Professional Documents
Culture Documents
WINTER 2015
NOW
HEAR
THIS!
PLUS
HOW TO BE
SUCCESSFUL
ON THE
HOUSE
CONCERT
CIRCUIT
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INSIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY
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FROM THE
GREG HORNAK
4 Winter 2015
HANG TIME
Not every musician is cut out for the houseconcert environment. It can be unnerving to
have people listening so intently, and at such
close range, if youre not used to it. And banter
with the audience is essential; just playing your
songs without saying anything would be
awkward, or even a little rude. Patti Dalton, who
runs a series called Pattis Place in her basement in Massachusetts, says, As important as
the music is, so is the ability to connect with
the audience in such a small and cozy place. Its
nice if members of the audience have a question or two to give the artist something to talk
about. [The artists] get the chance to tell
stories they might not tell in a bigger room.
Performers who like to sequester themselves in the green room right up until the
show starts, and then disappear right after,
would be better off sticking to clubs, because
at a house concert, the artist is expected to
interact with the audience throughout the
evening. According to Rowe, It does take a
lot out of you, as far as the intensity level, and
just that youre on the whole time. You have
6 Winter 2015
BUILDING A NETWORK
Most house concerts are set up directly
between host and artist, but today booking
services can help facilitate the process, both
in terms of organizing and making connections. In the case of Concerts in Your Home,
artists apply online and go through a detailed
audition process that assesses the quality of
the music and its suitability for a house-concert setting. The performers websites and
promo materials are checked out as well.
Those who are acceptedtwo-thirds of applicants are turned away, and there are currently about 300 active memberspay $300
per year for access to the sites network of
about 600 hosts.
One problem that touring artists face is
that most house-concert hosts naturally want
to host shows on weekendsbut too many
empty weeknights in between weekend gigs
quickly turn a tour into a money loser. Snyder
is trying to address this situation by encouraging music fans to host small weeknight
shows. He promotes Dinner and Song events
(dinnerandsong.com), in which the audience
breaks bread with the artist and then hears a
35-minute concert, and TenTen Concerts
(tentenconcerts.com), which are ten guests,
ten songs, for ten bucks. A string of tiny gatherings like this, which would bring an artist
$100, plus CD sales, and include a meal and a
place to stay, could mean the difference
between a successful tour and a bust.
In the San Francisco area, KC Turner takes
a more hands-on approach. He presents his
house concerts through a network of musicloving hosts who have spacious homes and
backyards, and he takes care of the booking,
promotion, and RSVPs, and supplies sound
equipment, folding chairs, and whatever else
is needed. While there are plenty of venues for
200 or 300 people or more in San Francisco,
Turner provides intimate listening experiences
where artists as well known as Ramblin Jack
Elliott, G. Love, Chuck Prophet, Peter Case,
and Glen Phillips can appreciate the chance to
perform for an audience of 50 to 100 people.
Texas singer-songwriter Alejandro Escovedo
often plays rocking shows with his band at
clubs, but at a recent house concert, Turner
says, He had no curfew, he could do whatever
he wanted, and he did a two-hour set of storytelling and songs with no microphones, just
right there in the living room. And for the fans,
the back row was only 20 feet away from him.
Youve got this insanely great seat with a legendary songwriter-performer.
Because his house concerts are relatively
small and have no overhead, Turner can take
more of a chance in helping up-and-comers
break into the competitive San Francisco
market. They dont have to book a low-paying
gig with a bunch of other bands, as would typically happen in a club. Turner recently
SAINT JAMES
Top
Sean Rowe
Middle
KC Turner introduces
an open mic performer
at Second Act in San
Francisco, California.
Bottom
A string quartet plays
Beethoven, Dvorak,
and Dohnanyi at a
Groupmuse house
concert in Cambridge,
Massachusetts.
JILL WHEELER
BRIAN CHURCHWELL
COMING HOME
Whats so striking about the house-concert
scene, whether you are participating as a performer, a host, or an audience member, is its
generous spirit. The love of music shines
through, as does respect for those who dedicate their lives to it.
Artist Glenn Elvig, who hosts the Creek
House Concert series in St. Paul, Minnesota, in
a space that doubles as an art gallery and listening room, typifies this spirit. He takes his
series very seriously, employing a pro sound
system and sound man, and has presented
more than 70 shows with top talent such as
Laurence Juber, Jonathan Byrd, Roy Book
Binder, and Karen Savoca. Elvig got started as a
house-concert presenter after being reminded
about the travails of making a living as a musician. I had a good friend who played a wonderful set at a local club and went home with
maybe $40, he says. I decided that I would
create a venue that made money for the musicians. My goal is to treat the guest artists like
royalty. I think they are national treasures.
Aside from helping to sustain grassroots
music, Rowe explains how house concerts
can create personal connections that are surprisingly deep and transforming. You never
know quite what to expect when youre going
into somebodys house, a space thats usually
reserved for family and friends. I think I had a
lot of prejudice against people from a certain
demographic and with a certain lifestyle, and
[house concerts] broke down a lot of walls
for me. I realized, wow, these are just people,
and everybody has a story. There were a lot
of surprises that I wasnt expectingreally
humbling. Its changed my outlook on people
in general.
7
NOW
HEAR
THIS!
BY DAVID KNOWLES
Mabel
8 Winter 2015
Zoom H4n
FLASH FORWARD
BY FRAN GUIDRY
Tascam DR-44WL
10 Winter 2015
10 Ways a Flash
Recorder Can Aid
Students & Teachers
BY ERIN SHRADER
Large capacity cards are great for video
and even high-end photography, but for audio
recording, even the smaller flash cards store
a lot of music. CD-standard WAV files take up
about 10 MB per minute, so a 2 GB card will
hold more than three hours of music in
uncompressed WAV format. Compressed MP3
formats are even smaller, and the size can be
adjusted by selecting different compression
levels, specified as bit rate in kilobits per
second (kbps). For instance, five minutes of
music would create a 50 MB WAV file, while a
128-kbps MP3 file would be only 5 MB; at the
highest bit rate of 320 kbps, the compressed
file will be about 10 MB. Theres a quality
tradeoff for smaller file sizes, of course. In
general, the 320-kbps MP3 is audibly the same
as a WAV file, while the 128-kbps file may have
audible artifacts.
BUDGET CONSTRAINTS
With so many recorders and a wide array of
features available, finding the right tool for
your job can be a challenge. Your first step in
filtering the choices is to determine your
budget, then evaluate the features you need
for your recording goals. Most of the recorders have built-in mics, but most also allow
you to attach external microphones. Most
portable recorders have a stereo 1/8-inch jack
that uses a microphone powering system
called plug-in power, and there are a wide
variety of mics that can be connected in this
way; however, the usual stage and studio
mics will not work with this connection
because they require an XLR input, and condenser microphones additionally need
phantom power to operate.
The least expensive recorders designed
for music have a street price of less than
$100. Both Tascam and Zoom make highquality, affordable flash recorders in this
segment that record in stereo using built-in
mics or external mics through the 1/8-inch
stereo jacks. The Tascam DR-05 offers features including a limiter and clip editing,
while the Zoom H1 is equipped with directional mics for an improved stereo image.
If your budget extends to $200, the
choices really expand. In this range, you can
find recorders like the Zoom H4n and Tascam
DR-40 that support condenser mics requiring
XLR connections and 48-volt phantom power.
2. RECORD YOURSELF
The best way to get better is to
listen to yourself. What you hear
in your minds ear and whats
actually coming out of your
instrument can be just a little
bit differentor worlds apart!
Recordings hold up an honest
mirror to your ear. But a bad
recording can be more discouraging than necessary, especially
if youre working on beautiful
tone. Todays digital recorders
create clear, accurate recordings
of your playing.
3. PLAY ALONG
You can learn a lot by playing
along with your favorite artist.
Recordings contain information
about style, feel, timing, and
interpretation that no sheet
music or verbal description
can ever provide. Stop thinking
so hard and try playing along.
11
YOU CAN
BE A BETTER
MUSICIAN.
WE CAN HELP.
B E A B E T T E R S T R I N G P L AY E R
5 Ways to Avoid
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BE A BETTER ACOUSTIC GUITARIST
B E A B E T T E R S T R I N G P L AY E R
Roland R-26
Tips to
Stay in
Tune
art that always requires an interpreter. Paintings and sculpture you can look at, theater you
can read (better with actors interpreting for
you, but you can still know what its about),
poetry sounds pretty good if you read it to
yourself, and architecture is eventually a
material reality. There are very few people who
can look at a piece of music and know what it
sounds like, and those folks dont do it for fun.
So unlike a painter, who just does whatever he
or she wants on a canvas, we have a responsibility to the composers to not only respect
their wishes, but to bring their art to life in a
manner that reflects us as well. If composers
(lately) didnt want individual interpretations
of their work, they would all just write for
computers. Most, even now, dont. And none
of us should sound like a machine, which is all
repetition and rote without thought is ever
going to achieve.
& 44
Ah
& 44
Ha
ha
ha
ha
ha
Thats what youre doing when you portato constantly. A whole phrase
like that is really, for lack of a better word, just icky.
Heres a way to prove to yourself that youre not doing it. Say, for
example, if your melody is on the A string, think and play the melody
with your left hand only, but bow the G string so only the open G
sounds. If you can think and finger your way through your melody and
have that G string sound constant, with no letup in sound when your
left hand changes, then youre sitting pretty! However, I have never
met an unintentionally portato-ing string player who can pass this test.
So try this whenever youre portato-suspicious.
Be vigilant! Its a terrible habit.
The
Learning
Game
4 tips on finding
the right teacher
BY OCTOBER CRIFASI
DO YOUR RESEARCH
Start by asking friends and relatives for a
good referral. Also check with local music stores,
community colleges, and libraries. Oftentimes
community colleges will have an extension or
adult-learning program that offers series of
group guitar classes for nominal cost. Know your
budget before making inquiries so you know
how long of a lesson you can afford (if private)
and how often. Most music stores and private
studios require payment by month, series, or
semester, so make sure to find out about cancellation and refund policies before you commit, as
they vary from studio to studio.
DECIDE WHAT
YOU WANT TO LEARN
If you are interested in learning a specific style,
technique or genre, find out if the instructor has
experience playing and teaching it. While most
instructors have experience with a variety of
styles, many have a specific genre which he or
she is best and most comfortable teaching. Be
clear with prospective teachers about what youd
like to learn and have a few short-term goals in
mind when you do. This helps both of you decide
if the match makes sense. Short-term goals also
provide a great way to assess if you are making
progress with an instructor once lessons
commence.
SCHEDULE AN
INTRODUCTORY LESSON
The only way to know if a teacher is right for you
is to take a lesson with him or her. To get the best
use of the lesson time, talk through your interests on the phone or via email in advance of
actual lesson time. This allows your lesson time
to be spent actually playing guitar and getting a
good sense of the instructors teaching style,
versus talking through the entire time.
A few things to consider after the first lesson:
Did you feel comfortable asking questions in the
lesson? Did you leave the lesson with an assignment that challenged you and inspired to practice? Did you learn something new? Did you like
the teachers approach? If you left the lesson
feeling less than inspired or that your lesson was
spent watching your teacher play or noodle
around on the fretboard for 25 of the 30 minutes,
you might want to consider taking lessons with
someone else.
The one thing to keep in mind as you go
through the search process is you are always free
to switch to another teacher if you find things not
working out with your instructor. There is usually
more than one guitar teacher in any given area,
so take an introductory lesson when possible
with as many instructors as you need to find the
right one for you.
AG
AllThingsStrings.com
12 Winter 2015
ALAN PARSONS
ART & SCIENCE OF
SOUND RECORDING
by Alan Parsons
and Julian Colbeck
MUSIC MARKETING
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by Bobby Borg
This is a proactive,
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WINTER 2015
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JAMES
TAYLOR
BACK IN THE DRIVERS SEAT
AFTER 13 YEARS
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Nutshell
BOB DYLAN
House of the Rising Sun
EARL BELL
Travelin Blues
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