Adam Sullivan Music Theory Podcast Ep. 3: Meeting the Composers Pt. 2

Hello, and welcome to the next episode of the Adam Sullivan Music Theory Podcast. This is the second episode of the series called "Meeting the Composers" where you are taking a look at the authors of the Blog. This episode is an interview with Dallas, the author of "A. If you have any questions that were not covered, then leave a comment or send question(s) to any of the following places: Facebook: www.facebook.com/sulliadm Twitter: www.twitter.com/sulliadm YouTube: www.youtube.com/ASMusicTheoryBlog Don't forget to submit something for the Sulli's Song of the Week because we had no entries last week! Thanks for listening!

Composer's Vlog Ep. 2: Let's Start Getting Something Done!

Hey everyone, we're back with episode 2 of the Composer's Vlog. In this episode we begin by working on the first few cadences in order to show you how to get some work done.

The World Music Experiment: Ep. 1

Hello! I know it has been a while since the introduction of the series, but the world music experiment is off to a start. Its been a very busy and very successful few weeks and you can now more regularly expect an episode. So lets start, shall we? Lets pick up right where we left off. So in the intro I discussed the music of Latin America, and left a video of the fantastic Bossa Nova, and Samba musician Joao Gilberto; So we will discuss the Bossa Nova. ''Bossa Nova'' is a music originating from Brazil in Rio de Janeiro around the 1950's. Main musical figures include [my favorites] Joao Gilberto, Stan Getz, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Badi Assad, Astrud Gilberto, Lisa Ono, Nara Leao and many many more. The previous listed people were major players in the expansion of Bossa, especially Stan Getz, Joao Gilberto, and Antonio Carlos Jobim (also known as Tom Jobim) Bossa meaning trend, and Nova meaning new literally translates to new trend [I wonder what the name will be in 200 years?]. Classically, Bossa Nova's instrumentation consists of Nylon Classical Guitar, Piano [or any keyboard i.e Organ, Fender Rhodes, etc...], Acoustic Bass, and Percussion. Bossa Nova is a music that derives from the other and older form of south American music known as the Samba [a music with strong roots in African and Brazilian music] which helps establish its sense of rhythm. Because talking about music is something that takes an extensive amount of explanation, some styles may take a few installments to discuss [Bossa Nova may be one]. Bossa Nova combines elements of Jazz, and samba which helps give it its very distinct sound [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMQNMRJn-Eo]. As you can tell the sense of rhythm is very distinct, and is the most recognizable and consistent primarily throughout Bossa Nova music. To be put simply, if you set your metronome to 4/4 and follow the music, you will see that beats 1, and 3 are the beats emphasized stronger than beats 2, and 4. This is a common factor in Bossa Nova commonly emphasized by the Bass and Guitar. So for now to establish more familiarity with the music here are some links to various Bossa Nova tunes to get the feel, sound, and idea under your ears a bit more until next time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFGQtGJZto8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfy2ggYnxsk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pm8ZLJGlD9g

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJkxFhFRFDA

Organs: A Dissertation in Umpteen Parts; Preamble

Hello, and welcome to the Adam Sullivan Music Theory Blog!  My name is Dallas.  I'm a friend and colleague of Sulli's; he's been trying to get me on here to do a couple series for months now.  For various and sundry reasons I never could get around to it, but lo and behold, here I am! 

Let me first give an honest disclaimer:  this is not really a dissertation in any way.  Not officially, at least.  However, as you may come to notice while reading through this series, writing such a thing about the pipe organ can make you feel like you're writing a senior thesis.

I'd like to begin with a few vague points about myself... however, there's a time and place for autobiographical ramblings.  (Namely my own personal blog, which will come online in tandem with the publication of this series.  More on that later!)  For know, suffice to say that I'm a young organist/pianist/violist/bassist/random percussion neophyte/composer living in Rock Hill, SC.  Music is my lifeblood.  And I have quite a lot to say about certain subjects in the musical spectrum in which we all situate ourselves as musicians.

Which brings us to the point at hand!  If you hadn't guessed by now, this is going to be a series all about organs.  The lauded "King of Instruments," as it were.  Pipe organs have been around for several hundred years, and their evolution over that time frame is staggering.  Now, with the advances of modern technology, electronic and digitally-sampled organs are vastly popular; there are even digital organs that have sample sets advanced enough to (fairly) convincingly reproduce the sounds (and seconds of acoustical reverb) of famous organs in vast cathedrals such as the great organ of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City, or the historic and awe-inspiring instrument in the Oude Kerk in Amsterdam.  In this series, I am going to walk you through everything I know—and some things I don't know yet, I'm sure—about the world of the organ.  My major focus will be on actual pipe organs, but I can promise to include a wealth of information on their increasingly capable digital counterparts.

By the time this series is completed (which is a daunting thought), you will understand the difference between a Principal and a Stopped Diapason.  And what all this business about "feet" seems to be (that is to say, what the heck they mean by 8', 4', 2', and so on when naming stops).  And why playing middle "c" with a 2 2/3' mutation rank won't do you any good in representing the pitch of ANY "c" at all.  You'll know all about resultants and mixtures and celestes and cornets and what is actually meant by stops called such things as "viola," "trumpet," "tuba," and so on.  And of course, the most important bit of all:  you'll know the storied journey of the pipe organ from antiquity to the present, and just where its perilous path may or may not take it in the days to come.

This series will publish on Thursdays—not on Tuesdays.  As it goes on, the specific flow of things may change, but to begin with, I've listed a very general idea of what you can expect to see, and in what order.  Note that certain parts, like II and III, may end up being posted in subsections, as they can get to be QUITE long and involved.  Furthermore, these labelled parts do not constitute the entirety of the series.  There will be rather less specific "filler" posts here and there along the way as I continue in my constant endeavour to raise interest in and awareness of the incredible world of the organ.

I hope you enjoy the adventure we're about to embark upon.  If you don't, well... you will be assimilated.  But in all honesty, I can not stress the importance of raising awareness of the (pipe) organ within the musical community.  Especially the subsection therein that is in my generation; it is up to us to carry the elements of our forebears into the future.  If we're not careful, the organ, King of Instruments as it may once have been called, may not make that journey with us.

Thanks for reading.  Have an awesome day, and be sure to thank a music educator somewhere.

—

Part I:  The Storied Journey [the history and evolution of the pipe organ, and where it stands today]

Part II:  Anatomy and Physiology 101 [an introduction to the inner structures and workings of pipe organs]

Part III:  Divisions Conquered [an in-depth look at the different kinds of pipes found on various instruments]

Part IV:  Pulling Out the Stops [an in-depth look at how different kinds of pipes work together... or don't!]

Part V:  The Language Barrier [a brief instalment, to include a breakdown of linguistic variations]

Part VI:  Anatomy and Physiology 202 [a really in-depth expansion on A&P 101]

Part VII:  Literature of the Organ (I) [an introduction to organ music of the Baroque and Classical eras]

Part VIII:  Literature of the Organ (II) [an introduction to organ music of the Romantic and early 20th century eras]

Part IX:  Literature of the Organ (III) [an introduction to modern organ music]

Part X:  The Digital Crux (I) [part one of the subseries devoted to digital organs and their development; introduction to the epic debate of pipes vs. digital sampling]

Part XI:  The Organ as a Concert Instrument [a small dissertation of its own, going into the organ's often enigmatic role as a concert instrument]

Part XII:  The Organ in Liturgy [everyone's most familiar aspect of organ music:  the church]

Part XIII:  The Digital Crux (II) [how digital organs relate to the concert hall, as well as the church]

Part XIV:  The Digital Crux (III) [the most current advances for digital organs, and how they're starting to overtake even the greatest pipe organs in many ways; further debate on the pipes/digital argument]

Review: Larsen Crown medium cello strings

http://www.sharmusic.com/shop.axd/Search?keywords=larsen+crown

Hello and welcome to the Adam Sullivan Music Theory Blog review of the "Larsen Crown cello strings". If you like this review, then please subscribe to the blog for more musical reviews, and much more.

Now as a few of you have requested I have a review for the Larsen Crown strings. Shout out to Frank up at Davidson Violins (homepage and facebook) for helping me get the strings. Now for those who are interested in the overall view on them I think they're decent strings. They aren't the best I've ever played but if you need strings for cheap or want your student some good strings for cheap, then these are a very good option. Also, I need to point out that I was using Evah Pirazzi Soloist A & D, and Spirocore Silver G & C on my Spainhour cello.

First off, let's go over the packaging. The mediums I tested came out in a plastic box with the strings in a white envelope and the logo Crown on it. I opened the box to see the four strings were uniquely sealed in their own envelope. Each strings I had in the set was well sealed. The strings felt a little heavier than what I was use to, but I eventually got use to them. The strings are made from peek, which is a high quality synthetic core. I've never had the opportunity to try them before these. After first putting them on, I noticed they the A and D were a lot louder than the Evah Pirazzi, but the sound wasn't as clean. They didn't sound as direct a sound, but the overall volume of the cello was louder. The G and C were the same volume wise as the Spirocore but they weren't as clear, and I couldn't get any projection out of them. I felt like the quality of sound had gone down, however seeing this was my first play with them I assumed it was from them being unboxed and new. I let them sit for a few days on my cello, and they never slipped on me. I loved that they never slipped while breaking in on me. However, the clarity of the sound diminished overall. I feel that the strings have gotten quieter since they settled in and the tone has gotten a bit better than before. I will have recordings of what I'm referring to in the near future.

Overall, these strings aren't that bad. I've never used synthetic core before, but after using these I am willing to give any others a try. I feel like the overall sound from my cello has diminished, so I'm removing the strings from my cello after I record the audio for showing how they sound after getting broken in. However, these strings aren't the worst you can pay for the money. The average price online that I've seen is around $100 for a set, so if you are curious to test out synthetic core or feel your student should try some new strings for cheap then these would work. I give them a 3/5. I will update this article with the audio files and the unboxing soon!

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Adam Sullivan Music Theory Podcast Ep. 2: Meeting the Composers Pt. 1

Hello, and welcome to the next episode of the Adam Sullivan Music Theory Podcast. This is the first episode of the series called "Meeting the Composers" where you are taking a look at the authors of the Blog. This episode is an interview with "Sulli", the creator of the blog. If you have any questions that were not covered, then leave a comment or send question(s) to any of the following places:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/sulliadm
Twitter: www.twitter.com/sulliadm
YouTube: www.youtube.com/ASMusicTheoryBlog


Don't forget to submit something for the Sulli's Song of the Week because we had no entries last week! Thanks for listening!

Adam Sullivan Music Theory Podcast Ep. 1

This is the first podcast to the Adam Sullivan Music Theory Blog. In this series, I will go over news about the blog, music news, and take suggestions from viewers and listeners. The overview of this episode is explanation of all the series, explaining the outline of the Podcast, and going through the Songs of the Week selected before today.

The Songs of the Week are:

Week 1: Hunter Irving: Bad Little Boy - @hunter-irving

Week 2: Steven Chen: : Nocture – Cello & Piano - youtu.be/AjKATs7SAx4

Week 3: Amanda DeCarlo: Build Me Up Buttercup as played by The Foundation-youtu.be/1X0HzJELASM

Week 4: Joel Rivera: Fallout - @solidsound98

Week 5: The Hinson Girls: Rocky Top Tennessee - youtu.be/cANbaIgmkU4

Week 6: Sadie Urrestta: By Your Side as played by Tenth Avenue North - youtu.be/0xa0lfj8u8E

Facebook: www.facebook.com/sulliadm

Twitter: http:www.twitter.com/sulliadm

YouTube: www.youtube.com/ASMusicTheoryBlog

Sulli's Song of the Week #7: "By Your Side" covered by Sadie Urrestta

http://www.youtube.com/user/oliv3u

Hey everyone and welcome to the Adam Sullivan Music Theory Blog! I know I've been delaying the videos and such for a while now (Sorry, College comes first... Especially crazy exams!) however I am back with the next episode in the Song of the Week series!

Today we have Sadie Urrestta (pronounced You-Rest-Ah) recorded a cover of "By Your Side" by Tenth Avenue North that sounds marvelous! She is from Oregon but moved around a lot when she was younger to wind up in South Carolina. She plays Guitar, Flute, Ukulele and sings. She started out playing guitar when she was little after listening to Avril Lavigne and wanting to be like her. This cover, however, was inspired by something else. "ive (SIC) had a lot of changes lately and a few conflicts arose and I felt that those who needed assurance that I wasn't planning on abandoning their side would recognize that I was communicating it with them through this song.". Well, I hope those who you weren't abandoning didn't feel abandoned because this cover is amazing!

If you would like to be featured on this segment then let us know! Message us a clip of you playing something original or a cover at YouTube, Twitter (message or at #ASMusicTheoryBlog or #SulliSongOfTheWeek), Facebook or in the comments below! Thanks for reading!

The Composer's Vlog Episode 1: Basic Introductions

Hey everyone, it's Sulli and not only am I back, but I'm back with some exciting news! I am revamping the blog by making a new series I'm calling "The Composer's Vlog". Now, in this 1st season of the series (of hopefully many more) I am going to go over working with the themes from "Void". Void is a roleplaying game played in the style of Dungeons and Dragons however is set into the future. The protagonist (can't really call them heros from as far as I've gotten with it) are a group of people from all over the US "... so far in the future from our own timeline on earth that we humans, as a race, are incapable of putting a number to the years.". The objective of the game, like many others is to go through and defeat the antagonist (the Void) from taking over our universe. If you love RPG's or have always wanted to give one a try, then head on over to their site (https://www.facebook.com/groups/564393450248783/) and follow along. This is a really simple one and as of now is a great one to start out with if you've never played one before.

As for this series, however, I am writing some music to go along with the story of the game. This series is intended as a tool to not only demonstrate methods towards composing music, but it also going to be used as a way to help show many other ideas towards achieving sounds and effects that you may want to use for your own compositions. However, for the first few episodes I will be recording on my desktop like I have been with my tutorials.

Anyways, I hope everyone likes this new series! Let me know what you think in the comments here, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube ! Also, if you have any suggestions for this piece, then you are allowed to leave a comment about how you think it should be changed and if I like it and enough people agree with making the change then I will go it. Just remember that this will be a piece online for us to share and learn from! I hope you enjoy the series and I will be back posting something almost daily, and I will share with you the calender for the posts but that is for another day! I now have to leave to go grab something to eat but I will be back.

Always Remember...
Fear the cellos!
~Sulli