This week at Easy Ear Training we have been celebrating one year of Musical U! We have a review of how our first year has gone and a collection of 10 member success stories. If you have thought about becoming a member yourself, be sure to check out the details below about the anniversary special offer.
Also read on for a guide to the “New Indie” sound, a tutorial on keeping in time during rhythm transitions, a preview of a new workbook for modern composers, and some valuable advice from the musical greats themselves.
Happy Birthday, Musical U!
This week marks a year since the launch of Musical U, our all-in-one solution for musicality and ear training online. After several years developing mobile apps, eBooks and training courses, we had a new idea for what modern musicality training should look like. To find out how the first year has gone and our plans for year two check out Musical U: The Results So Far.
If you are not sure if Musical U is the right fit for you read some of our member stories in Celebrating Year One: Musical U Members Share Their Stories. Find out how being part of the Musical U community has helped each of them in their unique journeys to develop their musicality.
To celebrate this first birthday Musical U is offering great discounts on memberships. This weekend only! Visit Musical-U.com to find out more.
Rhythm Transitions
If you have been following our Rhythm Bootcamp series you are probably seeing improvements in your rhythmic accuracy and playing on the beat. Now the next step is to maintain your rhythmic accuracy during tempo and style transitions. Join us for this interactive tutorial to help you practice keeping time during transitions.
Did you know there is such a thing as “beat-deafness”, like “tone-deafness”? Both are actually very rare, but as it turns out some people are born without an inner time-keeping mechanism. Learning rhythm can do more than just help you keep in time with your band, it can also develop your character. No wonder drummers have such great personalities!(?)
How the Greats Became Great
Have you wondered what advice Johnny Cash wold give you if you could sit down for a coffee with him? Join Johnny and other great musicians share their advice on how they became one of the “greats” in this collection of quotes from iconic musicians on the Musical U blog.
For more advice on how to be a great musician don’t miss this article written by a violist for the Oregon Symphony Orchestra. There are a lot of things he wishes he had learned as a young musician and here he shares ten things he wish he’d known as a young musician.
Here is a great video of jazz artists sharing their experiences of how they made it. Get ready for some very inspiring stories for musicians who love what they do even though they don’t have a lot of resources to do it.
The Sound of New Indie Music
There is no doubt that the future of music-making lies in technology. When once you would need to hire a studio and expensive equipment to record an album, you can now do all of that and more, with just your laptop and imagination. In this Open your Ears article we take an in-depth look at six “new indie” tracks, and analyse the making of contemporary music using synthesis techniques.
For more on how technology impacts how we think about music, how we share it and who has the means to create it check out this interesting article by therealmusician.com.
Plus, can Indie music even save the world? Find out as Sean Bohrman, creator of Burger Records, talks to SDSU Prof. Adam Hammond about the politics of Indie Music and answers questions from students.
You’re invited to Composer Bootcamp
Composing may seem like something “best left to the professionals” or those with a natural “talent”, but like everything else in music it is actually a skill that can be learned. Award-winning composer Sabrina Peña Young has written a new workbook containing 50 essential exercises to help you become a modern composer. For a sneak preview of what is included in the workbook don’t miss this interview: You’re invited to Composer Bootcamp.
If you’re looking for an initial introduction before diving into those great exercises, take a look at The Beginners Guide to Music Composition by artofcomposing.com and A Composing Starter Kit from noteflight.com.
Sabrina’s particular expertise is in merging music and multimedia through technology. Be inspired in that direction yourself by Irish contemporary composer Anna Murray and her use of multimedia in her compositions.
Thank you for joining us this week to explore these new music resources and celebrate Musical U’s first anniversary. Don’t forget to check out their special offer of discount memberships – only available till midnight EST on Sunday 24th April!
