKaraoke’s collection is a great way to get started, featuring 25 discs of karaoke hits from Frank Sinatra’s “New York New York” and Dolly Parton’s “9 to 5″ to Bon Jovi’s “Bad Medicine” and U2’s “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For.” Chartbuster offers compilation karaoke music with themes like Broadway, Pop, Country, Gospel, Kids, Disney, Christmas, Patriotic Anthems and Hot Hits Monthly. The Sound Choice Star series has karaoke CDs with more modern musicians like Pearl Jam, White Zombie, Spineshank, Tool, Godsmack, Kelly Clarkson, Kid Rock and U2. Check www.amazon.com, www.karaoke.com and www.doowop.com for more karaoke discs.

Girls and guys have their favorite karaoke hits that have withstood the test of time, so be sure to add the following favorites to your karaoke song collection. Girls like empowering songs of survival, enduring sexuality and sass. To appease these spunky vixens include such tunes as “These Boots Were Made For Walkin’” (Nancy Sinatra), “I Will Survive” (Gloria Gaynor) “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” (Pat Benatar), “Venus” (Bananarama), “I Love Rock N Roll” (Joan Jett), “I’m Just A Girl” (No Doubt/Gwen Stefani), “Like A Virgin” (Madonna), “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” (Cyndi Lauper), “Feel Like A Woman” (Shania Twain), “You’re So Vain” (Carly Simon), “She Works Hard For The Money” (Donna Summer), “Respect” (Aretha Franklin), “Sweet Dreams” (Eurythmics), “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” (Whitney Houston), “Listen To Your Heart” (Roxette) and “Black Velvet” (Alannah Myles).

Karaoke music for guys should be fun, macho and hilarious. Fun karaoke songs for them might include “Sweet Child O’ Mine” (Guns N’ Roses), “Sharp-Dressed Man” (ZZ Top), “Werewolves of London” (Warren Zevon), “Sultans of Swing,” (Dire Straits), “Bohemian Rhapsody” (Queen) and “Celebrate” (Kool & The Gang). “Man’s man” karaoke songs might be “Girls, Girls, Girls” (Motley Crue), “You Shook Me All Night Long” (AC/DC), “You Give Love A Bad Name” (Bon Jovi), “Macho Man” (The Village People), “Baby Got Back” (Sir Mix-a-lot), “I’m Too Sexy” (Right Said Fred), “Hurt So Good” (John Mellencamp) and “Born To Be Wild” (Steppenwolf). Funny songs include “Because I Got High” (Afroman), “Billie Jean” (Michael Jackson) or “Friends In Low Places” (Garth Brooks), although the funniest karaoke songs usually aren’t intentional.

Some people like to make their own karaoke music. You can do this if you have an mp3/mp4 compatible karaoke system or if your karaoke activities are mainly online. You can transform any CD into a karaoke CD by purchasing karaoke software. Or you may buy karaoke songs at www.eztracks.com, www.buykaraokedownloads.com or www.karaoke-version.com. If you don’t care about keeping the songs but simply want to sing for free, then there are a number of karaoke communities, which can be found at www.kariokebar.com, www.redkaraoke.com, www.singsnap.com and www.ksolo.myspace.com.

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