11 Music Quotes to Celebrate International Drum Month

Ready to celebrate International Drum Month with some fun and fabulous music quotes? As the saying goes, we all walk to the beat of a different drum. These 11 music quotes do their part to prove it.

1. "I have my own particular sorrows, loves, delights; and you have yours. But sorrow, gladness, yearning, hope, love, belong to all of us, in all times and in all places. Music is the only means whereby we feel these emotions in their universality." ~ H.A. Overstreet

2. "Music is the wine which inspires one to new generative processes, and I am Bacchus who presses out this glorious wine for mankind and makes them spiritually drunken." ~ Ludwig van Beethoven

3. "An artist, in giving a concert, should not demand an entrance fee but should ask the public to pay, just before leaving as much as they like. From the sum he would be able to judge what the world thinks of him - and we would have fewer mediocre concerts." ~ Kit Coleman

4. "Music is everybody's possession. It's only publishers who think that people own it." ~ John Lennon

5. "One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain." ~ Bob Marley

6. "The whole problem can be stated quite simply by asking, 'Is there a meaning to music?' My answer would be, 'Yes.' And 'Can you state in so many words what the meaning is?' My answer to that would be, 'No.'" ~ Aaron Copland

7. "I think I should have no other mortal wants, if I could always have plenty of music. It seems to infuse strength into my limbs and ideas into my brain. Life seems to go on without effort, when I am filled with music." ~ George Eliot

8. "Music like religion, unconditionally brings in its train all the moral virtues to the heart it enters, even though that heart is not in the least worthy." ~ Jean Baptiste Montegut

9. "Music is the mediator between the spiritual and the sensual life." ~ Ludwig van Beethoven

10. "Oh, the brave music of a distant drum!" ~ Omar Khayyam

11. "Take a music bath once or twice a week for a few seasons, and you will find that it is to the soul what the water bath is to the body." ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

So there you have it... Eleven great music quotes to pay tribute to International Drum Month. As Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. advised, take a music bath a couple of times this month. You'll be surprised at how it can renew your soul. Use these 11 music quotes to immerse yourself and let the renewal begin.

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The Demise Of Rock Music - Why Did This Happen?

To everyone who believes that there has been a demise of rock music, where have you been looking? Corporate owned mainstream radio? Cardboard cutouts at dying music stores? You probably don't want to hear this, but here goes...

There are a couple of things to consider: By the time music has hit the mainstream, it has already begun it's decline. Bands that were once creative and raw and real have been polished and watered down by the troubled record companies and old school producers. How often have you seen a rock band in concert with a string ensemble behind it? Even mainstream "punk" has had huge elements of rawness and meaning torn from it to make it more marketable. The artists have no input. The music rights are now owned by the record company who think they know best. I've been there. If the record company's producer has control over the recording, your music won't be the same as you had originally wrote it. And I don't mean better.

Then there are the manufactured singers and bands conceived and created by entities such as Disney and American Idol. As I've said before, many the singers of the most influential bands throughout rock history would never have made it past the American Idol audition stage. Imagine John (Rotten) Lydon, Kurt Cobain or Black Frances of the Pixies in front of the judging panel.
I would especially like to see John's intellectual verbal abuse of the talent experts.

The singers in today's music sound pretty good, don't they? Did you know that there is software and hardware that processes the human voice so that every not coming out of the singer is actually synthesized? Every note is spot on. No more slightly sharp or flat notes or rawness which I feel gives music a human element. Sure, singers still need a good voice, and by that I mean a voice that is suited to the music, but the vocal processing equipment takes care of any imperfection, even in live performances.

Okay, okay, on to the main subject. The demise of rock. What happened? Aside from what I've described above, not much. Again I'll ask, where have you been looking? Real rock music does not exist where it used to anymore. It exists on the Internet. In the original music clubs of major cities. On the mp3 players of high school and college students. It's called independent or indie music. Music that is independent of all that is not corporate, mass produced, or manufactured.

Go to your computer, type indie rock radio or something similar into your web browser, and spend some time checking out something new. Get out and go to an original music club. One that doesn't have bands playing cover music or a DJ. Go to coffeehouses, art-spots that have music. Rock is alive and well and where it belongs. In the trenches, in the dark, dingy clubs, in your face, and in hearts and minds of listeners.

I'm not suggesting you to go there, but if you're looking for it there it is. There is no demise of rock music after all, it just doesn't live where it used to. If you don't agree, okay. If don't like it, that's fine. Pull out your vinyl, put on your giant 70's headphones and stop complaining!

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Hitting it Big in the Music Industry

Whether you're running a rock band or a rap group, the rules are always the same. You have to get signed if you want to make it into the big time. Until you hit the worldwide spotlight, you're going to find yourself just scraping by.

If you want to get the attention of the record labels, there are some things you and your band will have to do. This article goes over a few of the more often overlooked tactics.

The first step to getting signed is getting a fan base. Obviously, record labels are prone to think that if your group can draw a crowd on the local level, you're likely to be able to draw a bigger crowd on the national level.

Learn to think about the business side of the music business. A record label is looking for one thing: profitability. And if you can show that you already have a built-in audience, they label executives are way more likely to see the potential for your group.

You may well wonder, how do you build a fan base? Well, it is like anything in life worth doing. It takes work and fortitude. The "If you build it, they will come" mentality will not help you here. You actually have to do some planning and strategizing to get your music before fans.

Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are the big three places to get your music heard by potential fans. This is where you need to focus your energies.

Social media sites are an excellent way to let people know about your group and what you are up to. Learn the three major networks and use them frequently. Anytime you have anything moderately interesting to say, let your fans know. Put out a blast when you are about to have a show. Then recap afterward. Especially alert folks when you are writing or recording new songs.

This is just the bare bones. There are literally hundreds of creative opportunities, whether you play at a local festival or get your music heard in a commercial. Try everything and you will get to the big time.

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Old School Rap Music is the Best

Rap music has come a long way since the late seventies and so have the artists that rap. The latest generation of rap music fans wouldn't believe how rap used to sound and why they would think it is the best if they heard it. Some of the greatest rappers were the first ones on the rap and hip hop scene. Old school rap music is the best rap of all because it set the ground work for some of the coolest sounds the music industry has ever known.

Where can you get the old sounds of rap from? Finding these tracks at the local music may be impossible unless you put in a special order. The best place to get all the old school rap music you can stand is on the Internet. There are a lot of reputable and trustworthy websites that specialize in nothing but the first rap music ever. Some of these sites will let you have free plays before you decide to pay your membership fee.

If you are in the generation of rockers that was hooked the first time you ever heard the Sugarhill Gang belt out the first ever rap hit, 'Rapper's Delight', then you know the memories these songs are going to bring back. Download them now for going back in time to the skating rink when you felt like were floating to the bet on your skates. 'Rapper's Delight' is just one of the first and best of the old school rap hits that you will be able to find online.

How about Tone Loc or Whodini? These are some rappers that set footprints into the cement of rap history. You will go back in time listening to these old school rap music sounds. Finding the best websites to download them from is easy.

Make sure to have some blank CD's ready to burn because you are going to want to play these in your car. Remember that feeling when you stopped at the red light when the cruising days were popular in the 80's? Those were certainly good times.

The old school rappers had no idea the road they were paving for future musicians. These days, rap music holds a place in line every year at the Grammy Awards and many rappers are in the forefront of many musical achievements.

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The Greatest One Hit Wonder Band 1990

The people loved and still love music of the 80s, but what about the 90? The 90 years have been full of forgotten treasures that the basis for future action. Bands like Green Day, Radiohead and Pearl Jam made it big then and are still enormous.

However, there were also those bands, the singers seemed to suddenly form, hit by one, a big hit and then disappear just as quickly as it arrived on the scene the Internet.

These are formally known as a one-hit wondersand no one can remember the name of the band only the title of the hit songs, for obvious reasons.

Take breakfast at Tiffany's song for my first example. This song was, the crowd went wild for this, but one wonders how many other hit, no one can remember the names of the band can be when?

Probably could not think that there are ten tried, it was Deep Blue Something, the sample One Hit Wonder of the 90s.

Try another, "The Way", which was aShot in the late 90's and loved by many. This is actually still played well today, but the band has never done another song so good that you make.

The Rembrandt, they are my third temporary feeling, to make the list. Their hit song is played and heard many people every day and would not even be able to track and share the band's name with the results.

I'll Be There For You, ring bells? It 'was a song popular at the time, became theShow theme song for the TV show, Oh, now I remember! And like everyone else, The Rembrandts faded into oblivion.

But the questions of who has helped to bring one-hit-list of sensations for the year 2000? That will be available soon.

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Review of Saturday Morning Cartoons' Greatest Hits

Looking for animation soundtracks can be a daunting task. The studios don't release soundtracks for their television animation, and trying to find stuff from years ago can be almost impossible. Thank God for the existence of inspired compilations. These compilations give us cartoon music fans the outlet we need. One such outlet is "Saturday Morning: Cartoons Greatest Hits".

Released by MCA Records in 1995, "Saturday Morning: Cartoons Greatest Hits" offers nineteen (19) tracks for classic theme and insert songs from the Twentieth Century, performed by some of the Twentieth Century's best performing artists.

Listening to the CD while writing this review, it is quite clear why I am an animation music fan. The CD starts off strong and does not stop once it gets going. There are no sound bite tracks to get in the way of the music. The artists sound like they were enjoying performing their songs, which adds to the fun. The artists seem to be natural fits for their individual tracks as well. I feel like I could pop the CD in and drive around the country several time just listening to and singling along with the music and it would never get old.

Speaking of singing, the booklet includes the lyrics to all tracks. Each track is listed with a description of the original cartoons they come from, as well as a quote from the artists that performed them. The booklet ends with a commentary essay from the compilation's producer, Ralph Shall. Writing a review of a soundtrack compilation of inspired works shouldn't just be about the disc itself. Each individual track deserves to be mentioned on its own.

The first track on the disc is "The Tra La La Song (One Banana, Two Banana)" from "The Banana Splits Adventure Hour." Performed by Liz Phair and Material Issue, "One Banana, Two Banana" is a fantastic start to the show. I have never seen or heard of this puppet series, but Phair and the Issue's rendition of this song make me want to find out what I have been missing.

Sponge's rendition of the English "Speed Racer" theme, "Go Speed Racer Go," captures the spirit of the show. It's fast and relentless. According to Vinnie from Sponge, "as Speed Racer gave to me,we gave back in the form of a musical monument, " and it shows. The third song is "Sugar Sugar" by Mary Lou Lord with Semisonic.This track from "The Archie Show" was a hit single on the music charts back in 1969, and with Lord and Semisonic's rendition, I can see why.

No cartoon soundtrack compilation would be a cartoon soundtrack compilation without a Scooby Doo song or two, and "Saturday Morning" is no different. Matthew Sweet's "Scooby Doo, Where Are You?" is a fun take on this old classic. I wonder if this track was what gave Sweet all he needed to be chosen to do the theme song for the new Scooby Doo series, "Scooby Doo Mystery Inc."

The other songs on the album include "Josie and the Pussycats," as performed by Juliana Hatfield and Tanya Donelly, "The Bulldogs" by collective Soul, Butthole Surfers' "Underdog," "Gigantor" by Helmet, "Spider-man" by the Ramones, "Fat Albert" by Dig, "Popeye" by face to face, "the Grovie Goolies" by the Toadies, Sublime's "Hong Kong Phooey," "H. R. Pufnstuf" by the Murmurs, and many others.

The final track, "Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy" from "Ren and Stimpy," performed by Wax, was a great choice. The song embodies the emotions one gets from listening to this disc. It should be noted that several of these theme songs did not come from a cartoon, but from puppet shows. This is only gripe with the disc. Puppet shows are great, but they are not cartoons, and should 'not be on a compilation that calls itself cartoons' greatest hits.

With that said, "Saturday Morning: Cartoons Greatest Hits" is a great pick up for any animation fan. It is a great set of classic cartoon heme songs performed by some of the best voices in music. Even if you are no longer into cartoons, you should pick it up just for the music. Fifteen years after its original release, the music and the compilation are still enjoyable and fun, and I expect it ill remain that way well into the future.

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Effective Use of Music in Movies

One of the main contributing factors to a movie's success is its soundtrack. Music is an essential element in most plays and dramas. Shakespeare made efficient use of music in his famous plays. Movie makers realize that a lot of the movie's business at the box office depends upon the music recording. There are many ways to incorporate songs in a movie. Musicals are one genre which is exclusively based on songs and lyrics. However, even if it is an action movie, filmmakers find ways to include some soundtracks into it.

In fact, Bollywood films are renowned for the excessive song and dance sequences they have. Hollywood movies too use orchestral or synthesizer score or even a new hit song to add to the interest element. Sometimes a movie's popularity is increased by its musical score. Celine Dion's "My heart will go on" for Titanic stayed on in public memory long after the movie left the cinema halls. The soundtrack of Love Story is one of the most enduring ever, and who doesn't download music from Sound of Music and Mary Poppins. Many a times, blockbusters become classics because of their excellent scores. Hence, composers and song writers are in great demand in Hollywood.

There are different types of motion picture music. One is the underscore category like the score for Steven Spielberg's E.T. Another is the category of original recording like "Hungry Heart" for the movie Perfect Storm. Finally there is the song that is written especially for a movie like "Over the rainbow" for the hugely popular Wizard of Oz. Each of these types is used frequently in movies and requires different recordings, contracts and royalties.

Songs are used in movies to show all kinds of emotions. A romantic setting is enhanced by an appropriate love song. Similarly music has been used to make people laugh and cry. In fact the story itself can be narrated through cleverly inserted songs. Moreover, with a great background score, emotions and dialogs acquire more significance. If a producer wants to use an existing soundtrack for his movie, he can do so by negotiating with the music producer. Often, a pre-existing, hit song can help create the mood required in the movie. The soundtracks of many movies come out and go on to become huge hits in their own right. These days with digital music recording, adding new songs to movies is becoming easier.

My Fair Lady was a complete musical whose main claim to fame was the witty use of lyrics to show every mood. Similarly, Chicago and Moulin Rouge used songs and extravagant dances to create the required atmosphere. Even if the movie does not use songs every other minute, it will show action with a background score playing regularly. Who can forget the scenes of Psycho with the spine tingling music in the background? The audio mastering was such here that the score heightens the audience's fear and any time one hears the music he quickly associates it with Psycho. Such is the power of appropriate music in cinema!

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