Category: Music

Rumor Mill, Michael Schenker and Don Dokken Collaboration

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This is an interesting idea that has been floating around the internet for a few weeks.  The possibility of guitar great, Michael Schenker teaming up with vocalist Don Dokken on some sort of project.

Schenker a guitar legend has never really had a ‘great’ singer in his solo work. He has always had kind of wanna be rockers who were ‘good enough.’ If this did happen, Don Dokken would easily be the best vocalist to work with Schenker. He might also be the biggest diva.  This is what leads me to believe it might not happen.

Schenker tours relentlessly, year round. He has turned down huge acts to do his own thing.  Aerosmith, Ozzy and the Rolling Stones to name a few. His reasons for turning them down are that he needed to stay in his own skin and not join a media circus with which the aforementioned bands all are deeply intertwined. Don Dokken doesn’t seem like the best personality fit, but, he does not have the mega status of these other acts.

One thing for sure…I would want to hear the project.

Additional posts on Michael Schenker

Space Cowboy, Steve Miller, Turns 69 on Oct. 5

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Been a lot of Rock n Roll Birthdays this week.

Steve Miller is next on the list. October 5th , the Space Cowboy will turn 69.

From the time I was a little kid through high school, Steve Miller was one of my favorites! As a guitarist I think he is underrated and he has a great Rock n Roll voice. Couple that with the super cool synth tracks ie Fly Like an Eagle and a young rocker to be couldn’t resist. Music was like catnip for my developing internal music hard drive! I will always remember hearing him in the car driving around San Diego with my mom and at the beach blaring out of radios. Even back then when I was 7, 8 years old I couldn’t get enough music and Steve Miller was always on hand.

For some reason I think “Swingtown” was my all time favorite of his songs. It displays all the previously mentioned aspects; his voice, guitar riffs and the ambient synthesizers. Here it is…Enjoy!

Adele New Single, Skyfall

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It is finally here!

A new Adele song. Now as much as I like her voice I think I am more happy that it can be heard on some new music, finally!

As good as her mega hit album “21′ was it has suffered from being massively over played, especially in our house…my wife is a HUGE fan! 😉

The new song is entitled, “Skyfall,” from the soon to be released(Nov. 9) James Bond movie of the same title. The music is very much in the same vein of the spy music genre we have heard before. The cool thing is to hear her graceful yet powerful voice weaving through the massive orchestration. The song features a 77 piece orchestra. Of course you can also hear some of her familiar piano riffs, as well.

I’m definitely looking forward to hearing what  she has up her musical sleeve in the future.

Enjoy!

Recuerdos de la Alhambra, Tonight’s Practice Session

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Tonight’s practice session… I am re-working a couple old pieces “Recuerdos de la Alhambra” by Francisco Tarrega and “Scherzino Mexicano” by Manuel Ponce.
Two great pieces in the classical guitar repertoire.

Then, yes, I plan to mash the high strings and work on some scales and improvising!

This is great cause I dont often enough get a night to practice what I want. I’m usually working on music for a specific wedding or event.

 

Happy Birthday Sting!

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Sting is 61?

It can’t be! It’s really not cool of all these rock stars to keep aging, because as they get older…I am one step behind them.

Anyway, October 2, Sting bassist and vocalist for the Police did just that…turned 61. I guess it beats the alternative.
I had the honor of seeing The Police live in 2008 when they passed through San Diego. I thought it would be a cool show to see and be able to say I saw the Police. I wasn’t expecting much more. However, I was totally blown away with how incredible they were live. Their sound was super clean and the band was tight musically. It definitely ranks high on the list of concerts I have attended.

Here is “Walking on the Moon” live from Japan on the same 2008 tour.

Dodecaphonic Sudoku

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Wow! Here is a serious brain teaser for music geeks.

For the uninitiated dodecaphony is a music term relating to the twelve notes we use in Western music… the basis of my blog 12 Notes & The Truth!

In the 1920’s Composer Arnold Schoenberg set out to compose music through a process that obliterated the systems we are/were used to hearing. Serialism is the name of the movement in which all twelve notes must be used before any are repeated. Creating no key centers in the composition and lack of melody and harmony as we are used to hearing.

The following puzzle is a take on dedecaphony. A Sudoku matrix set up where each note can only be used only once, horizontally, diagonally and in each of the 12 boxes of the matrix.

In essence there is no difference than converting a regular Sudoku puzzle to be 12 x 12 instead of the traditional 9 x 9. Where the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 are replaced by the 12 notes in our chromatic scale A, Bb, B, C, Db, D, Eb, E, F, Gb, G, Ab. Once completed, a composer would take any of the rows horizontal or vertical and compose using those notes.
Complete Serialism proved to be a little restrictive and many composers have used this technique as a guideline rather than a steadfast rule.

Here is the puzzle. I haven’t worked it so cant guarantee its solve-ability. Have fun if you are so inclined!

This music wasn’t written to be scary or Halloween-ish although not a bad way to transition into October with this piece.

This is real music listen with open ears and an open mind!

Arnold Schoenberg’s, “Piano Concerto op. 42 (Excerpt)”

Enjoy!