Measuring instrument

I've been playing music for as long as I can remember. Growing up, I spent most of my time on a piano bench. Naturally, I followed this passion to my middle school concert band. Unfortunately, on my first day, I was met with the words: “Your mom must be the one with the funny name”. Despite my best efforts, most days continued with the same tone with meaner remarks. I felt out of place and discouraged. Over time, I began to allow these words to bother me and after nearly three years in concert…

throughout my high school year, studying a variety of genres, I recognized much of the ornamentation as similar to Celtic tradition, namely Cape Breton tradition. The first things I noticed about the recording were: 1) The piece was played on an instrument that had a rather tinny sound and drone notes. 2) The piece was performed with a large amount of ornamentation. 3)The piece was written in 3/4, and felt in 1 because of the accents and percussion part. I began…

1. What ideas or points did I identify with this week? Some ideas/points I identified this week are the pros/cons of being a freelance musician and challenges ones is faced with as a musician. A freelance musician is an independent worker who performs for a living. This musician may perform at parties, clubs, studio recordings, hotels, formal concerts, etc. One must also take in count how much expenses are when one is a freelancer. Some may even need a second job. 2. What ideas or points…

My love for music was always around since I was little. I always wanted to play the drums. When I got to high school, I was afraid that I wasn't going to be able to keep up with the drum line as a freshman. The complex rhythms were a bit overwhelming as a fourteen-year-old. That all changed with the helping hands of Ryan Haack. He showed me that while it was important to get better as a drummer, having fun and making memories was the most important thing to take away from high school. Ryan Haack…

On April 26th of this year I attended a faculty recital in the Walker Recital Hall. The recital featured the Presque Isle Saxophone Quartet with Allen Zurcher, Bethany Dressler, Rebecca Wunch, and Scott Meier. The hall was not fully filled with spectators, however, attendees were very supportive and enthusiastic about the artists. The performance consisted of the 20th and 21st century music pieces, which was something I did not expect. To surprise this performance did not take long time…

the modern music we all know of in todays world. The way music has changed since prehistoric music was that in ancient times the way the beats were and the way the music was sung originated a lot differently than it is now. In ancient times the instruments were hand made and they did not have all the equipment we did so it was a little harder for them to create music like we can.…

Have you ever been amazed by a musician’s performance? Did you wonder how he or she could make an instrument produce beautiful, flawless music? It takes a great deal of natural talent, training, and long hours of practice to play that way. Much of the professional life of a musician revolves around practicing, rehearsing, performing, and sometimes recording. Practice (often for 4 or 5 hours a day) is a central aspect of a musician’s life. Without practice, musicians’ performances and…

What can I do to make sound come out my trumpet! Mom i can't make sound come out my trumpet is it the way im blowing? Son you will make sound come out you just keep practicing baby. Ok mom im going walking to Lily Garden, “ok” baby be safe. David the rabbit is hopping down the road and he sees Mr. Ted the owl perching on top of a tree branch. Whoooooo, “hey” david where you going? Well im going to lily garden to concentrate…

They both played Irish traditional music, however in their performance they improvised solos when usually you don’t in Irish traditional music. Both Gunnar and Bill played their instruments standing up. Gunnar read his music sheet while he held the bass up with one hand and while the other was playing the instrument. I noticed whenever he was playing he had good balance between him and the bass. I was listening…

Concerts have always been a way for the general public to experience their favorite artists and musicians perform right in front of them. I myself have been to several concerts, all of which have been rap and hip hop concerts. So going to an orchestral concert was going to be a very different experience to me. I know that there wasn’t going to be any mosh pits or excessive screaming of fans throwing themselves onto the performers. With all that in mind, I was mentally preparing myself for a very…