surfersmusic46

Greetings Everyone! Thank you for being here for tonight's performance! The members of the 2011–2012 SurfersMusic46 choir and I greatly appreciate all of your continued support! This year's SurfersMusic46 choir consists or 48 voices from 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades. Malibu has 312 students—60 of those students (roughly 20% of the student body grades K–5) are involved in extracurricular music. That's one the largest percentages of any Virginia Beach elementary school. My goal as musical director of the SurfersMusic46 choir is to bring music equally into your child's heart and mind. The songs you hear tonight represent a slice of the work we do during rehearsals. Our choir rehearsals consist of a blend of traditional vocal, and theatrical/performance education. Tonight's performance consists of the following selections: Believe, by Yellowcard (chosen for melody, phrasing, and dynamic contrast) Rain, by Breaking Benjamin (chosen for vocal range a...

Just beautiful... Electric bass and voice improvisation (making it up on the spot)

Hi Ya'll (channelling my inner Paula Deen just then), Here's a type of metal percussion instrument that you may not have ever seen before. The Hang  was developed in Switzerland in 2000. It is a pitched percussion instrument and can play melodies. Check out the sounds in the video below.

This is one of my all-time favorites. I remember my dad really loving Riverdance, and I saw this for the first time when I was just a kid starting my musical (instrumental) education. It made me want to be a woodwind musician even more. The musician's name is Davy Spillane, and he is playing the Uilleann Pipes  (Irish Bagpipes). He is one of the world's greatest performers on this challenging instrument. I've always had a love for traditional and folk instruments of Europe, and this song in particular ever since. The music is "Caoineadh cu Chulainn" (pronounced "Queen-a Coo Hulling" from what I've been told). The song is about a famous warrior named Chulainn who has never met his son. In a battle, he meets his son  named Conlai as an enemy warrior, though he doesn't know it, and kills him. He looks down at Conlai's hand and sees that the young man is wearing the ring that Chulainn had given Conlai's mother long ago when he was born. ...

Hey Kids!!! Here's a great way to annoy your parents  play a cool sound on the recorder that gets your pointer finger moving!!! This prepares us for a new note as well.

Hey guys and gals, Here's another video lesson showing you how to add one more note to your songs! LOW E is the bomb!

Make sure to go and print/download the  Recorder Karate Student Pac k. Click the blue link or go to the DLzone tab and look under the recorder section. You'll find the first song using the BAG notes in there!!!

After the snafu with the music co. sending us the wrong recorders, we have all the recorders that were ordered. They will go out to students who ordered this week! I know the kids are really excited to play them! I know you (parents) may not be so excited to have them playing all over the house and in your ears. I have two little ones of my own and I understand. I really encourage you to set aside some time for your child to practice in an area of the house where their small successes are noticed and encouraged. They will get better, they will get GOOD! As with any new skill it takes time and practice. Please be their biggest supporter at home! I will be posting some videos and musical materials to aid in the learning process very shortly... Keep checking back here and make sure to sign up at the top right of the page to get new posts by email!

Here's one from the very first week of school! Way to go third grade!!!

My daughter Helen and I playing the Ukulele together

Here's a great example of the music you can make with body percussion.

Hey everybody, check out the new calendar on the "Events" page for upcoming opportunities and Malibu Music events. It looks like the one below.

Joseph is a piano powerhouse—very talented!!! Here's a video of him performing at the 2011 Malibu Talent Show in February. Way to go Joseph; keep up the great work!

Keep it up Chloe, you're fantastic!!! Chloe Clark & Nate Kinnison Rolling in the Deep (Adele Cover) by natekinnison

Here is the first in a list of student recordings that I hope will end up very long over the next year. If you are interested in working on a solo recording let me know. Great voice Fahren!!! Way to go and keep up the beautiful work! 01-Fahren Hudson & Nate Kinnison Use Somebody (Kings Of Leon) by natekinnison

So happy that Esperanza won the award for best new artist at the 53rd Grammy awards. She is a true talent as a vocalist and as a bassist. She beat out numerous high powered musicians for the award: Mumford & Sons, Florence & The Machine, Drake, and…wait for it…wait…wait…Justin Bieber. That's right, she took out the Bieb. This pair below, Bobby and Esperanza, are two of my all-time favorite musicians, and two of the most well respected in the world. This piece is a beautiful example of two brilliant talented minds meeting for a song.

Samuel Barber is one of my all-time favorite composers, and his violin concerto is one of my favorite musical works. Violin Concerto Op.14 was written in 1939 when Samuel Barber was about 30 years old. This violin concerto has three "movements" or sections, hence the three videos below. Giora Schmidt is the violin soloist, and the orchestra is the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra First Movement: Allegro Second Movement: Andante Third Movement: Presto

You guys know I love art and design, and I've begun working on ideas for a new surfersmusic46 logo with a modernist design and a series of posters to go along. Here's an initial sketch idea I did on my ipad the other day for the first design concept.

http://earslap.com/projectslab/otomata/?q= Click Here to hear a piece of music that kindergartner Adrian L. in Sand's class created today.

This post is more for the older kids and grownups in the group of readers. Tod Machover is the guy whose lab created Guitar Hero. He spends his time and life creating methods for creating music. Read about him in his bio by clicking his name. His lab at MIT has created the means for CP patient Dan Ellsey (composer/musician) to write and perform.  This talk is a fantastic, inspirational 20min presentation that ends with an eyeopening performance by Dan. Open it big, and watch it with your family.

Click on the picture below to go to the instrument storage room where you can hear and see all the instruments and families of the symphony orchestra!!!

Robert Gupta and Joshua Roman duet on "Passacaglia" The instruments they are playing are the violin and the cello (pronounced "chello")

Garage Band  - go watch the video, It's worth it. The app is only $4.99 at the app store (for ipad only)

Wonderful piece of music. Listen, listen loud, and close your eyes. Click here to listen at Grooveshark

Johann Sebastian Bach  - Check him out. Wrote some of the most inspiring music ever written. EVER WRITTEN! Quiz Questions (answer in comments): Prize to the first commenter with the right answer: What is the name of the instrument that Chris Thile plays? How many strings does it have? What band is he a member of? What basic genre of music do they normally play?

Acoustic Improvisation No.1 Nate Kinnison by natekinnison

Hi everybody, make sure your parents know about the summer music camp! Click here for the registration form!!!

This brief talk/demonstration about musical expectations tells a lot about how we all relate through music and how music is truly a universal language.

Here's a musical mingle I made yesterday http://www.nyphilkids.org/games/?framecontent=mingles/play.php&performance_id=35955 Create your very own compositions right now!!

Hey Everybody, Weaver's class made this Mingle today. Check it out! http://www.nyphilkids.org/games/?framecontent=mingles/play.php&performance_id=35951 Create your very own compositions and vote on your friends' creations. Enjoy! -The Musical Mingles Team

FYI, for all you art buffs out there. Jerry's Artarama is having thier big Memorial Day sale this coming weekend. Here's a link to the coupon and deals. I get almost ALL of my art supplies from Jerry's…and you guys know I'm an art buff too. Support the arts!!!! Jerry's Artarama Coupon

Here's a shout out to Josh S. in 4th Grade for sharing a video of his band concert at Moe's Music. He's the one on the left in the red shirt playing the green guitar. Keep it up Josh!

I first learned this song when I was in elementary school. It's stuck with me ever since.  Here's one of my favorite bands, Nickel Creek , playing "The Fox." I've also included the lyrics to the story below the video. The fox went out on a chilly night He prayed for the moon to give him light For heâd many a mile to go that night Before he reached the town-o, town-o, town-o Heâd many a mile to go that night, before he reached the town-o He ran til he came to the farmerâs pen The ducks and the geese were kept therein He said, ãa couple of you are gonna grease my chin, Before I leave this town-o, town-o, town-oä Said a couple of you are gonna grease my chin, before I leave this town-o He grabbed the great goose by the neck And he threw a duck across his back And he didnât mind the quack, quack And the legs all dangling down-o, down-o, down-o He didnât mind the quack, quack and the legs all dangling down-o The old grey woman jumped out of bed Out of the window...

Here is a wonderful example of two phenomenal artists expressing feeling in their own styles. Yo-Yo Ma, playing the cello (pronounced "chello") is expressing what he sees the dancer do. Lil Buck (the dancer) is expressing what he hears Yo-Yo Ma play.

Beautiful recording of the kids at PS22 in NY singing "Daniel" in a recent concert at Lincoln Center. PS22 Chorus is one of my favorite children's choirs. I love the mix of voices, and the expressiveness of the kids.

Hey guys and gals, Alpha Music holds a basic guitar class on the second Saturday of every month. FOR FREE!!! CLICK THIS LINK FOR DETAILS!!!  Follow the sign that looks like the one above. They also have other classes and a crop of fantastic private teachers for guitar, bass, and drums. check them out on the "PrivateLessons" tab on my blog homepage. Alpha is my personal music store of choice. Great customer service and support, very knowledgeable associates, and good prices. 

Here's a segment on what gear I use. For recording, the ZOOM H4n is priceless!!! though it is fairly on the expensive side, the zoom offers the best audio in a small package anywhere in the business. Here is a link to the ZOOM H4n There is a new type of recorder for those folks looking for a new video camera/recorder. The ZOOM  Q3HD. Here is a link to the ZOOM Q3HD I wholeheartedly recommend the ZOOM products. the H4n has become the standard in DSLRVideo for sound recording. I've had mine for about two years, and it is really fantastic. The ZOOM Q3HD video camera solves the age old problem of small camera audio (no more badly recorded guitar and singing Youtube videos) Record both audio and video in high definition. Feel free to email me with any questions.

This is a truly one-of-a-kind incredible performance from the opening ceremony at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Gives me chills.

I took a bit of a break, but I'm back to posting cool videos and links you'll love. I look forward to hearing from you guys in the comments section!!

Here are two of my favorite bass players Victor Wooten of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones (in the white pants and hat), and Edgar Meyer (the striped shirt). They both happen to be arguably two of the best bassists in the world. Both of them are having fun playing a duet on the same upright bass.