It’s been awhile since I last played a Mbira and I greatly miss it. I was fortunate enough to take some private lessons on the Mbira with Cosmas Magaya, a master of the Mbira a few years back. I thought I’d post some info. about the artist and the instrument.

(via dharmanet.org) The mbira (mm – bee – ra) is a musical instrument of ancient origin with rows of hand-forged, tuned, metal keys bound to a wooden soundboard. The free end of the keys are stroked and plucked with the thumbs and one forefinger to produce ringing, polyrhythmic tapestries that accompany stories, songs and dance.

The instrument and compositions are beautiful. Here are some examples of the Mbira:

(via kutsinhira.org) Cosmas Magaya is an internationally recognized master of the mbira dzaVadzimu. As a performer, mbira teacher and leader of the mbira ensemble Mhuri yekwaMagaya, he has gained national and international acclaim for his extraordinary talent as a musician and teacher in the Zimbabwean music traditions.

If you ever have the opportunity to study with someone like Cosmas, I highly recommend you take advantage of it.

Check out a video of Cosmas here. Read more about him, or get his contact info. here.

And lucky you, a picture of me performing with some of my fellow classmates. Kind of lame, but it’s all I have.

Here’s a video of Cosmas at Duke University working with some students.

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you are into Indie or Folk Rock, and why not throw in some Bluegrass, then you should take a listen to this interview with Buffalo Alice. After the interview take a listen to “Damage was done” as well.

Here’s a quick bio:

“Buffalo Alice was formed by singer/songwriter Alex Aaron in the spring of 2004 from the ashes of alt rock band G.B. Fuzz. Aaron started writing new songs and reworking old ones to make them friendly to an acoustic act under the new name. After many long hours and a few six packs doing some serious soul searching and collaborating with many musicians he has arrived at the sound that is Buffalo Alice. After playing for more than a year as a solo acoustic act, Aaron picked drummer John Bennett. Jason Cropper joined the band as the third member playing bass and lead guitar, as well as singing. The full band version of Buffalo Alice has very quickly developed a following across the U.S.A. through touring and exposure via college and commercial radio play and television.”

Ahh, the web… It’s a place where I can just chill. You might think that is odd, but you can take the web everywhere, and you can do almost anything.

You can wear a shirt and no pants and still look professional at a business meeting, you can wear a shirt and no pants and end up being the star of the next “To Catch A Predator” (some people just don’t get it), or maybe you can just work with your very own web-based sequencer, Soundation Studio.

Soundation Studio is a web-based sequencer that enables you to make music, ringtones and audio clips directly from the internet without downloading any software. Developed by PowerFX the beta version includes over 400 royalty free audio loops, 9 different effects, track automation, basic loop editing, loop audition, master channel control, and mix down to desktop.

I took a moment, probably a lot longer than I should of (but I was having fun), messing around with the sequencer. I’m impressed. At first I felt somewhat limited regarding features, but it just took moment to say, “Oh Yeah, that makes sense!” Really, I’m impressed with what this sequencer has to offer. You should definitely check it out. It’s free as well.

In any event, check out the quick tune I made below. You can make fun of me all you want in the comments… really. Enjoy.

So what did I end up doing?

• Changed lengths of the audio files
• Automated volume, pan, and effects
• Added some reverb (you have a solid choice of effects by the way)
• Saved the project file to my computer to open at a later time
• Bounced the wav file to my computer
• Added multiple channels with solo and mute
• Used keyboard shortcuts like spacebar to play and stop, or copy and paste
• Zoomed in and out of waves, etc., etc., etc.

I really could keep going, but it would probably be more interesting for you to check it out yourself here.

Also, if you make your own tune let me know and I will add it to this blog post and give you credit as well! Have fun.

I had the opportunity to speak with Wayne from the band TENSE. Great attitude, purely professional, and totally fun.

A few weeks back TENSE won the Victory’s Band Showdown, which included a prize of $250, a paid featured gig at Victory’s, a GigMaven podcast interview, and a GigMaven featured blog post. TENSE had the crowd hopping around, screaming, and dancing on stage. I enjoyed their performance along with the supportive attitudes.

If you’re looking to book a fun band that can get a crowd going, then you should definitely consider TENSE. Again, I can’t stress enough how supportive and professional these guys are. Check them out on MySpace or GigMaven and leave a comment or head out to one of their shows. You will not regret it.

Click here to view the embedded video.

One of the craziest things that has happened to TENSE during a live performance was a women actually went on stage an started undressing them. You should take a listen to the podcast to learn more.

Let us know what you think and leave a comment!

I’m not much of a guitarist (actually I don’t play guitar at all), but I found an interesting article on the FuzzHugger(fx) Wolf Computer.

Click here to view the embedded video.

There once was a guitar effects pedal called ‘Wolf Computer‘, designed by Mellowtone. To what I have learned it eventually made it’s way through life, died, and quickly reincarnated as ‘FuzzHugger(fx) Wolf Computer‘. Crazy huh?

FuzzHugger(fx) Wolf Computer is “Snarly, searing triple silicon fuzz with Level, Attack, Squelch, and Volt controls. Traditional crunchy fuzz tones, overdrive and distortion, synthy textures, oscillating motorboating, dying Atari sounds, glitching arpeggiation, pseudo sitar tones, and more!”. I may have made an attempt to describe the pedal myself, but really, did you read it? I jacked the description from FuzzHugger’s website.

FuzzHugger(fx) Wolf Computer comes with a lifetime warranty. So, as long as they can’t prove that you spilled your beer all over it, or ran it over with the band van, you’re safe. Check out the audio clips and video above. Check out the Mini Wolf CPU pedal here.

Audio Clips:

Motorboating, oscillation, glitch Atari

Crunchy glitch, pitch shifting, and sustaining abilities

Low gain, prettier sounds. Works up to some overdrives and more at the end. A quick burst of oscillation half-way through to show just how quickly you can get crazy-and-then-back

Bass clip: Fender Jazz w/passive pickups, into a Bass Pod on the Hiway 200 model setting

Let us know what you think, leave a comment!

I had the opportunity to speak with Chris at The Delancey in NYC. Chris has an interesting position as a talent buyer and a performing musician. I’m sure many of you wonder what someone in his position must think, so here it is.

Check out this GigMaven Podcast with James Lanman as I “take his podcast virginity.” Also, James performs a live tune at the end. Definitely check it out.

Sometimes an idea comes along that just seems to be in the right direction towards supporting and leading the music industry. That’s why I recommend you take a listen to this podcast with Justin from Le Poisson Rouge in NYC.

Are you feeling blue? No? Yes? Who cares?

Amy’s got some blues with a little soul and a pinch of reggae. Check out her podcast interview…