Ahoy! The past two weeks we’ve been discussing the difference between music as art and music as entertainment. Because these labels aren’t exactly black and white I thought it might be helpful to look at some live performances. We’ll be watching performances from Between the Buried and Me (Btbam), Katy Perry and Pink. We’ll begin with Ms. Perry who is strongly in the “music as entertainment” camp. Katy Perry- Roar (From “The Prismatic World Tour Live”) As I watch this video there are some things that stand out right away. First there's the major stage prop; the giant prism-thing opening with Katy Perry standing in the middle as it unfolds. Everyone sees this. It’s part of the show. I also notice the dancers dressed in strange costumes behind her and I notice that they all start doing the same dance move as the intro music is playing. Again, I’m sure everyone notices this as it’s a part of the show. The biggest thing I notice, which many people probably don’t...

Greetings from The Music Bowl! I'm the Wonderfish. On this fine #throwbackthursday, let us take a moment to reminisce about that classic cult film from the eighties, Beetlejuice . There are seriously so many things we love about this Tim Burton work; the actors, the costumes, the sets, the spin-off cartoon on Nickelodeon, which my sister and I watched everyday when we got home from school (and would still watch today, unashamedly, if it was on any of the channels!), Michael Keaton's delivery of those oh so quotable one liners, and how about that soundtrack? Can we give a nice round of applause for Harry Belafonte and Danny Elfman, please? To be honest, the Sandworms freaked me right out: See what I mean? I could barely watch those scenes. But I loved Michael Keaton because he was Batman, I loved Catherine O'Hara because she was funny, I loved Lydia's character because she was an artsy introvert, and I loved the music! In fact, it keeps getting better every ti...

Ahoy! Last week we began the discussion about music as entertainment versus music as art. Music as entertainment is easy to describe as it’s what most of us are exposed to. It’s the top 40’s radio hits, the music you hear without trying to and the artists you see in the news. Music as art is a little trickier to describe. Art music, as I see it, is not tied to any specific genre. Certain genres will inherently have more of it, like jazz and classical, however it doesn’t mean there isn’t a watered down pop version of those genres as well. Some genres have very little art music, like rock n’ roll, however it doesn’t mean that there is no depth to be found in that style. First and foremost: Art music is written without consideration for how well it will sell. The entertainment industry looks at everything from a money point of view. If record executives don’t think it will sell it won’t be created, no matter how novel an idea may be. Art music drops this consideration. Every d...

Greetings from the Music Bowl! I'm The Wonderfish. This week's post serves as an open letter to all earworms. Dear Earworms, Hello! How are you doing today? I'm The Wonderfish, and I'm doing just fine myself, however, I have a bone to pick with you. Being an earworm, you are informally defined in pop culture as such: a catchy song or tune that runs continually through a person's mind. You certainly are an impressive creature, aren't you? You are stealthy and sly. You are poised to strike at any time. Sometimes, you are a song that we hear and just cannot get out of our heads for the rest of the day. Other times, we have not even listened to music yet and you pop into our brains, a relentless, unforgiving loop of a melody, of a beat, of a solo, or a chorus. Why? How? What are you?! The rumors I hear about you are incredulous, by the way. It's been said that if you are constantly in our brains, then a form of insanity must be at work. I heard th...

Ahoy! I recently read an article that discussed the idea that there are currently two music industries: one that champions pop stars, big hits, and making large amounts of money for record executives and another that champions good music, smaller artists, and making a living, not millions of dollars. I label this divide as music for entertainment and music for art. Each certainly has its place and comes from a similar creative spark, but has a very different end goal. Music as entertainment is what most people (at least in the US) actually consume. This is the side of music based on the hit single and selling the most copies. Live performances are based around amazing visuals and tightly choreographed dances. Essentially, music as entertainment is often a passive experience (you don’t think while listening to it). It’s less about the music and more about the experience. Anything you consider “pop” music falls into this category (think top 40’s) and it applies to all genres. No ...

Greetings from The Music Bowl! I'm the Wonderfish. As we learned last week, my hero, Dame Julie Andrews, had an extensive vocal range and a lovely singing voice to go with it. To my knowledge, she was unable to reach across five octaves. Please contact me if you can prove otherwise. I would seriously ( seriously) love that! You've probably heard of Mariah Carey. Or, maybe you've never heard of Mariah Carey? Some of you wish you'd never encountered her, I presume. I'm guessing it depends on your age and your interests. There are many versions of Ms. Carey in pop culture. I'm most fond of the "Unplugged" version. Although, I do very much appreciate the 2016 New Year's Eve version as well. I assume that someone was fired after the technical mishaps of such a fateful night. Google that fiasco if you want to see a diva in all her glory. Anyway, back to 1992. Don't worry, I can only imagine what you are thinking. C'mon, Wonderfish! What ar...

Ahoy! Last week I gave you three tips that could help shape your practice routine. Today I’ll wrap up the discussion with three more tips that have helped me over the years. 1.       Listening counts as practice, and is VITAL! I’ll say this again…LISTENING COUNTS AS PRACTICE! Now, to clarify this, it counts as practice IF you’re listening to the things you’re working on. This doesn’t have to specifically be the piece(s) you’re working on, but it can be. The key is active listening to whatever genre you’re performing. If you’re a classical musician the brunt of your listening should be in that genre, and should be centered on the time period of the pieces you’re performing. YOU WILL SOUND LIKE WHAT YOU LISTEN TO. I can’t stress this point enough. You can’t learn to speak French fluently if you never hear people speaking French. You also won’t ever sound like a natural jazz/classical musician without thousands of hours spent listening to that style ...

Greetings from the Music Bowl! I'm the Wonderfish! Fives are fun! Am I right? High fives... Party of Five... Five Finger Death Punch... 5 Alive... Top 5 Lists... Five For Fighting... Um, okay, maybe the only one of those things that is actually "fun" is the high five, but feel free to debate that on your own time. When I was five years old, I watched The Sound of Music * on VHS Cassette every day. Every single day. For weeks. It's true. Ask my mother. It wasn't the official VHS either, we recorded the film from when it aired on television with a VCR. We're not here to discuss that movie today, but rather the singing in it. I thought Julie Andrews was the most amazing singer I had ever seen. In the scene where she and the children are gallivanting around Salzburg, they collectively sing "Do-Re-Mi" and at the end of the song, Ms. Andrews walks up the center of the stairs while the children jump back and forth. She starts the whole progression on a...

Ahoy! Knowing what to practice is fairly straightforward. There is an endless list of scales, arpeggios, etudes, technical exercises, and repertoire to learn. Take scales for example. There is not only the simple version, i.e. one octave up and down, but also playing the scale on the full range of your instrument, all the modes associated with the scale, playing it in 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, 6ths, and 7ths and the list goes on. This could all be for one major scale. There are 12 of those, and 3 forms of minor. I find many young musicians asking me for advice on HOW to practice given the daunting amount of things to get to. Here’s a list of some principles to keep in mind. This is by no means exhaustive, and is simply what works for me. These principles have helped me over the years but you'll find that your practice routine will evolve. Try them out and tailor them to your needs. 1.       You have to put the time in. This seems almost too obvious bu...