Range of the Bb Clarinet and characteristics of different registers. Low register called the Chalumeau octave.
More information on Clarinet construction and use in the orchestra available at:
http://www.mti.dmu.ac.uk/%7Eahugill/manual/clarinet/construction.html
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sKMjpN2iCmc
Clip from My Bodyguard movie starring Matt Dillon, Chris Makepeace, Adam Baldwin, Ruth Gordon from 1980.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pachHZTZZic
Classic clip from My Bodyguard where the bully Mike gets his ass kicked! Excellent Movie from 1980!!
I have been watching the sci-fi series Firefly and really enjoy the character that Adam Baldwin plays. That made me remember when I first saw him in the movie “My Bodyguard” back in 1980. Chris Makepeace and Adam Baldwin are around the same age as me so My Bodyguard was a powerful movie for me when it came out that I could relate to.
Here I posted the two fight scenes from My Bodyguard. What a great film for the time.
I had not realized before how flexible and nimble the oboe is. Here is an excerpt of the oboe score from Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, K. 297, third movement. So this is just a note to myself to remember to score more interesting and diverse parts when I write for oboe. We want to keep the oboe players happy.
“The oboist gives a good representation of staccato articulation and the wide leaps that it can play.” (Norton, The Study of Orchestration.)
For several months I am studying woodwinds and strings with an online music school to get more tricks and creativity into my scoring. (Yes, it’s very fun!)
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LTLEVC-sfQ
This is what happens when someone sings a song phonetically in English, but doesn’t actually speak any English. A sober reminder to the rest of us that have tried to learn a karaoke song in Mandarin or Cantonese and think that we’re “pretty darn close”.
Bulgarian Idol 2 female vocal audition sings the song Without You – Mariah Carey.
Wednesday June 16 is the 2010 Macau Dragonboat Festival. Macau is already starting to see lots of tourists coming in from Mainland China. At the Venetian Casino (where I currently work) we noticed a lot of activity Monday night. The official holiday is Wednesday but the entire week is a holiday period (does this qualify as a “golden week”, hmmm…..not sure about that.)
I’ve lived in Macau over two years now and I still haven’t seen the Dragonboat races! Because I work in entertainment, we’re always doing extra shows during the holiday periods so we don’t get to partake as much as we’d like.
The Dragonboat holiday, or Duanwu, is a very old one in China but was denied official recognition under the People’s Republic of China established in 1949. The Chinese government has re-adopted the holiday and it was officially recognized again starting in 2008.
The short story: a famous poet drowned in the water so people throw food to the fish so the fish will be fed and not eat the poet’s body. That’s the story I’ve heard from local Macanese. More details posted below.
Here’s more info on the Dragonboat festival and water races:
Continue reading “Macau Dragonboat Festival – 端午節 – Duānwǔ Jié – Tuen Ng Jit”
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2FQodVKbBA
Watchmojo dot com interview some of the creators for the Cirque Du Soleil show Totem. And I’ve been told the musicians are beginning to record the Totem soundtrack album – should be wonderful!
Totem is about the evolution of man and animals, explores some creation myths and touches on man’s aspirations to go into space.
I have a friend who is an up and coming director and also a Shakespeare aficionado. They told me a few years ago, “I’m very sorry to tell you this Conrad but I have to be honest. I absolutely hate musicals.” He then went on to tell me how it just makes no sense that people break into song on street corners and an orchestra breaks in to support them.
I have to agree it’s absolutely ridiculous. And when we say “musical” we are really referring to the “American musical” phenomenon started on Broadway, the “Great White Way”. However, it’s the fact that it’s so ridiculous that makes me love it so much.
I love the television series “Glee”. I didn’t think much about it until I saw a friend post on Facebook “Is there anyone who actually likes Glee? It’s the worst show ever made. I don’t think anyone actually watches it.”
Well this is certainly a trip. A friend showed me this photo of a Freddy Fender memorial sign in Lucerne Valley, CA. And I guess it’s just a sign out in the middle of the California High Desert but to me it has much more significance.
Continue reading “Freddy Fender Memorial – Lucerne Valley, CA”
Email question received about synthesizer for the AIDA Broadway musical:
Hello:
Do you know what keyboard model was used for the original production of “Aida”? There are sounds listed (Pyramiding Glints of Dawn, Royal Bam, Punch) that I have no idea what they sound like.