Major Announcement and Interview with @Kidstruments

Hello everyone! Sorry about the lack of posts lately but between Faith's getting married in the next couple of weeks and I've been setting up for a new series plus running Team Young Spark as we head towards our first couple of major events... Life's been a little overwhelming. But seeing there has been 90+ views on the "Music Theory 101" series thus far, I think it's safe to assume that I will finish this season of it. The next series I'm going to do is a tutorial series on using and making the most out of Audacity. While it isn't the best program to do a lot of complicated audio manipulation, people underestimate its potential. By the time the series begins to trickle out, I should have released an animation project I've been working on with my friend Benjamin and everything audio related has been mixed and mastered in Audacity. Also, I want to revisit the Finale Tutorials but teach over 2014 this time.The original series had such a positive reception that I wouldn't imagine not doing it but I need to save up for 2014. Leave a comment if you would like to see more of them (and they will be actual lessons this time, not randomly teaching tools!)

The first major announcement is that I've been accepted as a panelist for Derpy Con South as my alias Harmonic Inferno, and I will be giving 2 lectures: One on the series I've been working on here (Music Theory 101) and the other an open discussion on arts activism. I wanted to make sure that if anyone here was interested in coming out to the convention and hearing them that you were aware in advance. The other thing I wanted to announce was Faith will be getting married in the near future. I mentioned it briefly before, but I wanted to make sure I gave her a major congratulations for her milestone with her fiance but for all the help she's done in building this site back up. Now without further ado, let's get onto the interview!

Adam: Explain what Kidstruments Fund is? How was it started and how long has
it been around?

Kidstruments: Kidstruments Fund is an organization that helps kids play instruments in school band or orchestra. It was started when my 6th grade orchestra teacher's violin broke. It was very sentimental to her and I raised money to try to fix it. She did not take the money but in the process I learned that there are kids without the sufficient funds to rent an instrument. I had this money and nothing to do with it, so I used it to start Kidstruments. Kidstruments has been around for 3 months now [as of the time of this interview].

A: What all does Kidstruments Fund do to help/ benefit the music community?

K: Kidstruments helps the music community by helping others playing music, by expanding the community (in the future hopefully greatly) and making more people to play the music that other people write. Now, as for the normal community, it shows people that little people (grammar for the win) can make big impacts. It also helps more people enjoy music. It also helps kids in school, because for some, a love of music might be the thing that makes them like school and be a better student. 

A: What goals does your group have towards helping the music community at

large?

K: Our goal to the music community at large is to help more and more people not just play music, but write it, understand it, and enjoy it. We try to grow it and expand it. Kidstruments is trying greatly to expand music all over the world.

A: How can someone help your cause?

K: People can help by donating online at [http://kidstrumentsfund.org/donate/] or they can send a check to:

Kidstruments Fund Inc.9425 N. Meridian #201IndianapolisIN 46260They can also follow us on Twitter [@Kidstruments] or Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/Kidstruments]. Finally, and most important, if music people just told other music people about us, I think so many musicians would remember how important their school band or orchestra was to their life, and would want to help kids get the same opportunity. The younger kids, after all, are the musicians of tomorrow.

Special Post: 10,000 views and Growing! Special Surprise for all!

Hey everyone, Sulli here and I'm here to gratefully announce we've hit 10,000 views! I am here to announce that we are hosting a new contest, along with a few changes. We hit view #10,000 sometime Saturday morning so whomever it was that rolled us over, thank you! And also thank you for all the support everyone has given to bringing this page as far as it has! We couldn't have gotten as far without viewers like you.



I have talked this over with the other authors of the blog and we have decided that the blog needs a new name and a new logo to accommodate. However, we don't have any ideas for a new name so we are asking everyone to submit a name and a logo idea. The best 3 ideas of each will go down into final vote between everyone out there. Lester, Dallas and I will have the final say on it. The person/people who are selected will get a shout out, and will write a song in your name.

Also, for those who have been following me on Twitter know I am celebrating the 150th follow I'm extending the video to two: The acoustic fiddle tunes on my cello and then the Star Spangled Banner on the electric cello. However, I will have to hold off on posting them for a couple of days due to the extent of recording them while babysitting. However, I WILL have them up asap! Between those and working on the Composer's Vlog episodes, I've been a little stressed out.
Before I go, I have one last announcement. Before school starts for me, I want to post one more special episode as a test for future series (As you may have noticed, I have been testing a lot out lately). I have been talking to some upcoming dubstep artist who are working on a charity fundraiser and have decided to review all the albums and say which I think had the best album. I will have the first episode of 3 up next Friday. As always, don't forget to subscribe if you haven't, leave a comment or email if you have a question/concern/suggestion and have a good day!

Quick Announcement and Unboxing video

Hey guys, sorry about the lack of interaction lately. I've had a lot going on between personal stuff and tech issues but I'm here to say there will be a Composer's Vlog episode tomorrow! Including into that technical difficulty problem, there appears to have been a massive glitch among subscribers so if you have previously subscribed and would like to remain subscribed then please enter the email again to the right. Also, there appears to have been some posts that were suppose to have posted automatically over the week but didn't go out so I'll have them up at their normal times next week.

If you would like to watch an unboxing of the new Iron Man soundtrack then click on the preview window below. Thanks for reading and subscribing! See you tomorrow everyone!

Caption Contest and some announcements! There's a great prize this time! :D

Hello everyone! Sulli here, and I have a few announcements:

First off, I caught a cold which led to my voice being completely gone so no Podcast today however I am going to post the interview in the next Podcast along with the next series. If you have a suggestion for the next series, then let us know by contacting us through Facebook, Twitter, or through email. I have something planned for it as of now but after that is open to what the viewers would like to see. For those who want to know the schedule, tomorrow will be a "How to Practice" episode by me, Thursday will have the next episode of "Organ: a Dissertation in Umpteen Parts".  Friday will be the next World Music Experiment episode, and finally after the lack of entries to the "Song of the Week" series, I've decided to put it on hold and will move the Composer's Vlog to Saturday. Keep submitting songs, because it will come back later on just don't expect anything immediately.

Secondly, I wanted to let everyone know how much I love and appreciate the support that you've been giving us. We finally hit the 8,000 viewer mark on May 30th and I have been talking about it on my personal Facebook but not on here, so thank you. If you haven't already subscribed to us then please do! We're working very hard to keep content on here up to date and entertaining.

The last thing is we are hosting a Caption Contest for an ASMTB "ParaChord" Bracelet (picture below). Shout out to Wayne for making it! Using the picture provided and either a meme generator or Photoshop, create a caption to go along with this picture and post it to us on either the Facebook page or the Twitter page. Best entry wins the bracelet and a shout out on both pages. If you can't think of anything, but you still want a bracelet you still have a chance! Just go onto either page (links are at the top on the Nav. bar), like/follow the page(s) and share the contest picture. If you can do that, you will be entered into winning one! So, let's start seeing some entries!! Good luck!

Here's the picture for the contest:

And here's a picture of the prize:

One ASMTB Para"Chord" Bracelet

Finale 2012 Tutorial Episode 2 Pt. 1 & Announcements!

For those who haven't checked out the YouTube page, here's the tutorial series I'm working on now. It's on Finale 2012, and this is the first of the next episode (more up throughout the rest of the month). Don't forget to subscribe and please give me some feedback! I tried to mix up the editing this time, and if you click the annotation, you'll see what it was like on the last tutorial. If you have any questions or ideas for future episodes, then don't be afraid to let me know. I will do my best to help if you need help or talk out an idea for more videos.

Also, I am here to announce the blog has finally hit 4000 views today! I am so happy to see that there are regulars that are continuously reading these articles, and give me more chances than I deserve when I screw up! I am announcing that when we hit 5000 views mark I am hosting a give a way of something really cool (and isn't from 80's pop culture!). I will post more about what I will be giving away once we hit around 4500. Along with that, I am having another thing for the Facebook Fan Page and the Twitter Page. Once we hit 100 likes on Facebook, I will start taking questions for all the admin on the page over Facebook and Twitter. In case you don't know the admin here's what we have:

Sulli (myself): Manager of the blog, blog related posting and general posting of anything.

Yuki: Posts about Asian Pop music. She keeps us up to date on music trends in the Asian music community.

Kyte: Posts general music memes.

(*Undisclosed*): The newest member to be added in the next few days. He will be posting series on the blog and will cover European music trends.

Facebook Fan Page: www.facebook.com/sulliadm
Twitter Fan Page: www.twitter.com/sulliadm
YouTube Page: www.youtube.com/sulli00700


If you stay savvy on Latin music trends, want to take the place for North American music trends or have something unique that you want to put on the table then let us know! I'm looking for more admins for the page! I know I have a large Russian audience (about half my international views come from Russia), so if any of you guys would love to talk then I know everyone else would love to hear! Nothing will be denied an offer. The same also goes for my fan series. If you have something you have written or covered then send it in and I'll take a listen to see if I will post it. Have a good day guys, and again thank you for all the support!

Update: 3,000 views!! I have to celebrate with some announcements!

Hey guys! I really am sorry about the zoning out from posting the past couple of months but I've had some personal things come up that kept me busy. However I promise that this Friday I will have some stuff for you guys. But for today, I have a couple of announcements to keep you guys waiting.

The first (and probably the most important) is the blog has hit the 3,000 views mark! Another major milestone for me seeing, as I said last time, I never expected so many views on here. I thought this would be an site where I would post something and I would be the only one to see it. But, it's not and that's exciting for me to know I have some followers. Thank you guys!!

Second, I am officially announcing that I will be attending the 15th Annual Tennessee Cello Workshop hosted by the Univ. of Tennessee Knoxville's School of Music. If you want to look at the registration and see if you're interested then click here. This is a 3 day workshop from Feb. 15-17 and will cover a lot on the cello; not only master class, but a class on scales and extended technique. I had the honor of meeting Wesley Baldwin when he came to South Carolina for the annual cello choir and he told us about the event. Hope I get to meet some fans there!

Third, I am hoping to start posting more videos on the Youtube channel (sulli00700) so if you want to see more don't forget to subscribe. I'm planning on not only finishing up the Finale tutorial series and unboxings but to actually post some recordings of me playing. I have a few songs I've been working on recording and I want to post them on here to give you guys more of a feel for my style of music. If you have any requests don't forget to submit them to me from the Facebook Fan Page (which you should go and like if you use Facebook! Here's the link to the fan page) or follow me on Twitter (link to my account).

Finally, I know I've been really (and I mean REALLY) slacking on here but over all I haven't really posted anything for the Global Music Experience. Soon I will start putting that into full swing but if you are interested in joining team Music Theory Blog then I would love some help! I am looking for someone(s) who has a love of music, the blog and understands social media a lot better than I do (I understand computers, but I don't get trends!). The positions that I'm looking to fill are someone or some people to handle the Facebook Page and keep media posted on it like memes, the Global Music Experience and anything else music related for the page. If you are interested in filling any position around these guidelines, or just have a suggestion for me to try for the blog, send me an email to my blog email (click here). I would love to here from you guys!

YouTube Channel Update!

Hello viewers! I wanted to let you guys know that I am starting to run the YouTube Channel off with a series on Finale 2012. Afterwards I am going to start integrating CD reviews integrating OST's and music in general but I need YOUR input! I would like for you to share this announcement and go to the Facebook Fan Page and tell me what you would like for me to do unboxings and reviews of? I have current plans to do one of the Halo 4 Soundtrack and later on "Music From Another Dimension" by Aerosmith. I really do like everyone's input on the blog and if you have an idea for the blog, then I would love to hear it!

Link to Facebook Fan Page: Click Here

Link to Twitter page: Click Here

Link to YouTube Page: Click Here

So, I hope to hear from you guys and if nothing else, see you in the next episode!

How to Practice Episode 8 : Don't freak out over a mistakes!

Hey guys! Sorry the page has been a little dry lately but final exams are just around the corner and I've been busy studying for them! I sense my older viewers are laughing right now but the younger ones don't get this at all but that's fine with me! Anyways today I am here to talk about one of the bigger hindrances to performing in front of a crowd or simply playing for your family around the holidays; the fear of making a mistake! This doesn't seem like that big a deal but it really does mess with your performance if you don't know the proper way to deal with this situation. Before I start talking about this topic, I wanted to announce a contest! I'll be giving away some Magic Rosin (3G and 3G Ultra) and some advertising space on here if you want to recommend your page to my viewers! I will post an official announcement after I talk out all the details and such. Also, for those who aren't aware, I do a vlogging series on Youtube and I am about to start a full video series on Finale! If you aren't aware of Finale, it's a program which you can write music in and I was thinking about doing a series on teaching the basics to it. If you are interested in the series or have ideas for me, then let me know by tweeting me on Twitter (@sulliadm), or join the Facebook Fan Page!

Now, have you ever felt very ill about playing to family or friends because you were afraid of messing up. Or have you ever been on stage to preform and felt stage freight from being afraid of messing up? I will admit that I had the exact same feel with my recital last Thursday and I got a good taste of what it's like to go through a mini panic attack from actually messing up... But there is a way around that. You have to learn how to continue playing after messing up. This might sound harder than it actually is because for the most part, it's all a mental state of thinking. You have to learn that messing up is just the way we are! We will make mistakes, but they shouldn't stop you in the middle of a performance. The big secret of music is, if you're playing to people who don't know the music as well as you do or are playing to people who aren't very "music savvy" then if you mess up then they probably won't notice. I'm not saying that you should mess up a song nor am I saying you shouldn't practice a piece and go on and mess it up! I'm saying if you mess up while playing a piece, then don't over react to it and either stop what you're doing or freak out on stage.

Here's an example from my personal life. For those who are new to the series, I am a freshman cellist @ Winthrop University. I've been studying with the cello professor there for a few years now  and she's been teaching me how to play the Saint Saens cello concerto #1 for around a year now. When one of the other cellist had to give a recital for the graduation requirements, she asked me if I would be interested in playing the first movement of the song for a "half recital" (a recital that doesn't count towards your graduation, but is more for fun and experience). Being the kind of person that I am (a little crazy but will take almost any opportunity to learn and grow), I decided it would be awesome to do it. I went through the usual feeling about the first time on stage "alone" would be good for my personality of being a little antisocial (which it did help). During the performance however, there was a disconnection in tempo in the middle of the song and we got off. When I noticed, I started to freeze up but I noticed I was near a break in my part so I kept going until the break and waited for my next entrance. After all was said and done, I talked to some friends outside who listened and said they only noticed my stopping because I was showing it.

It can be a difficult thing to learn, and there's not really a way to learn this skill besides experiencing it.

Special Post: 2,000 US views and an announcement!

Hello and welcome back to all of my regulars, and an especially warm welcome to the people who are being referred to the site thanks to Magic Rosin! I am proud to announce the 2,000 US viewer was seen last night which is a milestone for me! I honestly imagined this site to be a random page that was searched every now and again for a laugh as I talked about something that no one cared to read! But seeing I have hit the 2,000 viewer in the US, and a grand total of 2,400 viewers which there are about 40 or 50 regulars. I would like for all of the new viewers to have a nice start with the blog. As you have probably guessed, my name's Adam and I play the cello and love to compose music... And not just one genre in particular. I think that all music, even if it's not one kind that I listen to often or at all, is valid on some level. It should be shared with the public and cherished as a piece of art. The differences in music should be separated by a permeable wall; Classical, for example, should influence modern music just as much as modern "classical" music should be influenced by modern music such as pop, rock and etc. This doesn't necessarily mean for one to put a beat box to Vivaldi's Four Seasons but if you can make it work then do so. Music is determined by the composer!

Now, you may be looking at that and wondering why it: A) sounds like a vitamin water bottle label, or B) what is the point of that if this is a blog about music theory. The answer to latter question is this blog isn't all about theory. I try to put a mix of things on here to not only open people up to the variety in the world! In order to understand music, you need to know what music is like all over the world and try mixing new elements into your style. For example, I am working on a few arrangements of some classical Christmas tunes for the holidays and one that I'm going to assume a lot of you have heard is The Piano Guys' version of Nearer, My God, To Thee (link). For those who haven't heard the original, then it is a standard SATB (Soprano, Alto, Tener, Bass) hymn for a church choir. However as you hear around half way into a 7/8 feel and sounds almost syncopated at times. That is the general idea behind composing and arranging music: Find (or create) a tune and make it fit in the context of what you want. And in the blog I have a couple of series that I have to help you with this adventure and an important announcement. The first series I started was the actual music theory lessons which have been going on for a while. Coming up after ever 5 to 10 episodes, I do a theory recap post to help catch everyone up on what they missed. Following that, I started the "How to Practice" series in which I give situations where a lot of student musicians get stuck and I present solutions to those problems by either giving the most common way out of it or I create a method (which is what the next episode will be on *hint hint*).

And now, down to the final and the most important part of the post: The big announcement. I am starting 3 new series for the blog: "Interviews with the Professionals", a Fan Music series and The "Global Musical Experiment". The first series is exactly what is says; being a student at Winthrop University I get to talk to the professionals who stop by and ask questions so I have created a series of questions that I ask everyone and share their knowledge with you. The second is also as it sounds as well, if you guys want to write a song, submit it to me and I like it, I will post it on here for everyone to see and get you some views. Finally, the last one is a little more complex than it appears.

As I stated before, I have a somewhat large international fan base ranging from Great Britain, France and Russia to South Korea, Indonesia and Japan. I would like to start an interactive page where everyone can post a little bit about where they are from and post a video describing the song they choose to post and why they chose it. I have already started this "forum" sort of discussion on my Facebook Fan Page with a few people but I need everyone to help pitch some music in! However, the magic begins when I select your post and put it on here to share! So if everyone will join the Facebook Fan Page and post one thing on it then this will be an amazing musical learning adventure for everyone to see life from other parts of the world. And if you're not a fan of Facebook, then I have a Twitter page you can follow as well! Hope you decide to stick around and don't be afraid to look around the page or contact me with questions, changes or ideas you have!