Author: admin

Music

4 Tips to Get More Out of Practice Time

February 15, 2015 by

There’s no doubt that in order to become a musician of repute, practice is something that is imperative. There can be no excuses. The more you practice, the more acquainted they become with the instrument they are in the process of mastering.

photo 10-study-tips-for-online-learners-getting-the-most-out-of-your-elearning-course_zpselszodpp.jpg

However, there are ways to speed up this process faster. That said, here are 4 tips to get more out of practice time:

#1: A Quiet Place

Since practice time involves not only playing an instrument but also thinking about what you are doing, this is why it is imperative for you to find a quiet spot such a bedroom where you can enjoy some peace and quiet.

#2: Arrange for Music Supplies Prior to Practice

Music supplies and accessories are important if you want to make the most out of your music session. Whether it’s sheet music or even a ready-to-use instrument among other accessories, it’s wise to keep them ready before practice.

#3: Create Your Own Practice Schedule

If you play in a band, practice apart from the time you come together is necessary. Not doing so means falling behind and wasting everyone’s time as a result. So, for this, schedule a time, whether in the afternoon or evening, until it becomes a serious habit.

#4: Use a Music Stand Always

One little detail can improve your music practice sessions greatly. In other words, standing up would be what you have to do in order to make a real difference. For this, place your music on a rack and this will not only improve your posture, help you read music better, breathe easier but also help you work your instrument better.

Business Services

3 Marketing Truths That Musicians Should Be Aware Of

February 14, 2015 by

There are a number of reasons why some musicians, who make great music, never get noticed.

Among them include the inability to understand or use marketing as a tool to sell your music effectively. Or for that matter, comprehend the business side of the music industry itself.

Worse still is the fact that they will not be able to get any gigs or even progress in their career going forward.

That said, here are 3 marketing truths that musicians should be aware of:

#1: Raising Awareness is the Key

Just because you’ve made a quality album and have sent it out to both online and offline outlets that doesn’t mean that you will enjoy success in terms of album sales or downloads. You have create awareness of your music since there are so many bands vying for fans’ attention. Most of all, you have to convince them as to why your music is the best.

#2: Marketing is only Effective When it’s a Two-Way Process

A number of things that you do in music marketing might be a one-way interaction. However, this becomes far more effective if you make it a two-way process. For example, when you make posts on your social media site, fan might want to respond. Make sure you keep the conversation flowing instead of stopping right there. Getting them involved means having loyal fans who will stick around much longer.

#3: Music Marketing is an Ongoing Task

There’s a lot of time and energy that goes into the process of marketing your music. This doesn’t mean that you start promoting an album once you’ve put it out but start this ongoing process of music marketing once you’ve reached a level where you have a good level of talent to promote.

Music

Is There a Connection Between Success and Music Training?

January 15, 2015 by

A number of successful people have been trained in playing music. A few names include Condoleeza Rice, Bruce Kovner and Alan Greenspan come to mind.

What this points to, thanks to a number of studies, is that academic achievement is strongly linked to serious music training.

What is also clear is that this correlation isn’t a coincidence and goes beyond the math-music association. A number of high achievers are sure that this kind of training opens their mind up to think more creatively.

Probably the best answer as to why this connection exists is because it gives you the confidence that you can create something of value. But that’s not all: it helps you to look beyond what exists at the moment while giving an outlet to express yourself differently.

Apart from this, if you put in years of practice while being competitive, this creates a “drive for perfection” too. Also, if you play in an ensemble, it helps you to work collaboratively with other people – another key aspect to success.

Finally, music, according to a number of amateur musicians who are successful in their fields, works as a hidden language that enhances one’s ability to make connections between disparate or even contradictory ideas.

Yet most of all, probably the biggest advantage to studying music even if you work in another field is that it proves that you can be better than most people if you outwork them – practicing that piece one more time in order to get it absolutely right.

Music

3 Overlooked Albums Released in 2014 Worth a Listen

January 14, 2015 by

Even if 2014 is now officially over, there are a number of albums that might have been missed from the 350 albums that were released during this time.

That said, a number of these albums could be titled “local music” but definitely deserve attention. So, here are 3 albums that still deserves your time even if we are in 2015:

#1: 3 AM Rendezvous by Tetris Fingers

With elements of hip-hop, juke, house beat and electronica, Tetris Fingers is considered to be one of the trippy DJs in Utah. At first, it might seem a little jarring or even abrasive but if you spend more time, you’ll find that it is structurally sound.

#2: It’s All For You by The Salt, The Sea And The Sun God

Being a three-piece band, they have the reputation of being an experimental folk pop group in the Provo music scene. This is their debut album and they drift through a number of music styles be it psychedelic to even shoegaze. It’s very art-rock and imitates Pink Floyd in their early days.

#3: Bad 4 the Tooth by 90s Television

Known as an SLC indie pop group, the recent EP that they released shows promise. Previously, the band released albums that were considered a cacophony of lo-fi recording sessions and sound effects that might have put off a number of people. This album mixes a number of genres and effects but it’s worth a listen if you are patient enough.

Hardware - Industrial and Manufacturing

Use Acoustic Foam to Minimize Echo

January 13, 2015 by

Written by Foam Factory, Inc.

An effective noise control system is essential to having a quiet environment and to improve the comfort of your room and house. A proper acoustic system would also help to minimize echo during your band practices, while you record or play your musical instrument. It would also prevent the sound from seeping through the walls and potentially getting to your neighbours. A good way of preventing the escape of sound through walls, flooring and rooms is to use sound deafening foam panels. These panels would be able to tremendously reduce the impact of vibration, sounds and echoes.

Sound deadening foams is found in different shapes each having a different property. Some examples of these foams are wave foam, acoustic spade foam or the grid foam. Some foam insulation boards do not need the opening of walls. They can just be hung to walls to be effective. Some people choose to cover them in fabric for aesthetic reasons. These foams work by increasing the air resistance. This has the effect of attenuating sound waves. The energy created from the sound waves is transformed into heat and dispersed.

This method of sound absorption performs in quite a different way than regular soundproofing. The use of acoustic foams would prevent the propagation of mid to high frequencies. For lower sound frequencies, considerably thick foams would be required. Foams placed in orders of a room for soundproofing are called corner bass traps and are effective for these frequencies.

Carlo Badalamenti has started his career in the foam industry in 1980. Foam Factory Inc. provides high quality acoustic foam panels in various shapes and sizes.

Health

3 Clear Health Benefits of Listening to Music

December 12, 2014 by

Music can do much more than put you in a good mood. Medicine has been recently uncovering the variety of health benefits that come with listening to music or even playing an instrument.

That said, here are 3 clear health benefits of listening to music:

#1: Improves your workout

Listening to music during your workout helps you work out better. Not only does this influence your mood, increase your endurance but also distract you from any discomfort experienced when working out. Apart from this, listening to music helps release endorphins which, in turn, makes us feel good while increasing our motivation to complete our workout too.

Make sure you listen to high energy and tempo music such as dance or hip hop when working out as this is the best type of music for strenuous activity.

#2: Relieves Chronic Back Pain

Music has the ability to control the autonomous nervous system. In other words, the blood pressure, brain and heartbeat function. Apart from this, it also controls the limbic system which in turn, controls our thoughts and feelings as well. Also, when we listen to slow music, it helps us breathe slowly as well as relax the muscles in our body.

In other words, this is both physically and mentally which, in turn, can relieve back pain. Do this for 25 minutes every day for a period of 10 days and this will definitely relieve back pain.

#3: Reduces memory loss

Since people who suffer from memory loss aren’t fluent with the languages because they turn out to be meaningless. However, listening to music can help them recall songs or their favorite tunes and reconnect with their history. This is for the reason that the part of the brain that processes music is located next to our memory.

Patients to listen to music of their choice in order to enjoy this benefits that music has to offer.

Education

3 Reasons Why Music Education Helps Children at School

December 11, 2014 by

Music might seem unnecessary when it comes a child’s academic curriculum. However, evidence reveals that there are benefits to doing so as this does tend to improve their performance.

Playing a musical instrument or even participating in a music program can help you to increase your test scores, according to a study conducted by University of North Carolina study.

That said, here are 3 reasons why it helps children in their studies:

#1: Aids in Impulse Control

Learning to play an instrument is key to mastering impulse control. This, in turn, is a key indicator of success as an adult and academic achievement too. As they learnt to master this instrument with great patience, they also master fine motor skills in the process. This leads to mentality that is best described as a “mastery orientation” which they understand comes from regular and diligent practice and which will help with their studies at school too.

#2: Helps in Brain Development

In the first few years of a child’s life, their brains is responsible for laying down neural connections rapidly. If they aren’t used during this time, then the brain does not use but continues with the connections that a child uses regularly. Alternatively, children who are exposed to music develop these connections so as to master music skills in the future. This exposure, most importantly, also aids them in spatial, symbolic and critical thinking.

#3: Improves Listening Skills

Children who participate in music education gradually improve their listening skills since they have to know what the different notes sound like in music and imitate them too. With this proved by a 2010 study in “Nature Reviews Neuroscience”, this improvement can help them pay attention in class and take in information better.

Music

Should Children Listen to Music While Studying or Doing Homework?

November 11, 2014 by

A growing trend is that school children listen to music while doing their homework. In some cases, some of them who choose to listen tend to see a drop in their grades as a result.

According to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll, it was found that between the ages of 12 to 17, almost 53 percent of these teenagers are doing something else while studying and which include watching television, instant messaging and emailing as well.

As for listening to music while studying, this number stood at about 87 percent, thanks to this generation being surrounded by the likes of television, computers and iPods as well.

Unfortunately, it has become clear that when you try to do too many things at the same time, you cannot completely focus on one task. In a number of studies, it has shown that playing pop music has not only hindered students taking reading comprehension or memory tests either.

On the other hand, it also depends on the type of music that one listens to while studying. Classical or soothing music can actually help some students focus better. Known as the Mozart effect, IQ scores of test takers went up by 8 to 9 points. Also, when playing Baroque era music to assist students learn a foreign language, retention went up by 92 percent as a whole.

So, finally, it all depends on the kind of music and student. For the most part, playing quiet music really helps while loud music only distracts children from concentrating on their homework, take tests or focus on any school-related task.

Music

3 Ways to Carry Out a Comprehensive Social Media Strategy to Promote Your Music

November 10, 2014 by

One of the best ways by which you can gain exposure as well as fans as a musician is to have a strong social media presence.

Doing this will help your band stand out especially if you keep your pages updated regularly.

That said, with a number of social media platforms that are present, it can be difficult to pick just one for this reason.

So, here are 3 ways by which you can carry out a comprehensive social media strategy to promote your music:

#1: Don’t rely on Facebook only

Even if Facebook is the dominant social media site, its new timeline will prevent most of your audience to see your posts. This is despite the fact that you will be paying out so as to promote your page. A number of other sites such as Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and Soundcloud are at your disposal.

#2: Consistency

If your website looks well-designed but your Twitter page doesn’t reflect the same designs, then your audience might get confused. For this, make sure that you keep your presence consistent across all social media platforms. Be it colors or fonts, this will assert who you are as a band and will be instantly recognizable too.

#3: Post as much content as possible

If you need to stay updated across a number of platforms, you can do this by using certain software that makes sure you don’t have to visit all these pages one at a time. However, there’s a downside to this – if all your social media pages have the same type of content posted, then this will discourage fans from following on all different social media pages that you use.

Music

4 Tips To Keep In Mind With Visual Mixing

October 11, 2014 by

It goes without saying that mixing is a big balancing act. A lack of experience in monitoring, acoustics as well as experience can really affect any sound’s characteristics when in the act of mixing.

So, here are 4 tips that will help you with visual mixing:

#1: Import your favorite mixes

If you import your favorite commercial mixes for referencing purposes in WAV form (and not MP3), you might get a handle on how this can work for your own mixes that you produce. Visual analysis tools can help you to carry basic waveform inspection, RMS metering, stereo metering and frequency analysis.

#2: Use two but not one analysers

In most cases, a dedicated plugin can provide visual information about the curves of each element on any given track on a single analyser display. However, if the frequency analyser you use doesn’t have this feature, then you will have to open two analysers side by side so as to compare the curves.

#3: Use Presets

You can create presets of your favorite metering settings so that it helps save time as soon as you might have to recall them for different situations. Some examples includes fast analysis for drums as well as slow analysis for mastering. In most cases, your meter plugin will already have presets, so check on that first.

#4: Combine the tools

Equalisers and frequency analysers go together. It always comes across as handy when you are able to see what’s happening frequency-wise when creating a mix with EQ. Better still, there are a number of plugins such as FabFilter’s Pro-Q, DMG Audio’s EQuilibrium and EQuality that can help you with this.