| A classic case of musical restraint | | Posted Monday, October 30, 2006 7:14:25 PM by Blog57 Team | | Jazz and classical music have often meshed over the decades; the vibrancy of jazz's improvisatory heart can be credited with reinvigorating some classical composers and performers, while arranging skills, the balancing of instruments so necessary to orchestral and chamber music performances, have been valued by the jazz community. Think about the interwoven connections between George Gershwin and big-band leader Paul Whiteman (the first performance of "Rhapsody in Blue") or with Gershwin and arranger Gil Evans (the latter's take on "Porgy and Bess" for Miles Davis). Think about the role that two jazz clarinetists, Woody Herman and Benny Goodman, played in the creations of Igor Stravinsky's "Ebony Concerto" and Bela Bartok's "Contrasts" for violin, clarinet and piano, respectively. Of course, now is not then, but the communication between two outwardly dissimilar genres still continues.... | |
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| | | Man arrested for stealing musical instruments from area retailers | | Posted Saturday, October 14, 2006 1:02:27 PM by Blog57 Team | | A man who allegedly plucked more than $150,000 worth of musical instruments from Bay Area stores was going to use them to open up his own music store, Palo Alto police said. Palo Alto and Mountain View police said they arrested Dennis Keith Lloyd, II on Sept. 22 in Delano, Calif., where he was opening his business. About $100,000 worth of stolen guitars and violins were recovered after the arrest, according to Palo Alto police. Palo Alto police Sgt. Sandra Brown said Lloyd burglarized stores from seven different cities, including Palo Alto, Mountain View, San Jose, San Carlos, Livermore, Dublin and Reno. He burglarized the first store on June 27 in San Jose and the final store on Sept. 16 in San Carlos. It was the efforts of a number of different police agencies that led to the arrest of Lloyd, Brown said.... | |
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| | | Are humans hard-wired to be musical? | | Posted Tuesday, September 19, 2006 7:05:48 PM by Blog57 Team | | If you don't subscribe to evolutionary theory, you may want to stick your fingers in your ears and sing yourself a little song as we progress through today's Morning File. But it would a great irony if you sang your way through it, because today's entry in fact deals with song -- why it came about, and what evolutionary purpose might have been served as our species preserved music over the millennia. A growing number of neuroscientists and psychologists are starting to ask exactly that question. "Researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute, for example, have scanned musicians' brains and found that the 'chills' that they feel when they hear stirring passages of music result from activity in the same parts of the brain stimulated by food and sex," writes The Boston Globe's Drake Bennett.... | |
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| | | Kwame Ansah (African Musician) To Present Faith-Based Afro-jazz ... | | Posted Monday, August 07, 2006 9:07:00 AM by Blog57 Team | | On August 27, 2006, Laurel-based musician Kwame Ansah-Brew will present a Christian jazz concert at 11:00 am at Scotchtown Hills Elementary School, 15950 Dorset Road, Laurel, 20707. Admission is free and the concert is under the auspices of the Agape Life Ministries which holds its Sunday worship services at the school.The Fritete Afro Jazz Gospel Band, led by Ansah-Brew, is an offshoot from his Fritete African Drum and Dance Ensemble. His gospel bands sound includes the electric keyboards, saxophone, bass guitar, drum set, and of course African instruments such as shakers, bells, xylophone, string instruments and traditional African drums. The gospel bands repertoire includes instrumental gospel inspiration taken from the old traditions of African traditional hymns and praise songs which appeal to a wide variety of listeners.... | |
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| | | Maxell Announces X Game Event Promotions and Activities | | Posted Wednesday, August 02, 2006 3:06:50 AM by Blog57 Team | | Maxell Corporation hopes to spin some magic with several promotions intended to energize fans of the X Games including access to The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus, a non-profit, mobile recording and multimedia studio outfitted with musical instruments and audio and video capabilities worthy of the Black Eyed Peas, who have recorded many of their new tracks while onboard. The X Games will be held in Los Angeles, California, August 3-6, 2006. The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus, located in the Xperience area, will host tours and give X Games attendees the opportunity to get hands-on experiences with the state-of-the-art equipment. The Bus will also feature an outdoor stage with the hottest DJs and Beatboxers. In conjunction with the DJs, a Maxell designed series of break dancing contests, organized by ESPN, will take place in between the scheduled sporting events.... | |
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