VOL. 70 - January 14th, 2019
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“
Art is about building a new foundation, not just laying something on top of what’s already there.
”―
Prince
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Happy 2019!
Let's make this the most musical (i.e., BEST) year yet! I mean think about it - what if you listened to more of your old favorite songs & learned to love some new ones too? Would that possibly make anything worse? And what if you spent 5 minutes a day playing an instrument? What's the worst that would happen? What if you went to a live music event once a month or so instead of spending a night on Netflix? Hmm... I wonder....
I could not be more excited to kicking off the year with the launch of
GROOVE LAB today, Monday, Jan 14th from 3:30 to 7:30pm - drop in any time! It's a community center vibe. Drop you kids off for their Monday lessons early, pick them up late - have more time to yourself! It's the best.
WE ARE OPEN ON MONDAY, JAN 21 (MLK DAY) & MONDAY, FEB 18 (PRESIDENT'S DAY)
With peace, love & music,
Anna
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Which pop star played 27 different instruments on their debut album?
SCROLL DOWN FOR ANSWER
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GROOVE LAB STARTS TODAY! MONDAY, JAN 14th
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The wait it over! We could not be more excited for the epic launch of our latest & greatest musical experiment - GROOVE LAB!
HEY, PARENTS! ESPECIALLY THOSE OF MONDAY STUDENTS:
IT'S LIKE YMCA OR A COMMUNITY CENTER - DROP YOUR KIDS OFF EARLY TO LESSONS (OR LET THEM STAY LATE)! YOU GET SOME EXTRA "YOU" TIME & THEY GET SOME INVALUABLE MUSICAL CARE/PLAY/EXPLORATION TO SUPPLEMENT THEIR FORMAL LESSONS.
Now that's a win-win.
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WOULD YOU RATHER BE "IN" A BAND THAN JUST GROOVE?
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There are a few regularly (weekly) rehearsing bands accepting new members. If you'd rather have something that has stable "members" & is performance-directed, this is for you! Or, even better - have both Groove Lab & a band!
*NEW*
FIDDLE ROCK
with Belinda - Thursdays at 7:30-8:30
NOW ACCEPTING ALL INSTRUMENTS: Guitar (acoustic or electric), Bass, Drums, Keyboard/Piano, Vocals, Ukulele, All Winds & Strings...anything really!
VOCALIST & BASSIST NEEDED
for Rock 101 with Timmy G - Wednesdays at 2:30-3:30pm. Age 8-12.
ALL WINDS, GUITARIST & BASSIST NEEDED
for Brass, Wind & Fire with Adam - Sundays at 3-4pm
GUITARIST NEEDED
for The Front Room with Timmy G - Mondays at 6:30-7:30pm. Age 12+, Audition required.
UKULELE CLUB
with Nick LW is always accepting new members, kids or adults! Mondays at 8-9pm
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GOODBYE TO MISS ELIZABETH! AND WELCOME BACK MIKKI BOYD!
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We wish Elizabeth the best as she steps down from teaching at Music Time in order to care for her grandmother. She was on staff here for over 5 years & we'll miss her big smile, bright energy and contagious enthusiasm.
Of course nobody is going to be quite like Elizabeth, however we're happy to have Miss Mikki Boyd back on staff as of today, teaching Voice, Piano & Clarinet on Mondays.
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Practicing Musical Improvisation
“When we learn to improvise, we learn instrument fluency; we learn the natural connection between a musical idea, its manifestation in sounds we can control, and we learn to link sound devices to our own musical voice,” says Jim Oshinsky, a staff member for the organization Music for People
Unfortunately, if musicians often don’t learn to improvise early on, when they finally have the opportunity they are hesitant. “We fear being judged by others,” he says. “The trick is to dismiss that fear and play on.”
Aside from the self-gratification and joy, improvising can open doors. “If you can play spontaneously in a variety of styles; if you can lay down a groove for a partner, imitate their sounds, and take solo chances when they arise, you can play with anyone, anywhere,” he says.
1) Let go of the need to be perfect and be playful instead. Improvisation can be spontaneous, and not competitive. Take yourself lightly, laugh at your awkward places, and release criticisms.
2) The core of musicianship is listening. Listen more than you play, and imitate sounds. “You are always playing a duet with the silence around you,” says cellist David Darling, founder of Music for People. Even the rhythm of a conversation or rain falling can be inspiration.
3) Go off the page. Play the first few notes of a song you have learned, then leave the melody and make up your own middle and ending.
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THIS IS YOUR BRAIN ON MUSIC
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Does listening to music really help you to fall asleep?
We've used lullabies to soothe young children for thousands of years. One of the earliest recorded lullabies is etched into a 2000-year-old Babylonian tablet.
Many studies have shown that music can help adults with chronic sleep disorders such as primary insomnia. Michael Gradisar, a clinical psychologist from Flinders University, has worked with adults and teenagers experiencing insomnia. Professor Gradisar says he recommends his clients use passive technological activities such as listening to music before bed, and even in bed.
Danny Eckert of Neuroscience Research Australia also believes music before sleep can have positive benefits for those having trouble drifting off.
"Listening to music as part of the pre-sleep routine, particularly music with an underlying rhythm of about 60 beats per minute (bpm), similar to human heart rate, can improve sleep quality and quantity in some people with sleep problems such as insomnia," Professor Eckert says.
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PROJECT SCL - INSPIRATIONAL VIDEO OF THE MONTH
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Anything is possible! And music is powerful. If you don't believe me, let this video speak for itself. When music takes over...it could be anytime, anywhere.
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Giovanny Pena
INSTRUMENT:
PIANO
TEACHER:
SAL
AGE:
14
STARTED LESSONS: April 2016
SCHOOL:
Livermore High School
GRADE:
9th
HOBBIES: Fixing Cars
Giovanny has been gaining notoriety through his "beats" on YouTube. His channel has hundreds of subscribers & many videos have thousands of views! He also had a stellar performance at the Big Show with the "Don't Stop Believin'" group that kicked off the whole event. We're excited to recognize Giovanny this month because his hard work and dedication to many different facets of music is inspiring. Great job so far, Gio - keep it up and we'll look for you on the Grammy's someday.
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7 YEARS:
Emma Banas
6 YEARS:
Astrid Mann
4 YEARS:
Nate Cameron-Chiao, Harry Dunne, Mackenzie Mcdonald, Lilian Ocano, Kevin Strandberg, Ryan Strandberg, Anthony Tong, Nalin Verma
3 YEARS:
Rhea Biju, Delton Cayetano, Melina Cruz, Mia Susana Factora, Aiden Lu, Bryan Lu, Saumya Sahay, Grant Scharnhorst
2 YEARS:
Kenny Nguyen, Mindy Nguyen, Colton Rieke, Camille Troup, Josiah Troup
1 YEAR:
Victor Nascimento, Kashyap Bharadwaj, Joey Bielski, Brianna Calsada, Gabe Castro, Eben Gillette, Elise Goulart, Luke Herrington, Songha Kim, Colin Mccord, Kamila Nascimento, Ariya Shah, Dan Wang
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RAILROAD EARTH
All Ages
Friday, Feb 1st & Saturday February 2nd at The UC Theater in Berkeley
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Railroad Earth is a Roots and Americana band with influences spanning several genres of folk music.
They can jam with the best of them and they have some bluegrass influences, but they use drums and amplifiers (somewhat taboo in the bluegrass world). What kind of music is it then? Mandolin/vocalist John Skehan offers this semi-descriptive term: “I always describe it as a string band, but an amplified string band with drums.” Tim Carbone takes a swing: “We’re a Country & Eastern band! ” Todd Sheaffer offers “A souped-up string band? I don’t know. I’m not good at this.” Or, perhaps simply: “Rock & roll!”
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Madison Bohrer
LET THERE BE IMPROV!
"Playing in an improvised manner does nothing but elevate your emotional, rational and 'groove spider sense,' if you will.
"You’re going to learn just as much if you’re trying to explain something as if you’re trying to understand the thing being explained. Even just seeing concepts that you think you’re familiar with, being broken down through a different perspective can be really valuable. You can see the kind of art that can be created. Even though someone may not have the experience on an instrument. It doesn’t mean that they don’t have a voice. And you can really understand someone’s voice by playing music with them. It doesn’t matter how skilled they are."
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Friday, January 18th
The UnOriginals (Tim & Xavier) at Meenar in Danville
Saturday, January 19th
Timmy G at Maria Maria in Danville
Sunday, January 20th
GALA (Luna) at Studio Grand in Oakland
Thursday, January 24th
Timmy G (solo) at Tiki Tom’s in Walnut Creek
Friday, January 25th
West Grand Brass Band (Adam) at Woods Brewery in Oakland
The UnOriginals (Tim & Xavier) at Maggie Mcgarry’s in San Francisco
Saturday, February 2nd
Timmy G Solo at Eight Bridges Brewing in Livermore
Fast and Vengefully (Tim & Belinda) at Johnny Foley’s in San Francisco
Thursday, February 7th
Timmy G at Tiki Toms in Walnut Creek
Friday, February 8th
Fast & Vengefully (Tim & Belinda) at Red Hat in Concord
Friday, February 15th
The UnOriginals (Tim & Xavier) at Meenar in Danville
Thursday, February 21st
Timmy G at Tiki Toms in Walnut Creek
Saturday, February 23rd
Mama Foxxy (Anna & Judy) at Nu Ray’s in Martinez
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Thank you for reading, and for your continued support of music education in Livermore.
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