Fine songs covered by computers continued! YouTube user Arganalth has created a new video and song featuring a number of floppy and hard disk drives playing Nirvana‘s 1991 hit song “Smells Like Teen Spirit“.
…and here’s the original.
The Rolling Stones’ 1966 Tour Programme
Here is a UK Stones’ tour programme from the autumn of 1966 when they went on the road to promote their Aftermath LP. Supporting the group were Ike And Tina Turner and The Yardbirds.
National Music Centre partners with Bell Canada to name new home Studio Bell
The National Music Centre (NMC) and Bell today announced a 12-year, $10 million partnership to support the construction of NMC’s new national home in Calgary’s East Village. Named Studio Bell, the facility will open to the public in spring 2016.
“Partnering with Bell supports our national vision and ability to connect with music lovers from coast to coast to coast,” said Andrew Mosker, President and CEO of the National Music Centre. “Studio Bell will be a technologically innovative national hub celebrating Canada and the power of music. We are confident the Studio Bell partnership positions us to deliver on our mission, vision and commitment to honour Canada’s music story.” “Bell is excited to help celebrate Canada’s rich music history with our support for the new home of the National Music Centre, Studio Bell,” said Loring Phinney, Vice-President Corporate Marketing, Bell Canada. “With our commitment to the development of Canadian media of all kinds, Bell is proud to invest in the National Music Centre and its work to inspire a new generation of musicians and music lovers across the country.”
Home of the National Music Centre currently under construction in Calgary’s East Village and scheduled to open in spring 2016, Studio Bell will be home to the National Music Centre, a national cultural organization devoted to amplifying a love, sharing, and understanding of music. It will become an international hub of music and technology, and will house NMC’s 2000+ piece collection of artifacts, instruments and music technology, 22,000 square feet of exhibitions devoted to telling the stories of music in Canada, a 300-seat performance space and recording studios.
The National Music Centre (NMC) is a national catalyst for discovery, innovation and renewal through music. In its new home at Studio Bell, NMC will preserve and celebrate Canada’s music story and inspire a new generation of music lovers through programming that includes on-site and outreach education programs, performances, artist incubation, and exhibitions.
The sponsorship was announced at an event this morning featuring a special performance by Randy Bachman, a longtime supporter of NMC. Bachman commemorated this NMC milestone by presenting the guitar on which he wrote and recorded “American Woman.” Bachman will lend the guitar to NMC for exhibition at Studio Bell when it opens.
NMC has raised $125 million towards its campaign goal of $168 million. The Government of Canada committed $25 million to the project through the Building Canada Fund – Major Infrastructure Component, and the Province of Alberta and the City of Calgary have each committed an additional $25 million. Coril Holdings Ltd. also contributed a $10 million gift to the campaign.
First Look: True Detective Season Two Trailer
In January 2014, True Detective creator and writer Nic Pizzolatto Pizzolatto signed a two-year contract extension with HBO, effectively renewing the series for two additional seasons. Much like its predecessor, season two of True Detective will consist of eight episodes, all to be written by Pizzolatto. However, the responsibility of directing will be assigned to several people; Justin Lin is in control of the first two episodes, and HBO has released the first trailer for Season 2.
True Detective starring Colin Farrell, Vince Vaughn, Rachel McAdams and Taylor Kitsch premieres June 21.
Guy Creates TV’s The Golden Girls Living Room and Kitchen Modular Set with LEGO
Samuel Hatmaker must be a pretty big LEGO fan. He also must be a big watcher of the TV show The Golden Girls, because he combined both into a set design worthy of the internet going crazy for this.
Samuel submitted it to LEGO Ideas, and the project has already drawn 10,000 votes, enough to send it to LEGO design experts for evaluation. Hatmaker explains the proposed set:
This is a recreation of the Golden Girls House used in filming the popular 1980’s show that is still watched daily around the world. It is the Foyer, Living Room, and Kitchen built like a TV set, with one wall removed and a full view into the space. It comes with 5 minifigures including Dorothy, Rose, Sophia, Blanche, and Stanley. It has been meticulously recreated to have opening cupboards and fridge in the kitchen, Wicker Sofa and Chairs, a hallway backdrop, a storage closet in the kitchen, and an outdoor area with potted plants and a hose.
I don’t know who would really buy this, but then, most of the watchers of the show were likely around when LEGO was first invented.
The Ultimate Marvel Marathon – Watch all 11 Marvel movies in one epic day at Cineplex
On April 29th, 2015, you can take The Ultimate Marvel Marathon challenge at select Cineplex theatres to see all the Marvel Studios feature films released chronologically starting with IRON MAN; THE INCREDIBLE HULK, IRON MAN 2; THOR: CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER; MARVEL’S THE AVENGERS; IRON MAN 3; THOR: THE DARK WORLD; CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER; GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY and the opportunity of being one of the first to see: AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON – When Tony Stark jumpstarts a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye, are put to the ultimate test as they battle to save the planet from destruction at the hands of the villainous Ultron.
See all 11 movies, and you’ll get an exclusive collectible Avengers medallion, too. Click here to buy your tickets.
‘Guitars Over Guns’ Uses Music To Keep At-Risk Kids In School
Guitars Over Guns Organization (“GOGO”) was founded in 2008 by Dr. Chad Bernstein, an accomplished professional trombonist and educator in Miami, and his father, Bob Bernstein, a successful financial professional in Chicago. The inspiration derived from their joint desire to formalize the ad-hoc mentoring that many members of Suénalo, a popular Miami band of which Chad was a member, had been providing in their community for years. After several years studying philanthropic start-ups, the first program was born with an intense desire to provide kids from the most under-served neighborhoods opportunities to play music, especially music they love . . . opportunities that Chad and all the mentors had in their lives but saw fading from school curriculums and budgets.
Through an initial partnership with Communities in Schools (CIS) of Miami, GOGO began mentoring students of North Miami middle school. The program grew over the next three years, increasing in popularity among the students and gaining traction in the school and community through performances. GOGO opened a second program in 2012-13 at Miami Edison Middle School.
GOGO’s other major partners include the University of Miami’s Frost MusicReach program, which provides college music students to provide supplemental music education and mentoring for their students. And others are noticing the fine work – In 2014, the GOGO program was among a small handful of featured not-for-profits in the McDermott, Will & Emory 2014 Annual Report on Social Responsibility, a global publication.
Since launching in 2008, GOGO has now mentored over 240 students. Measuring impact has always been their key driver. In the last two years alone we have served 126 students, of whom 92% improved their GPA, 94% improved decision making skills (ACOPE pre and post assessment), 97% improved attendance as measured by school records, and 99% of previously suspended youth did not get suspended after program participation.
More meaningful to these young musicians is the fact that they have written and produced their own music and videos, been accepted into performing arts schools and higher music education opportunities, and performed on the radio, CBS, and NBC. GOGO students have also performed side-by-side with their mentors and at such renowned venues as the Filmore and Jackie Gleason Theaters on Miami Beach, the University of Miami, and major Miami festivals including the Miami International Book Fair, Art Basel, and the Grassroots Festival. GOGO students have had the opportunity to work with prominent artists such as Omar Tavarez (drummer for Pitbull), Sharon Aguilar (guitarist for CeeLo Green), and Rhea (singer for Pharrell). And finally, every GOGO student gets the opportunity to be professionally recorded – eternal proof that they overcame their fears, became accountable to themselves and their peers, and built a bridge to their future.
THIS is cool: Jambé – the Ultimate Electronic Instrument
As you can tell by looking at Jambé, it was inspired by a drum. It is shaped and sized like a drum, and is built with all natural wood and metal materials. It even fits regular drum stands. Jambé feels comfortable in your hands or on your lap, and you can play it with regular drumsticks or with your hands, just like any traditional drum.
The Jambé playing surface is covered with a special combination of materials and sensors that read every nuance, from the full impact of a drumstick to the light tapping of a finger. Jambé transforms those gestures into expressive dynamic sounds. There are ten sensor zones which can be programmed as different sounds or effects, giving you a rich sound palette.
Jambé connects to an Apple iOS device, which provides an outstanding user interface. You can easily expand and upgrade your instrument with a few taps on the screen. Jambé comes with a wide variety of sounds, and our In-App store will carry additional sounds and kits, which will open up new playing possibilities.
It’s curently in Kickstarter mode, and you can check it out here:
Your first look at AMERICAN EPIC, Produced by T Bone Burnett, Robert Redford and Jack White
PBS and the BBC Arena today announced AMERICAN EPIC, the extraordinary story of the trailblazing era when country-wide, the music of ordinary Americans was recorded for the very first time.
The three-part historical documentary and feature-length film, showcasing contemporary artists in recording sessions, will air in the U.S. and U.K. this fall.
Executive Produced by T Bone Burnett, Robert Redford and Jack White, AMERICAN EPIC takes us on a journey across time to the birth of modern music, when the musical strands of a diverse nation first combined, sparking a cultural renaissance that forever transformed the future of music and the world.
In addition to the broadcast, AMERICAN EPIC will include companion music releases. Columbia Records will release contemporary performances from The American Epic Series. Sony Music’s Legacy Recordings will release a companion series of archival recordings, featuring groundbreaking audio restoration of 1920s and 1930s recordings by Lo-Max Films, Nick Bergh and Peter Henderson. Third Man Records will release a deluxe box of vinyl records.
Two British filmmakers, Bernard MacMahon and Allison McGourty, have pieced together this extraordinary story set in the late 1920s when record company talent scouts toured America with a recording machine and for the first time captured the raw expression of an emerging culture. It democratized music and gave a voice to the poorest in the nation.
The filmmakers follow the recording machine’s trail across the United States to rediscover the families whose recordings would lead to the development of blues, country, gospel, Hawaiian, Cajun and folk music – without which there would be no rock, pop, R&B or hip hop today. Over three episodes the remarkable lives of these seminal musicians are revealed through previously unseen film footage, unpublished photographs, and exclusive interviews with some of the last living witnesses to that era, when the musical strands of a diverse nation first emerged, sparking a cultural revolution whose reverberations are felt to this day.
For THE AMERICAN EPIC SESSIONS the filmmakers have re-assembled the recording machine that allowed America to first hear itself. They have replicated the atmosphere of America’s seminal 1920s field recordings down to the smallest detail, with top American artists recording straight to wax, using all the original microphones, amplifiers, and other equipment from that era. This is the first time that any performer has been able to use this machinery for over 80 years. Led by producers Jack White and T Bone Burnett, today’s legends are given a once-in-a-lifetime chance to relive the experience of the founding mothers and fathers, their idols, and remake the music that changed America and changed the world.
THE AMERICAN EPIC SESSIONS features performances by Alabama Shakes, The Americans, The Avett Brothers, Beck, Frank Fairfield, Ana Gabriel, Rhiannon Giddens, Merle Haggard, Bobby Ingano, Elton John, Auntie Geri Kuhia, Pokey LaFarge, Bettye LaVette, Los Lobos, Lost Bayou Ramblers, Taj Mahal, Steve Martin & Edie Brickell, Fred Martin and The Levite Camp, Ashley Monroe, Nas, Willie Nelson, Charlie Kaleo Oyama, Blind Boy Paxton, Raphael Saadiq, and Jack White.
Director Bernard MacMahon explained, “AMERICAN EPIC is the story of one of the great moments in American history – when the voices of working people, minorities, and rural people throughout the country were first heard, and how the discovery of these artists forever changed the sound of American popular music and introduced new genres such as R&B, rock and country. It celebrates American technological innovation, diversity and freedom of speech.”
Producer and co-creator Allison McGourty said, “We traveled the length and breadth of America, from Cleveland, Ohio to the Gulf of Mexico, and from New York to Hawaii, in our quest to discover the identities and stories of America’s earliest recorded musicians. We captured testimonials from the last living witnesses and direct descendants of America’s musical pioneers. This is the last time their story can be told before everyone who was there is gone.”
“This is America’s greatest untold story,” said Robert Redford, an Executive Producer. “It’s an account of the cultural revolution that ultimately united a nation.”
“These musicians we profile are the real American heroes,” said T Bone Burnett, an Executive Producer. “They set out from the darkness with nothing but a guitar on their backs, put out their thumbs and conquered the world.”
“In AMERICAN EPIC we can examine how important the fact is that when phonograph records were invented, for the first time ever, women, minorities, poor rural men and even children were given the opportunity to say whatever they wanted in song, for the whole world to hear, shockingly without much censorship,” said Jack White, an Executive Producer. “What they were allowed to say on phonograph recordings, they were not allowed to speak in public or in person. That is an astounding thought.”
Duke Erikson, producer and co-creator, said, “The more we found out about these recordings, the more we realized how little was known about how they were recorded. We became obsessed with figuring it out, with actually finding the machine that was used to record this amazing music.”
Beth Hoppe, Chief Programming Executive and General Manager, General Audience Programming, PBS, said, “We wanted to share this uniquely American story with our audience because of its exploration and celebration of original forms of music and early technologies. PBS has broadcast concerts and documentaries about a diverse variety of music genres over the years, and AMERICAN EPIC captures the foundation of American music history through the lens of some incredible untold stories.”
Anthony Wall, Executive Producer for the BBC ARENA said, “When Bernard and Allison took me through their ideas and research, I didn’t hesitate to say yes. Arena has always been committed to this music but AMERICAN EPIC is the most comprehensive account of how and why it came to be recorded in the first place that I’ve encountered. The combination of the multi-ethnic context and acutely researched individual stories make it irresistible. The accompanying SESSIONS film is a delight. It’s a joy to see the respect and excitement so many of today’s best musicians bring to the discipline of recording in the same way as their heroes of decades ago.”
Stephen Segaller, Executive in Charge, WNET, said, “It’s not often that you’re pitched a project that is entirely fresh, immediately visual, and seems likely to change your whole understanding of cultural history. AMERICAN EPIC is that project – a documentary series that gives us an amazing narrative of cultural enterprise and creative energy, touching on deep American history – and a recording sessions vérité film that keeps on outdoing itself as artist after artist revels in the old-time music and brings it to new levels.”
Alan Yentob, Creative Director, BBC, said, “What a great adventure this is and what a brilliant cast of musicians and storytellers past and present to bring this untold history back to life. AMERICAN EPIC has captured the imagination of everyone involved in the making of it and I believe it is destined to do the same for millions of viewers all over the world.”
Adam Block, President of Sony Music’s Legacy Recordings, said, “Simply put, Legacy exists in no small part to preserve and perpetuate our country’s musical heritage. For us, AMERICAN EPIC is a celebration of the men and women who established the foundation of virtually everything that we as an industry do today. It is one of the most remarkable cultural, technological and of course musical journeys of all time.”
Mark Williams, EVP of A&R for Columbia Records, said, “Listening to the incredible artists that contributed to these sessions, we see a direct link with the musicians of the past. As if time hasn’t existed and the same spirit, truth and soul of the earlier performers are as much part of the present as it is the past. This record isn’t a tribute record as much as it is a continuation of the same story and messages that have been passed along to great artist of today.”
John Tefteller, founder of Blues Images and consultant to Lo-Max Films, said, “The new sound transfer techniques by Lo-Max has taken everything to a new level above and beyond anything anyone has ever heard before. 1920s early 1930s blues records have never sounded so good. It sounds like you are in the room with the performers. People are going to be knocked out when they hear how these records sound now.”
Robert Santelli, Executive Director of the Grammy Museum, said, “The Grammy Museum is excited to create education and public programs that will complement such an extraordinary series and story. Our goal is to engage young people in the history of American music so that they become more informed listeners and better understand the legacy that supports much of contemporary music. AMERICAN EPICwill allow us to do just that.”
Jan Younghusband, Head of Music TV Commissioning for BBC Music says: “We are thrilled to present this outstanding series on BBC television and to promote it across our BBC Music platforms. BBC Music is a new initiative committed to bringing the best in music to our audiences. It is great that this project is coming through the world’s two leading public broadcasters, the BBC and PBS, working together.”