*Groan* This is going to hurt!

Having watched that spoken word bit of Rumi that Madonna did about 100 times now, I had to get on to something else. As was inevitable, I did a search on Tori Amos.

What I was hoping to find was "little Eartquakes". What I did find was "Crucify", another great song. I've never really played or written anything I can remember in D-Flat major, which nis apparently the key she wrote it in. This would be a good exercise for me. Besides, I like the way she writes, learning "Crucify" may let me see more of how she tends to structure things as a composer. Having found this tutorial I feel obligated to set my laptop on my keyboard and turn the amplifier on. I may find myself soaking my fingers later, if I really try to get the first piano lick down.

If you like Tori Amos and are working with a piano or keyboard, or want to see why I'm wincing a little, click here:

The Homework Blues:

I woke up this morning,
Knew I had homework to do....
Yes I woke up this morning,
and I knew I had homework to do,
But the sun it wasn't shinin'
and I could only think in Blue.

Here's a great article that talks a little about the history of the blues, and links for some more things to read. :-) This is fun- I kind of like torturing the audience with homework. *giggle*


What is the blues?
http://www.pbs.org/theblues/classroom/essaysblues.html

Who is important to know about in the history of the blues?
( These guys, and me and you. The blues is for the people, got it? )

http://www.pbs.org/theblues/songsartists/songsbioalpha.html

And wow, that list is comprehensive. Scattered throught the descriptions of musicians who have been important to the blues as a musical movement, there are also suggestions of essential songs to listen to. I could probably look through this stuff all day. :-)

Happy reading. I expect a 12 page report on my desk Monday morning---- oh, what, it's already Monday? Well, I guess you're just going to have to write a blues song about it, then. :-)

Peace,
Nicolette

COCO ROBICHEAUX- New Orleans Blues

Now how bad-ass would you have to be to win an award called "Best Blues Album by a Louisana Artist"

Seriously. Babies cut their teeth on harmonica's in Louisana. The spices in the food make 'em wail that way. There ain't nobody that can sing the blues like someone who'se stumbled home through the french quarter in New Orleans. The rhythmn is in the sound of steps on the pavement, the rocking of the train, the ebb and flow of the tide.

Here's a site where you can find out more about his music, and a link to his myspace page and other articles. :-)

( I miss you Coco. Thanks for letting me play with You, and telling such fabulous stories! )

http://www.spiritland.com/index.html

http://www.myspace.com/cocorobicheaux

http://oriolepoet.blogspot.com/2008/04/resiliency-and-rebirth-in-big-easy-coco.html

Music~ The Art of Listening

Now, assuming you’re smart, you started at the bottom of the blog. If you ddn’t know already, you now know how to find middle c, what half-steps and whole steps are, what flats and sharps are, what pattern is used from any key note to create a major scale, and how to play that with your left and right hand on the piano in C major and G Major.

Now on to talking about music, and styles of music for a moment. Classical Music is often used as a part of traditional learning in music. Traditional teachers often feel that the classics best give a student an understanding of music theory, playing technique, and the forms of composition.

There’s a lot of BEAUTIFUL classical music out there, the techniques and theory behind which all kinds of more modern music has its roots in.

The common music of today is also highly influenced by Jazz and Blues, Classic Rock, Folk and Country music. You don’t have to immediately like all of the different styles of music to understand that they have had interesting influences on one another. Much of this can be mapped both culturally and mathematically.

In trying to develop a well rounded perception of music, I think it’s a good idea to develop a kind of recognition and appreciation of all the available styles.

Follow along with one of my piano students as I give her lot’s of interesting things to listen to. Here’s this week’s list, and a link to a playlist I created on project playlist where you can hear all of them for free.

Classical
Beehtoven- Fur Elise
Beehtoven-Moonlight Sonata
Samuel Barber- Adaggio for Strings

Jazz and Blues
Etta James- At Last
Ottis Redding- Sittin on the Dock of the Bay
The Animals- The House of the Rising Sun

Lyrical Folk
Leonard Cohen-Famous Blue Raincoat
Leonard Cohen- Suzanne
Suzanne Vega- The Queen and the Soldier
Suzanne Vega- Gypsy

Check back for the Project playlist link