Archive for the 'Living With Music' Category

Whats on at Southampton’s Mayflower Theatre

The Mayflower offers an matchless late summer and early autumn collection that includes large budget shows of Oklahoma, Les Misérables, and the Magic of Motown, along with two runs of Faulty Towers the dining experience, and a whole host of other shows and specifically themed evenings. The Mayflower is distinctive in being the initial successful theater company in Southampton. The reasons for this no doubt have to do with its phenomenal and leading edge variety of shows that are constantly on. This year is no exception, since the Mayflower boasts a terrific number and range of thrilling productions, varying from big musicals and plays, to intimate comedic 1 man or woman acts to specially themed events. Within the stimulating category of major name, big budget musicals and plays, the Mayflower provides a range of classics and newly well-known offerings. Included in these are Oklahoma, Les Misérables, and also the Magic of Motown. Oklahoma, that stars Marti Webb and Mark Evans, is playing Tuesday the seventeenth via to Saturday the twenty-first of August. This particular touring version of the Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical is produced through the creators of the huge hits Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, South Pacific, and Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. Everyone within the family is sure to love the story famously set within the Western Frontier of America taking location within the time of conflict between the cattlemen and farmers. The Mayflower is also very pleased to welcome the twenty-fifth anniversary production of Les Misérables, which may be the world’s longest running musical in recent history. It will be at the Mayflower for merely three weeks, from Tuesday, August 24th via Saturday, September 11th. The brilliant all new cast is led by London’s West End and Broadway star John Owen Jones, who has been commended by the New York Post as the really finest Jean Valjean since the days of Colm Wilkinson, and also graced through the West End stars for example Gareth Gates who plays Marius and Earl Carpenter who plays Javert. Finally within the category of large spending budget stage musicals is the Magic of Motown, presenting the greatest Motown live tribute concert ever. In this stunning production, music of Diana Ross and the Supremes, The Temptations, The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, The Four Tops, Lionel Richie, Marvin Gaye, Martha Reeves and scores of others is featured. This display features literally dozens of stunning costumes, a gorgeously choreographed cast, and fully thirty-six memorable hits from the sixties, seventies, and eighties. It’ll play 1 night only, on Tuesday, September 14th. For 1 man comedians and acts, the Mayflower outperforms once again. Jethro will perform his Too Late To Grow Up display on Thursday, September 16th. Sean Lock will carry out his signature Lockipedia on Saturday, September 18th. Lisa Williams, the internationally known psychic and clairvoyant, will be seen on Sunday, September 19th. A special treat within the coming months is Faulty Towers, the Dining Experience. This popular and long running television display turned touring musical makes two stops as the initial appearance rapidly sold out. It runs at the Mayflower from Tuesday October 12th via Thursday October14, as well as from Thursday October 21st via Tuesday October 26th. Finally, two seasonal themed events will be presented in the coming months. The Ghost Hunt and Buffet Evening will take location on Friday, September 24th, while the murder mystery Much better by Nun happens on Saturday, October 30th. Once again, the Mayflower demonstrates its uncanny capability to keep the crowds in Southampton coming back for much more. Discover more information about what’s going on at the Mayflower Theatre

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Beyonce Knowles - Disorganised Diva

She may look picture perfect on stage, and in her diverse media appearances, but Beyonce Knowles is essentially a bit on the messy side. According to the Mad In Love chanteuse, her around-the-house habits and shortage of organization create quite the muddle at home. She admitted, I guarantee I am working on this, but I might be less untidy at home and keep the garments in my closet and off the floor! Beyonce also made public that she has got a tough time unplugging from her career mind-set. I like going to dinners, seeing plays, visiting museums and hanging out with loved ones.
I know it is time to jump into my work when everything I do starts provoking words and tunes and I cannot keep myself out of the studio. In other story, Beyonce Knowles Has Discovered Her ‘True Self ‘. The American pop recording artist and singer Beyonce Knowles has exposed that she no longer wants her on-stage ‘alter ego ‘ Sasha Wild as she’s now found her true self. The 28 year Knowles said that by discovering herself day after day it made her feel at ease. She said I do not need Sasha so much any more because nowadays I know who I am. The surprising vocalist has got a 3 and a half octave vocal range and has traditionally been identified as the centre element of her ex band, Destiny’s Kid . She said that, it needs time to work out who you are and I’m still discovering different things about myself - as I’m exposed to different experiences I suspect, ‘Oh, I like this, I failed to know I liked this.
The indispensable frontman, Beyonce is artistically concerned in her career and some of her songs are autobiographical which is taken from her private experience, she added, That’s the trip of life that’s so exhilarating. More I know who I am, I know what I like, I know what I desire and that makes me feel so free. I do not have to hide any more.

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Justin Bieberin His New Lamborghini

Justin Bieber only passed his driving test 3 months gone, but the teenager singing sensation has already gotten himself a vehicle that most grown men can only fantasize about driving - a Lamborghini. And just to contribute to the envy quota it appears Bieber did not have to hand over a penny for the automobile, as it would appear to be a present from his best friend, rapper Sean ‘P-Diddy’ Brushs .
Diddy had promised he would give Bieber his white Lamborghini as fast as he turned 16, though Bieber failed to appear to take the rapper’s generous offer seriously. Back in March Bieber told Folks mag : ‘[Diddy] related when I turn 16 he will give me his Lamborghini.
‘But everyone knows Diddy’s not going to give me his Lamborghini, he is all talk.’ Appears Bieber spoke too shortly as he was spotted driving around LA yesterday in a white Lamborghini. Bieber took the car for a drive with another of his musician chums, frontman Sean Kingston, and stopping off for some frozen yogurt on the way.
It’s actually useful to have mega-rich chums in high places - as well as the Lamborghini Bieber also has a Range Rover. The ‘Baby ‘ hitmaker’s coach, Usher, presented him with a new Range Rover when he turned 16 on March first. In the meantime, Diddy is in the practice of presenting teens with ludicrously costly vehicles. He gave his child, Justin Dior, a £220,000 German Maybach for his sixteenth birthday, including a uniformed driver as the teenager was not even able to drive.
Justin Bieber music videos

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50 Cent - Would Love To Collaborate With Lady Gaga

50 Cent has claimed that he would adore to partner with Lady GaGa on future musical projects.
The rapper disclosed that he’s a big fan of GaGa’s unique angle to art and fashion and thinks that they could create something exciting, reports Rap Up. Yep , I’d like to work with her.
It’d be cool, he revealed. I suspect she is fresh. I have not seen that before. What she is doing now is new, with all of the silly dress codes and all that stuff. The star also voiced disgruntlement in his fellow rappers for lacking GaGa’s originality. A large amount of things in music / entertainment are recycled, ” he announced. It’s going to sound like a diss, but it is no disregard. You would see Lil Wayne wear a little black vest and that hat. I saw Cyndi Lauper wearing that, it was [just] on a different artist. “And even the glasses that Jay-Z had on, that’s Frank Sinatra. These are all classic pieces coming back.
In a different story, Lady GaGa Telephone singer has been spotted attending her younger sister Natali’s graduation rite in N. Y. The ‘Alejandro’ star was seen among the group at the Priory Of The Holy Heart yesterday. She also attended the high school situated in Manhattan. A photograph released by Entertainment Weekly shows the vocalist wearing a lacy, cream pantsuit, while her face is wholly covered by a black hat and black lace headscarf.

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Twitter trend shows Britney Spears to beat Ashton Kutcher for No 1 position

Who said the Britney was finished? Britney Spears music videos are running all over the world TV screens. She could have had her troubles, but I have had mine and now she’s on the edge of finishing the best comeback since Lazarus by not only topping the pops, but topping the final 21st Century measurement of acclaim, the Twitter tree.
For a while now, Ashton Kutcher ( Demi Moore’s toyboy ) has been the largest twit on earth. He was the first to achieve the dizzy heights of one million proponents ( back in Apr 2009 ) and today has a stupefying 4.916m cyber-stalkers however watch out Ashton, Ms. Spears is catching you fast.
Now the pop princess has 4.908m fans ( so she’s a way behind ), but Britney has got the ‘Big Mo’ having added a striking great 159,891 internet-goons to her list in the last month alone yikes that is good. If she keeps bringing in the crowds at this rate she will be Top of the Twits any day now.
But the Twitter wars will never be won, just like the Davis Cup in tennis, there’s no end to this craziness, because faster than Britney can scream Oops I did it again another pop-mogul is on her tail in the form of Woman Gaga a girl whose rise to Twitter celebrity has matched the rate at which she changes headpieces, mopping up over 4m fans in total ( and 1.5m in the last four months ).
Other top Tweeters looking out for a piece of the action include Ellen DeGeneres ( 4,641,976 ), President Obama ( 4,001,066 ), Kim Kardashian ( 3,653,541 ) and Oprah Winfrey ( 3,554,581 ) the top English Twit remains vegetarian crooners Coldplay at number fifteen in the world with 2,765,721 proponents.

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Wed. Night’s "American Idol " Results Show Brought RB Week Coach Usher Back to the Stage to Show off His New Music following Tues. Night’s Advice to the Final Ten Competitors

Wed. night’s “American Idol ” results show brought RB week coach Usher back to the stage to show off his new music following Tues. night’s advice to the final ten competitors. First, though , Justin Bieber made an appearance to bless his very own idol from the onlookers. “he has been a great influence, ” Bieber declared of Usher, who won a bidding war with Justin Timberlake to sign the teenager star. “He is kinda formed who I’m as an artist.

” hen the person himself sashayed in outline down the steps and onto the stage to perform “OMG, ” the new single from his album Raymond v. Raymond, which dropped Tues. . Wearing a black bowler and matching black suit with silver lapels, Usher looked like a trendy member of the gang from “A Clockwork Orange.

” But his companions were dancers, not droogs, as well as Black Eyed Peas mastermind Will.I.Am, reprising his verse on the poppy Auto-Tune number. The onlookers joined in on the tune, singing and clapping along to the chorus as flames and other pyrotechnics blasted behind the performers.

While “OMG ” doesn’t highlight the singer’s vocal skills, Usher more than made up with a kinetic showcase of non stop dancing. “Part of why I did this album was so that you can understand the full range of who I am as an artist, ” Usher told MTV Reports latterly about Raymond v. Raymond. “My life has been kinda played out as a journey and going through different chapters, with the albums representing the chapters. It is the 6th album for me. And when I look back to the men and women that I admire, I admire folk who take you on an expedition to where they’ve been, musically, places they have gone ; the culture of that time that influenced them, the cultural movement. All of that, they worked out a method to enclose it in the music they made. That is what this album is. ”

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Leona Lewis Spends £2m on House near Hollywood

X Factor winner Leona Lewis has splashed out almost £2million on a mansion in California, according to reports.

Sources have claimed that the 24-year-old has spent £1.8million on a Tuscan-style villa near Hollywood.

But Leona has told friends that she will always keep a home in the UK and she still lives in the Hackney flat she bought with long-term boyfriend Lou Al-Chamaa.

Her new pad is world’s apart from her £120,000 London flat and features four bedrooms, four bathrooms and a separate guest wing, says the Daily Star.

The luxury mansion boasts a swimming pool with a waterfall, a hot tub and an impressive staircase.

A source said: “Leona was a receptionist when X Factor changed her life.

“Now she’s one of the biggest stars on the planet.”

Leona recently hit the headlines when it was claimed that she has been in talks with Stella McCartney on launching an animal friendly fashion range.

The ‘Happy’ singer recently met with the fashion designer Stella to discuss the possibility of her releasing her own branded products.

A source told the Daily Mirror that Leona said: “I’m on a mission.

“I’d love to promote a line of non-leather bags and shoes that are affordable. I think more needs to be available and not so expensive.

“There’s so much I want to do. I’ve always wanted to have my own fashion line, and that’s something I want to focus on next year.”

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The Flower Garden and New Age Piano Music

If you’ve ever looked at a flower garden, not only its beauty may have captivated you, but also its overall arrangement.

There may have been some tulips or roses combined with other flowers or plants.

You may also have stood there looking it over. Maybe you started on one side and your eye moved down or vice-versa. Now, music making is a lot like flower arranging. You combine different elements to make a pleasing whole.

It is a natural tendency of the human mind to create order out of chaos and art from nothing. What is pleasing to the listening ear is symmetry. The flower arrangement captivates, not only because of its great beauty, but because it has been composed and arranged to a pleasing whole - something the eye and the mind can grasp hold of and ponder.

We walk away with a sense of completion because someone took the time to bring order into chaos. Someone arranged varying elements to create art. Now this is what musicians do whether they realize it or not. But instead of flowers, we use notes and chords. Instead of a vase, we use musical form to hold the notes and chords.

Music is a more difficult art because the elements are not as easily put together. Music is slippery and ephemeral but when we learn to use the tools of repetition and contrast, we begin to put some order into chaos. Chaos is good and has its place in improvisation, however, for those who wish to compose their own music, it’s a good idea to learn the tools of the trade.

The flower arranger must know how to create a balance between color and form - the overall look and feel of the arrangement. The composer must also create balance but uses musical materials - chords, notes, phrases, etc.

Then he puts it together into a framework. A flower arrangement can be big or small depending on the size of the vase. Similarly, a new age piano work can be long or short depending on the amount of contrast and repetition used.

Edward Weiss - EzineArticles Expert Author

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music’s online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

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How to become a Singer?

Everybody loves a good song. There are a lot of people who love singing and there are various types of singers such as bathroom singers, classical singers, professional singers who sing songs based on genres such as country, pop, rap etc. If you are aspiring to be a singer you need to experiment with the following ideas:

First, try singing to a smaller public, and ask them for an opinion. Record your voice at the time of singing and listen to it. Refer some of the important books that will provide you instructions regarding the different techniques of singing. Attend practical classes to learn music by choosing a good tutor. Switch on the musical devices and try lisping when you hear your stars singing. Attend the shows at live concerts to practically know about the stage performances. You will be probably inspired by their strengths and try to acquire a few points from them.

If you firmly believe in your talent then continue with the activity more seriously by choosing a good tutor. Sing alone whenever there are no people around you. Add style to your singing by adding a few dance steps.

Before you get into this stream, assess your singing potential; otherwise you will be unnecessarily investing your money and ending up in failure.

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Best Ways To Improve Your Guitar Playing

What grooves you? Why do you want to improve?

Regardless of your intentions - whether to get started playing, learn a few licks of your favorite tunes, or want to expand your repertoire to include blues, funk, or rock and roll music, on your way to recording yourself, there are resources out there that can help you.

Here are a few ideas that may help you better understand your guitar playing and some solutions you can consider.

Guitar videos
You can purchase guitar playing videos, either for home or computer watching, that include hand position, strumming technique, rhythm and timing, and finger exercises that take through various type of songs. Essentially these become a mirror for you in learning to play as you mimic what you’re watching on screen and then reproduce this on your own. With commitment and determination, this can be a good one to go - especially for the visual learner who likes to learn primarily on their own.

Guitar lessons
You can find a community of guitar instructors in your surrounding area who are either private tutors or work through a community college. You’ll want to consider their expertise, the type of students they work best with, their flexibility with your schedule, success stories, and of course their fees, in considering working with them. In pursing guitar lessons, you can either do one on one or group - both have their plusses and minuses but either can work for you.

Playing partners
Find someone in your local community who plays. You can do this through asking the local community college, posting online to a resource like craigslist, or asking the guitar shop. The idea is to develop a friendship with someone who is a bit better than you who wants the accountability of practicing weekly. What you can provide is the commitment to meet up with them weekly and practice. In return, you can learn from their techniques or methods what works. Of course, you always need to be aware of learning bad habits in situations like these, which is why it’s important to have a foundation in guitar technique before starting.

Guitar theory
Related to guitar technique is developing a basis in guitar theory. Chord patterns, minor and major chord progressions, note scales, and overlap with piano and percussion instruments can all give you a basic structure upon which to layer in the knowledge and technique you gain in your guitar playing.

Playing guitar can be a wonderful expression of one’s musical and creative talent. And with a commitment to constant improvement, it can provide a lifetime of enjoyment for yourself, friends, and family.

Dave Lloyd has created the online guide to guitar playing at www.improvemyguitar.com

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