Rappa Turned Sanga
I was scared I would lose credibility as a rapper if I started trying to get my Bilal on. Then a friend taught me to embrace my imperfections.
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Nothing is Perfect: A Guide to Analyzing Musical Theater
Musical theater nerds are nothing if not extreme. Some people shamelessly love The Music Man and hate Wicked with a fiery green passion. Some people are moved by the rock anthems of Spring Awakening and left cold by the soaring melodies of South Pacific. This enthusiasm for shows of such variety is wonderful, but some…
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A Farewell to the Band I Built
All bands come to an end. Tiger Speak’s bandleader shares everything he’s learned and what he’ll carry on with him into his next project.
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What You Need to Know to Compose for Musicals
The Broadway musical is such a mélange of parts — often Frankensteined together — that it’s easy to take for granted the weight that each of the creative elements bear. I think ten out of ten composers would agree that songwriting is the most integral of said elements. After all, no music = no musical.…
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A Songwriter’s Diary: From Inspiration to Performance
By Rowen Bridler The privilege of being a songwriter is that I never know when I’m going to be inspired with a new idea for a song, nor if I will have to push for that inspiration to show up in the first place. Some songs come about easily and others take lots of cajoling.…
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Apple Music — The Best Worst Thing to Happen to Music
If you’re a music lover, creator, and/or nerd like me, you’re probably hearing a lot of mixed and somewhat befuddled reviews of Apple’s new aggregated music service, Apple Music, announced at their WWDC keynote on Monday. It was exciting to watch unfold — Apple had revolutionized the business once, and we hoped, in this era of…
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Is There Anything Worth Looking Forward To?
May 16, 2015. That’s the day I graduate and enter the real world. I chose a path of music, one that most would say is not the safest in terms of job security and money. But looking out on my future, pushing my way into an industry everyone says is dying, I can’t help but…
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What Is Jazz Worth, Anymore?
I love jazz. I love playing jazz, listening to jazz, shedding jazz, and talking with other people who love jazz, about jazz. I recently released, with my group the PLS.trio, a new modern jazz record in the style of greats such as Pat Metheny and Esbjorn Svensson. According to a review by All About Jazz, our music takes…
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Technotonal
By Brendan O’Brien Techno is unpleasant. For the many it’s music reserved for eccentrics who have nothing better to do than hang out in poorly lit warehouses until 6am. Techno is basic music made by basic people who don’t know… stuff. That Family Guy clip is totally right, there isn’t even a key. What a bunch of…
