Tools of the trade

"How do you arrange and come up with such beautiful and professionally looking printed music scores?"

I've always been asked this question time and time again. Especially whenever I play from a score that bears "Arr. by Eddy Chan" on it. When people see it, they get really curious as to how I got my name printed on the music score.

"How do you get all those notes in? Do you need to use a special tool or software?

Well, here's my answer.

The hardware = Prodikeys

The software = Sibelius 3


First, let's look at the Prodikeys (made by Creative Technologies, the same company that makes the Zen, Muvo, etc, MP3 players).

At first glance it looks just like any other computer keyboard.



Remove the wrist rest and taaa daaa, there's a hidden 37-mini key music keyboard that's built into the computer keyboard. Pure genius! It's a great tool for musicians and it's space-saving too.






All I need now is the software. For that, I'll use the best music software (IMHO) available, the Sibelius 3.



It's got tons of useful features and very easy to use. I can create any type of music and print any kind of music score I want including professional full orchestra scores that can have many parts. A real boon to conductors. Just set up Sibelius 3 to recognise the input device (in this case, the Prodikeys) and you're on your way. Notes or rests can be inserted in real-time or step-time. They appear as you play on the mini keyboard and can be easily edited if need be. Sibelius even recognises terms and symbols and will playback according to tempo, expression, dynamics and articulation changes. Very cool!

Below is part of the score of Holy, Holy, Holy. I did this simple seven-part orchestra arrangement.




Completed scores can be easily printed and they look really good. Very professional looking right?



So, do you want to know how the above music arrangement sounds?

Then, scroll down to watch the video demo of Holy, Holy, Holy created using Prodikeys and Sibelius 3.

Jazzin' 'bout Jazz

Well, after one and a half months of "jazzin'" 'bout all kinds of stuff, I think it's time to serve up some real JAZZ.

So, just what is Jazz?

"Jazz is an Artform. Jazz is a musical form of expression. Jazz is about listening. Jazz is about hearing. (Yes, there can sometimes be a big difference between listening and hearing.) Jazz is about feeling. Jazz is about seeing, Jazz is about experiencing. Jazz is mood altering. Jazz can be inspiring. Jazz can be uplifting. Jazz can be motivational. Jazz is an escape. Jazz can quicken your pulse or it can totally relax you. Jazz can be romantic. Jazz can be funny. Jazz can be sad. Jazz can be fiery. Jazz can be disturbing. Jazz can take you on a journey of the mind. Jazz can take you on a journey of the spirit. Jazz can speak to your soul. Jazz is a memory recalled, and Jazz can be anything you want it to be."

"For someone wanting to truly understand Jazz, it is important to note that this is what the Jazz musician continually strives to achieve. The experience of being in the moment; being swept away, losing all track of time and space; or going with the flow; is the place where all Jazz musicians work towards.

When a musician plays Jazz, particularly while soloing, they do not think of categorizing the content of their musical offering. Instead, they fully invest themselves into responding to the song as it is taking place, making a statement based on some aspect of the melody, chords, or rhythm. They work toward allowing the music they are playing to take them on a journey that is timeless and without defined parameters."

Excerpts from "The Beginner's Guide to Understanding Jazz"
www.thedanbodanisband.com
Copyright © 2004 Dan Bodanis


"Jazz is not the result of choosing a tune, but an ideal that is created first in the mind, inspired by one's passion, and willed next in playing music. Its unique expression draws from life experience and human emotion as the inspiration of the creative force, and through this discourse is chronicled the history of a people."

A Passion for Jazz!™ © 1998-2007


As you can see, Jazz cannot be easily described in one short sentence. It is also a very tricky subject to learn and teach. The best way to do that, is to do a great deal of listening. Listening to what? Well, listening to the different Jazz styles and picking the ones that appeal to you. There's:

• Early/Traditional (Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman)
• Big Band/Swing (Stan Getz, Errol Gardner, Wynton Marsalis, Charlie Parker, Oscar Peterson)
• Bebop (George Benson, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Sonny Rollins)
• Hardbop (Art Blakely, Clifford Brown, Ron Carter, Sonny Clark)
  
• Cool (Dave Brubeck, Gil Evans, Lester Young, Gerry Mulligan)
• Smooth (Wes Montgomery, Pat Metheny, Martin Taylor)
• Fusion (Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett, Branford Marsalis, Horace Silver)
• Free/Avant Garde (John Coltrane, Carla Bley, Charles Mingus)
• Vocal (Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Frank Sinatra)
  

Plus, having a passion for it makes all the difference.


Henrik Eriksson in his (excellent) blog (http://swingjazzblues.blogspot.com) puts it as...

"Often Jazz improvisation is similar to a good conversation. You both take turns talking and listening. You say your next sentence built on what the other person just said. Reacting but also adding new angles and introducing new topics.

Sometimes the conversation can get a little bit heated and turn into a dispute. This is shown excellently by "weepingprophet" in this video clip where he illustrates a Jazz dispute between Dizzy Gillespie (trumpet) and Charlie "Bird" Parker (sax).

The music in this video clip is "Leap Frog" from the album Bird and Diz."

He cleverly illustrates Jazz improvisation in a visually hilarious but effective way.





Hope you enjoyed the video and understood a little bit more about Jazz. I leave you with this...

--- Jazz quote of the day ---

"Life is a lot like Jazz. . . it’s best when you improvise. . ."
George Gerswhin

Positive thought of the week

An inspirational thought to help us tackle the week ahead with a positive attitude.

Something light-hearted

Hope you get a good laugh. Just what we need to get our day off on the right track.

Boredom, thy name is Eddy

So, why am I bored?

Well, I've been stuck at home for the past two days. Not able to go to work, or the gym, or anywhere else for that matter.

You see, I woke up on Tuesday morning with a sore throat. A fever followed soon after. Felt like a cold or something coming too, but thankfully, that did not happen. Fever's gone but the throat's still sore, though not as sore as before.

So tired of sleeping (oxymoron?). Tried to do some reading but could not really focus. Turned on the TV but there was nothing worth watching. Don't think I could sit through a whole Dvd movie without falling asleep (again? Sigh..).

Bread was my staple diet for the whole of yesterday. And this morning too.

After eating bread for 4 meals in a row, I began to develop an aversion to bread, even though I do not dislike bread.

Anyway, looking at all that bread gave me an idea to keep from dying of boredom. So, I grabbed my camera and here's a little pictorial quiz for you.

Try and guess what they are.

Answers (click the picture below)

So, how many correct answers did you get? You didn't cheat did you?

Hope you were entertained. Knowing that you enjoyed this makes me feel so much better already. It certainly killed a couple of hours of boredom. Nice.

Easter - As the world knows it

Is Easter another reason for us to indulge in more eating and merry-making?

Is it another holiday when children can have fun?

What has eggs and bunnies got to do with Easter?

Want to know what Easter is really all about?

Then click here to watch a heart-stirring 10-minute presentation of "He Chose The Nails"

Easter - Did you know?