Canadian Musician articles from July 2003

Canadian Musician archives from July 2003

Feed back.(Letter to the Editor)
July 1, 2003... The Industry Is Sick... Dear CM, In response to Ian Graham's letter: Ian, Thank you for your inspiring letter and exposing the harsh reality that is in dire need of change. I feel compelled to throw in my two cents. The...

What to look for in an independent record label.
July 1, 2003... Part I Who Needs a Label Anyway? As an artist on the quest to make a living from your music, you may have already encountered the issue of selling your albums. If not, chances are you will soon. The options ahead of you are as follows:...

The power of having a musical focus. (Indie Insider).
July 1, 2003... Focus. It's not just something you do with a camera. The kind of focus I'm talking about can be one of the most powerful weapons you use to attract fans. Through the magic of focus, you can transform your musical identity from one that is...

Paul Grosney. (Changes).(Brief Article)(Obituary)
July 1, 2003... 1923 -2003 Veteran Toronto jazz trumpeter, Paul Grosney, passed away in his sleep Saturday, May 17, 2003, having recently celebrated his 80th birthday. A long-time figure in the Canadian music scene, Grosney was a performing musician...

Virgin revives single. (Changes).(Virgin Entertainment Group lobbying recording industry for singles)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... A movement has been instigated by Virgin Entertainment Group, North America, to reintroduce the single to music fans. The world's leading multi-channel music and entertainment retailer is putting the call out to the music industry to help with...

Canadian guitarists unite. (Changes).(Canadian Guitar Players Association (CGPA))(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... If you're a Canadian guitarist and you're looking for an organization to join, the Canadian Guitar Players Association (CGPA) is the one for you. The federally incorporated, nonprofit organization is run by volunteers and offers guitarists free...

15 Years of the Beaches International Jazz Festival. (Changes).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The Beaches International Jazz Festival, taking over Toronto's Queen St. E. July 24-27, is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, land in recognition of the milestone the festival has a number of events planned to make this the best of the...

ISC now accepting entries. (Changes).(International Songwriting Competition)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... More categories, prizes and judges have been added to the 2003 edition of the International Songwriting Competition, which is accepting entries until September 15, 2003. The competition this year has raised the stakes to an incredible...

DVD-Audio may save Canadian music industry. (Changes).(Asset Digital spearheads movement to new medium)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Offering double the resolution, the ability for added features and additional copy protection over standard CDs, it is no wonder DVD-Audio is quickly emerging as the product of choice for audio lovers. Spearheading the movement to the new...

Universal distributes Maximum Jazz. (Changes).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Vancouver, BC-based Maximum Jazz has announced an agreement that sees it's catalogue distributed by Universal Music Canada. The five-year-old jazz label has released 25 albums by acclaimed artists including Juno Award nominees Metalwood, Brad...

Guitarists prepare for battle. (Changes).(Guitar War, an online competition)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... For the third year in a row, Guitar War (www.guitarwar.com) has announced the start of the World Guitar Challenge, an open competition searching for the best guitarist in the world. Competitors attempt to dethrone the current crown holder by...

Be cool, stop piracy. (Changes).(Be-Cool.org formed )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... In an effort to reduce piracy the international community of music software developers, music software distributors, musicians, artists, sound professionals, music retailers and music publications have band together and formed Be-Cool.org. ...

Rising Star announced. (Changes).
July 1, 2003... Galaxie, a commercial division of the CBC, has announced the G winner of the 2003 Galaxie Rising Stars Award of the CBC, Curtis Santiago, at this year's NewMusicWest. Previously, 24-yearold Santiago performed as lead vocalist in Edmonton, AB's...

Urban contest sweet as Honey. (Changes).
July 1, 2003... The Honey Jam 2003 Urban Music I Showcase, sponsored by Universal Music Canada, is gearing up to show off Canada's finest independent female urban performing artists at a concert being held August 14, 2003, at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in...

Understanding your Web site traffic.
July 1, 2003... Now, more than ever, Web sites are viewed as a way to communicate with people and are used as a promotion method. Understanding your Web site traffic can be very important to you and your band. You have probably spent a lot of time and money on...

Downloads done right at www.applemusic.com. (Resources).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Downloads done right at www.applemusic.com. A revolutionary music store is now open: on your MAC computer. With the new iTunes Music Store, you can search or browse to find songs you've never heard, or haven't heard in years. Preview any song...

The Musicians-Resource.com. (Resources).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The Musicians-Resource.com Web site was built with the idea in mind that musicians could come there to find information on anything relating to music or the music industry itself. While visiting this site, at www.musicians-resource.com, you can...

Musiciansnews.com. (Resources).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Musiciansnews.com is a news Web site by musicians for musicians. You can find information about new CD releases, artists bands, sheet music, music theory, articles and anything else that might interest a musician Visit this site at...

Bandfamilytree.com. (Resources).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... The purpose of Bandfamilytree.com is for all musicians of all levels throughout the world to be able to record their playing history share experiences and details for Web site visitors to see. You are able to enter details of all the bands you...

Montreal Jazz Festival. (Resources).(Brief Article)(Calendar)
July 1, 2003... The 24th edition of the Montreal Jazz Festival will be held in Montreal on June 26 to July 6, 2003. Altogether, there will be 350 free concerts divided into 20 different series, surpassing all national and cultural boundaries with the truly...

Music Books Plus. (Resources).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Music Books Plus is your best source on the Net for music and audio books, videos, CD-ROMs, DVDs, audio cassettes, software posters, sound effects and apparel, Music Books Plus offers over 6,000 titles on the areas of: Music Business,...

Koch Twintone amp. (Road Test).
July 1, 2003... Let me begin this article by stating that I'm basically an old-fashioned guy and I love playing my old-fashioned Fender guitar through an old-fashioned Fender amp. However, I enjoy keeping abreast of what's out there in the new gear department....

AdrenaLinn by Roger Linn Design. (Road Test).
July 1, 2003... Warning! This piece of equipment will eat up hours and hours of your valuable time. It has an enormous amount of signal processing power and filtering capabilities combined with very potent MIDI synchronization, It also contains a drum machine,...

Schecter C-1 Plus guitar. (Road Test).
July 1, 2003... I fell completely head over heals for this guitar the first time I saw it. My guitar tech has been talking about Schecter for a while to me, butt hadn't tried one out. I jumped at the chance to see what all the talk was about. The Schecter...

Guitar strings. (Guitar).(Buyers Guide)
July 1, 2003... Strings have come a long way since they were originally made out of intestines and used on a bow shaped harp in ancient Egypt around 2500 BC. The modern day strings are essential in providing us with many choices in delivering our sound and the...

Chord toner and warm-ups. (Keyboards).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Here is a chord progression based on a work by Carl Czerny. It is shown in the key of G Major (starting on the IV chord, Major) and is composed mainly of triads. Notice how the use of inversions creates a nice chord melody while only using a...

The Rich Rock rig. (Bass).
July 1, 2003... A lot of people have been asking me lately El. about what gear lam using these days, so I thought I would take a few minutes and run through the current Rich Rock power box. First up, the studio. Lately, I have been playing Fender basses,...

Rudiments, peppermints and experiments. (Percussion).(sound training in fundamentals is the key to success in drumming)
July 1, 2003... Recently I have been revisiting with my students the age old art of rudiments, you know those funny old sticking patterns with names that sound like what we are supposed to play (So what does Lesson 25 sound like anyway?) and the same question...

Fun with triads. (Woodwinds).
July 1, 2003... In the last couple of years I've been trying to incorporate a technique called "triad coupling" in my soloing. This is largely due to a few conversations with the great saxophonist and teacher, Pat Labarbera. In explaining the technique he...

Lessons learned from the slide trumpet. (Brass).
July 1, 2003... The technical advantages of valve instruments were instantly recognized by all classes of brass instrumentalists except the trombone players." -- Vincent Bach While the trombone slide is often considered somewhat of an impediment...

Digital emasculation. (Digital Music).
July 1, 2003... Most of the time, recording to hard drive is a simple pleasure of engineering life. I don't have to pinch myself to stay awake while rewinding the tape, and I no longer get a bicep workout as I lift the next roll of two-inch onto the tape deck....

Safe voice revolution? (Vocals).
July 1, 2003... If you spend any time reading music industry publications or follow music-related media, you might have picked up on a recent trend: a lot of high profile performers are "experiencing difficulties" with their voices. Examples include Brian...

Daniel Lanois: legandary producer returns to light with Shine.(Biography)
July 1, 2003... When Daniel Lanois picks up the telephone at La Bella Vista, his private studio in Silverlake, just outside Los Angeles, one wants to yell, "What took you so long?" and it has nothing to do with the number of telephone rings. It's been 10...

The dears.(Biography)
July 1, 2003... A few impressions of Murray A. Lightburn, main man of Montreal's The Dears, as perpetrated by the media: He is a tortured artist, and a purveyor of "Orchestral Pop Noir Romantique" music particularly beloved by critics. Eccentric, prone to...

The future of keyboards.(Panel Discussion)
July 1, 2003... It's simple truth that as the pace of innovation quickens older gear becomes obsolete far more quickly than before. The latest and greatest instruments and technological developments have always driven keyboard players to distraction. They...

Software 2003: one day soon we'll all sing like Ella Fitzgerald.
July 1, 2003... Ugggh! I have a summer cold and I am all stubbed up - bad for me, but good for you. This means I am going to take a couple of days of production. And while I am wallowing in self-pity and significant amounts of mucus (Eschew! Bless me.) spew...

Inspired by disasters: an interview with Silverchair's Daniel Johns. (Writing).(Interview)
July 1, 2003... Silverchair's frontman and main scribe Daniel Johns sat down with CM for this interview on his songwriting secrets and techniques... Canadian Musician: When writing, do you have a single method that seems to work for you best? Some people...

A microphone guide. (Recording).
July 1, 2003... Dynamic Microphone Dynamic moving coil microphones employ a coil of wires attached to a diaphragm, which is suspended within a magnetic field. Acoustical vibrations cause the diaphragm and the coil to vibrate within this magnetic field,...

Analog vs. digital consoles for live use: who's winning? (Live Sound).
July 1, 2003... In a way, of course, there is no argument here; digital consoles for live events are in use every day. What I want to discuss is the appropriate use of a given console type for specific applications. Ever since the "lampies" started using...

Producer career. (Business).
July 1, 2003... Introduction I am routinely approached by producers for advice on how to make it in the music business. The following is a brief summary of my typical advice. The Lists Major record companies tend to hire big name producers. For...

Arturia Moog Modular V. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Software developer Arturia, in partnership with Bob Moog, has recently released the Moog Modular V, a faithful recreation of the classic Moog Modular synthesizer. Due to its modular design, the software offers a nearly endless number of...

The Art of Chords II. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... The followup to last year's popular The Art of Chords, music educator Stephane Gagnon is releasing The Art of Chords II: Chord Progressions - A Composer's Guide at this coming MIAC show in August. The book provides more than 20...

Automagic wahs. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Godlyke, Inc. has announced the release of Automagic wah pedals to the North American market. Long a staple in the European scene, Automagic Wahs are encased in a 14-gauge stainless steel chassis, which houses hi-tech circuitry hand-constructed...

Open Labs eKo. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Open Labs has recently released eKo, the world's first open platform musical keyboard workstation and the OpenSynth hardware and software reference platform. eKo is designed to bridge the gap between PCs and traditional music keyboard...

Electro-Harmonix EH professional strings. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Electro-Harmonix has recently released its new line of nickel-wound electric guitar strings. The EH series of professional strings are available in three popular gauges, 9s, l0s and 11s.. The culmination of many years searching the globe...

Peavey Ecoustic 110 EFX/112 EFX. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Peavey Electronics Corporation has recently released the Ecoustic 110 EFX and 112 EFX, two acoustic guitar amplitiers that not only amplify any acoustic/electric instrument, but featuring fully independent channels, the units can be used for...

Selmer Paris Flight/Flightech cases. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Selmer has introduced two new Paris saxophone cases the Flight and Flightech. The Flight cases are designed to provide maximum protection for instruments. The cases feature a strong outer shell and heavily padded interior with heavy-duty...

Gibson limited edition Playboy guitars. (Hot Gear).(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... In recognition of Playboy's 50th anniversary, I Gibson Guitar's Custom Division has produced two limited edition Playboy models. The Playboy Hottie SG illustrates Playboy's sexy and rebellious attitude with a red finish and flashy aluminium...

Novation ReMOTE 25. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Novation has released its new two-octave MIDI controller, the ReMOTE 25, designed for use in conjunction with a wide range of software and hardware, including sequencers such as Cubase the Reason studio suite and Novation's own rack modules --...

Percussive Innovations VertDrums. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Percussive Innovations has recently released VertDrums, an inventive auxiliary percussion system that is designed to be set up and played in a vertical fashion, which allows the drumstick to freefall down the face of the drums. Using a...

Washburn Rover. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... The US Music Corp. has recently unveiled the new Washburn Rover travel guitar -- perfect for taking on planes, trains, boats, cars, the beach, camping, hiking, or wherever added size and weight would be an encumbrance. The instrument comes...

Sonicfire Pro 3.0. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... SmartSound Software has announced the release Sonictire Pro 3.0, a software package that allows users to easily create soundtracks for visual media projects, whether it be film and video, Web content, interactive media or business...

Roland contemporary grand pianos. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Roland has recently introduced new contemporary "intelligent" grand piano models offering some of the most progressive and user-friendly features available in a grand piano design. The new KR-17M, the flagship of the KR Intelligent Grand...

Zildjian Z-bag. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Zildjian has announced the release of the Z-Bag, an innovative mallet and stick carrying bag that converts a standard solid music stand into a percussion table with hanging mallet pocket. The bag is constructed of durable nylon material and...

Zoom MRS-i 266/MRS-1266CD digital audio recorders. (Hot Gear).(Product/Service Evaluation)
July 1, 2003... Zoom has recently unveiled their new flagship products, the MRS-1266 and MRS-1266CD DAWs. Similar to their predecessors, the new units are hard-disk recorders with a fully integrated workstation. Input and output stages are handled by 24-bit ND...

Korg D1200CD. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... Korg has recently unveiled the D1200CD Digital Recording Studio, a 12-track hard-disk recorder offering 16- and 24-bit uncompressed professional recording, high quality mixing, REMS (Resonant Electronic Modelling System), 40 GB of hard-disk...

American Audio HTD 4.5 Turntable. (Hot Gear).
July 1, 2003... American Audio has recently released the HTD 4.5 Turntable with an impressive 4.5 kg of torque, nearly three times the industry standard for radial power. Weighing in at 29 Ibs, the HTD 4.5 has been designed to stand the most rigorous...

Show case.
July 1, 2003... Tangiers Who: Tangiers What: Garage Rock Where: Toronto, ON Contact: Sonic Unyon (905) 777-1223 www.sonicunyon.com Snarling trash at its best, Tangiers are currently riding more buzz than a dumpster full oh glue...