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II-V-I progressions are common in most types of popular music and mainstream jazz and more. If you can play II-V-I progressions you are in a lucky position. What then is a II-V-I progression? Well, come and see!

A C-major scale consists of seven notes: C D E F G A B

A C-major chord consists of the first, third and fifth notes in the C-major scale. This is called a triad.

A chord built from the first step of the scale can also be called I from the roman number one.

If I start on the second note of the C-major scale and construct a triad chord consisting of D F A, I have a chord built upon the second step of the scale.

This will be a D-minor chord and I can indicate that I have built a chord from the second note of the C-major scale by giving it the number II with roman numbers.

If I decide to build a triad chord from the fifth note of the C-major scale I have to add more notes in the C-major scale: C D E F G A B C D

If I start building a triad from G it will consist of the notes G B D. This is a G-major chord and to show that it is a triad built from the fifth step of the C-major scale we can call it V which is the roman number for five.

The smart thing with the roman numbers is that they don’t indicate an absolute chord but rather the position of a chord in the key you are playing on your guitar, piano or other instrument.

In the key of C the roman numbers I stands for the chord C, II indicates the chord D-minor and V the chord G. Simplified we can say that when I say I will play a II-V-I chord progression in the key of C I will play the chords D-minor, G and C.

Actually this is just the beginning of the art of playing II-V-I progressions. You can spice the chords in different ways and play the chords in major or minor.

And of course a chord on a piano can be played in many different ways. A C-major chord must have the notes C, E and G but how many or where to play them is a matter of choice.

Here are a few easy examples of II-V-I progressions in C-major that can be transposed to other keys:

1. Dm, G7, C
2. Dm7, G7, C
3. D7, G7, C

When you practice these progressions on your piano you can choose to play them with both hands, with the left hand, giving room for right hand improvisation or your right hand, giving room for left hand bass playing or improvisation.

Practicing playing II-V-I progressions on your piano will help you see the relationship between chords and being able to play these progressions in different key will give you a tool that will help you recognize chord progressions in songs you hear which will help you trancribe songs by ear.

Peter Edvinsson is a musician, composer and music teacher. Visit his site Capotasto Music and download your free sheet music and learn to play piano resources at http://www.capotastomusic.com

Brand-new artist promotion service “Artist’s explosion in Japan” by fishthemusic.com (Bigfish Network Inc.)

What fishthemusic.com does;

1. We play your song on our web-radio “music-islands.com.” http://www.music-islands.com/

Now web-radio “music-islands.com” has approx.3,000 unique users a month, and more than 300 visitors a day, with over 50,000 pageviews (Oct. 2005). It’s increasing day by day.

To play your music on our web-radio, is to easily recognize your music to Japanese music fans.

2. Set your own page up in Japanese, at our “music-islands.com” blog, that includes your basic info (Genres, location etc.), plus your self-description (your catch-copy or/and strong points) on it, It also includes one mp3 sound file. So it is submitted into Japanese podcast portal websites. Our blog sends ping to Japanese several other portal blog sites at every update.

Of course, we link back to “your original website”, “your myspace URL”, “your Apple iTunes Music Store page” and “where to buy CD”. It means, our visitors are able to easily jump into your music, whenever they love you!!

3. If you give us an additional approve for Pod-safe usage, we provide your song to other Japanese Podcasters and let your music make more exposure in Japan,..

We also put your song at 2 other Japanese social networking services (SNS).

One is “recommuni.jp” … music SNS, it has 10,000 members. (Oct. 2005) We post your mp3 sound file for free download to Japanese music fans there. It’s on for a month. It’s one of the most effective cyber promotions in Japan. http://www.recommuni.jp/

The other is “jammy.jp”. This is also new music SNS that launches on January 2006 and is expected to have 20,000 members until April 2006. We also set up the web-radio station on it and play your song.

“jammy.jp” is managed by Japanese famous music publishing company “Hipland Music Corporation”. It will invite many Japanese music business people; labels, promoters, producers…etc. So those who have be interested in your music, can easily visit your website and contact you directly. http://www.jammy.jp/

And more,

In 2006, we are going to invite 1 artist, at least, to Japan, and set up a few stages for show case gigs, somewhere in popular nightclubs in Tokyo or so. It will be our first experience and really challenging for us, though,,, Details are not fixed now. We may have a contest at our website for it, anyway……

What you do for it;

Give us a non-exclusive license for everything we have described above. Email me your Basic information, and one mp3 file (128-192k) with our application form below. We don’t need CD anymore.

Pay Set-up fee through our secure online form. 3,000 Japanese Yen will be charged (about $28.00 US dollars) for setting your song in our online radio, and 2 other music SNS that we describe above.

As soon as everything has prepared, we will set up your page and play your song,2 other SNS community websites as well. We’ll be glad to promote you and hope our promotion actually works well for you here in Japan. ARIGATO.

Okay, it’s time for me to finally say goodbye to my portable disc player, and join the online and portable music revolution. Okay, the revolution isn’t so new any more, nor is my computer, but as I wade through the sea of options for how to download music, listen to and buy online tracks, I grow more eager to get my feet wet and eventually suit up to take the plunge. But I happen to be a bit more practical than that. So, I’ve spent a considerable amount of time over the last few weeks trying to determine what’s best for my lifestyle, my wallet and my computer.

First thing I realized when searching all of the music services is that things seemed to work a lot smoother with a broadband connection (and most services seem to point that out from the get go). Just like my CD Walkman, the time had come for me to lose my ancient dial-up connection to the online experience. It actually turned out to work in my favor as my cable company gave me a good deal on high-speed, and also threw in a discount on my existing costs for cable TV.

Now that I was “connected” at an acceptable speed to the Web, I had to determine, what I was trying to get out of the online music experience. After some intense melodious soul searching, I realized that the only thing the separated me from the perpetually hip is perhaps the types of music I was searching for, and the amount of time I wanted to spend online searching for music.

The guy who sits next to me has a 60 GB iPod, and is complaining that it is almost full. That’s over seven thousand songs. I don’t know that I would even live long enough to listen to that many songs. My needs were simpler. I had an MP3 player still in the box from two Christmas’ ago, and it promised to hold over 500 songs. That would be perfect for me, at least in the short term.

Next, what was I looking for in my new online music experience? Did I want to listen to music on my PC, in my car or on my MP3 player? Yes to all three. Did I want to listen to the radio while I was on my PC? Again, yes. Did I want to trade music with others online in a peer-to-peer Napster-like environment? Eh, that one scared me a little, and I decided that opening up my files to strangers made me feel dirt, so I put that one on hold.

My next stop in determining how I would “music online” was price. I searched dozens of sites and services, but narrowed my sights to three of the big guys: AOL Music Now, iTunes and Rhapsody Music Service (provided by Real Networks).

I already had AOL, so I signed up for their Music Now product for $8.99/month (that’s in addition to their monthly fee as an ISP). I was able to download songs, listen to them while “offline” and burn them to CD or move them over to my MP3 player for an additional fee per song. That seemed to be standard across most of the services. Music Now was a follow up to the original AOL Music Net, which I actually liked better because it ran locally on machine and the new Web-based Music Now takes much longer. AOL also has a partnership with iTunes, so you can be on AOL, but iTunes will launch and then you’re actually in the iTunes application. It’s confusing. If I want to move my downloaded songs to my MP3 player, the monthly fee jumps to $14.95 per month, and if I want to put them on a CD, I pay and additional 99 cents per track. This is too much money for me. I typically buy one or two CD’s a month, and that would be cheaper than this online service. Not to mention you have to be an existing AOL member (more money per month) in order to even use the product. I’m passing on AOL Music Now.

On to iTunes. Okay, so there is no monthly fee for iTunes. Love that. And I can purchase songs for 99 cents per track. Love that too. But wait. I don’t have an iPod, and iTunes has songs in their proprietary MP4 format. Ugh. The cheapest iPod out there is around $99 (so much for no monthly fee), and it’s not the model I would select. I like my MP3 player. If I already had an iPod, this may be the route I would go, but Apple tends be very inflexible, and I hate to be tied to one provider, player and format. There is also a limit to how you can share the songs on your home network. I feel like even though I own the song, I’m being watched on what I do with it. Good bye big brother.

Rhapsody Music Service from Real Networks. So far they are the least expensive. $9.99 per month and that’s with unlimited access to over 1.3 million songs. I do have to have pay the additional 99 cent fee if I want to burn to CD or transfer to my MP3, but that is the industry standard for paying the artists, and the monthly fee is five dollars less per month than AOL. The music comes over in the more widely supported MP3 format and the songs are mine to rip transfer or share with my other computers on my home network. Like the other two, I can listen to live radio on my pc, but I like the freedom I get with Rhapsody Music Service. I’m not being watched, and the music is mine.

Now that I know how to download music and have chosen Rhapsody Music Service, I’m on my way to joining the new world of portable digital music. I’ve already burned several CD’s for my car, albeit with an older man’s twist on today’s favorites, and transferred those same songs over to my little antiquated MP3 player for those long weekend walks.

Now I’ve got to start looking for a replacement for my VCR. Onward and upward!

For the self-promoting independent artist, the idea of taking
on a radio promotion campaign can, in itself, become
overwhelming. But, this idea is usually based on such artists
attempting to obtain worldwide airplay on a local budget.

And, in doing so, self-promoting independent artists quickly
discover another factor not usually considered previously…
that engaging in a worldwide radio promotion campaign
translates to hundreds and, possibly, thousands of CD units
for media contacts alone.

As you can see, this can also quickly become a nightmare for
indie artists, particularly, if the promotion budget only allows
for the purchase of 1,000-CD packages at a time.

Starting in the 1980’s, college radio became a dominant force
in not only discovering independent recording artists, but also
in introducing new artists to the general public. Hundreds of
these particular artists have gone on to become established
‘household’ names.

Likewise, the college radio level has a continued history of
presenting, practically, all forms of music, much of which
would never see the proverbial light of day at the commercial
radio level and, in many cases, neither at the non commercial
level.

Therefore, if an artist has limited funds for radio promotion, it
is highly advisable that the he begin exclusively with college
radio for the following reasons:

* Far easier and faster access to airwaves

* Far more plentiful specialty and mix shows and programs

* Greater chances for both in-studio and telephone interviews
to promote music releases

* More possibilities for station ID checks for further publicity

* Corresponding college campus newspapers that will more
readily accept and support music aired on their campus
stations for creating a campus-wide buzz

* A ready and built-in market in the campus community for
repeated live performances to further support and supplement
campus airplay and campus press coverage

* An opportunity for grassroots distribution through supplying
both campus bookstores and campus music stores with
music releases

Is the college market a viable market for your music sales?

Though the question is rhetorical in nature, please review the
below U. S. college population statistics:

* There are 631 public 4-year colleges and universities that
have a combined student population of 6,236,455.

* There are also 1,835 private 4-year colleges and
universities with a combined student population of 3,440,953.

* Additionally, there exists 1,081 public 2-year colleges with a
combined student population of 5,996,701.

* Even further, 621 private 2-year colleges host another
253,878 students.

This brings the average U. S. student population total to a
whopping 15,927,987 minimum every year. And, more
people are attending some form of higher education than
ever before.

Now, even the least popular music genres are certain to find
a financial comfort zone with a market of almost 16 million
unique principals.

So, what results could really popular commercial music
genres experience, simply by working the various entities of
the college market, i.e., campus radio, campus press, campus
bookstores, campus music stores, campus live performances?
Quite pleasant ones, I would suspect.

But, remember! The above statistics only reference the
United States college/university potential listenership. College
radio also has a respectable portion of listeners who are *not*
students.

Add to that, listeners of college radio who strictly listen to the
streaming portion of college radio online, and who may, or
may not, be in the college’s geographical area, i.e., military
service members.

Plus, there is lot more of the college market abroad, of which
U. S.-based artists would do well to approach English-
speaking nations first, i.e., United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland,
subsequently, moving into additional nations.

While it may (or may not) be true that it is possible for
commercial radio stations to be the primary driving force
behind most retail sales, that theory may not be so valid
today, given the fact that:

* With the Internet, artists are no longer required to sell
millions of CDs to make a great living financially

* Artists have greater and easier access to far more radio
stations (broadcast, satellite, internet, college)

* With the college community, and all of its combined
promotion and sales aspects (radio, bookstores, music stores,
live performances), if conducted correctly, the college market
campaign can equalize and, in some cases, even supersede
commercial radio results.
______________________________________________

[—Additional Statistics—]

Top 10 College Enrollment:

Miami-Dade College (51,717)
University of Texas at Austin (50,616)
Ohio State University (48,477)
University of MinnesotaTwin Cities (46,597)
University of Florida (46,516)
Arizona State University (45,693)
Texas A&M University (44,618)
Michigan State University (44,227)
University of Wisconsin Madison (40,912)
Pennsylvania State University at University Park (40,828)

(The above figures were reported in Almanac 2004-2005,
published by the Chronicle of Higher Education,
August 27, 2004.)
______________________________________

What College Students Spend on Music:

According to a recent Harris Interactive survey, college
students spend $200 billion…that’s right…BILLION dollars
per year, with 76% of the students having spent $2,746,000
on music alone.

Note: As an added advantage, the self-promoting independent
artist should also create an Internet radio promotion campaign
simultaneously, since most ‘net stations are accepting of MP3
files for airplay, thus, reducing packaging and shipping costs
of CDs to stations.

You have permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of charge, as long as the bylines are included. A courtesy copy of your publication would be appreciated.

About the Author:

Kenny Love is president of MuBiz.com, a radio promotion, media
publicity and music business/career firm for musicians. He is
also the author of “Explosive CD $ales Tips,” as well as
publisher of The B# Newsletter, a highly informative music
business resource. Visit his website at http://www.MuBiz.com

P2P file sharing programs are free. Period. But there are P2P scam sites out there
that want you to pay them instead. P2P scam sites are rogue companies that have
set up shop to fleece unsuspecting music downloaders looking for file sharing
programs by charging a fee for an otherwise free service.



No P2P file sharing software costs money. Exceptions would be a site asking
members to make a monetary donation to help pay for bandwidth, hosting costs,
and other administrative costs.



Some P2P file sharing programs offer “pro” versions of their free software. But again,
their basic service is free to the public. I want you to fully understand this, because
paying a P2P scam site money can not only make your wallet a bit lighter, it can also
make your computer vulnerable to dangerous spyware.



That’s right. These scam sites are only interested in making money off you. As well
as actually taking your money by fooling you into paying them, they’ll make money
off you by installing spyware on your PC, so that they can get paid by sharing your
online habits and personal information with others.



For music download beginners, all of this can be very confusing. Why? Because
these scam sites advertise all over the Internet. Search engines return results
chockful of these scams alongside the real P2P file sharing programs; their banner
ads riddle the Internet landscape; sites are promoting these scams to get their piece
of your money.



Most real P2P programs don’t advertise much on the Internet. The reason is that
they’re not money makers. It takes money to advertise, and who has more money–
the free P2P file sharing programs or the scam artists? You guessed it. P2P relies on
word of mouth. The scam sites rely primarily on advertising.

How Can I Tell a P2P Scam Site?

This is the easy part, if you know what you’re looking for. P2P scam sites often use
phrases like 100% Legal, which is absolutely untrue. This is a trick they use
to prey on people interested in P2P file sharing programs, but who are worried
(rightly) about Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) lawsuits. Keep in
mind that sharing and downloading of copyrighted files is, at this moment, an
illegal activity.



Another tactic is to use fake endorsements and recommendations from legitimate
companies. Other cons are to use phrases like Direct Downloads!, Get Access
Now!, Download Unlimited Free Music!, and other phrases that are promising
you things they absolutely CANNOT deliver.

How Does It Work & How are They Doing It?

To be honest, I do not know the ins and outs of P2P scam sites. But I know this: all
P2P file sharing programs are free. Think about it a moment. It is because music
files are being shared free of charge (without artists receiving royalties) that
organizations like the RIAA are mad and suing.



These P2P scam sites are merely taking your money, downloading a little spyware to
your PC, then connecting you to one of the real P2P file sharing programs.



This is all convoluted by the nature of P2P, which is a series of servers networking
files to one another. Unless you’re buying your music MP3 downloads from a
legitimate company, either per song/album or through a monthly subscription, you
cannot be sure where your music is coming from.



The legal status of P2P file sharing programs is confusing. We know that MP3 files
themselves are not illegal. For example, it’s legal to possess MP3s, to rip your CDs
to your hard drive, and to burn CDs for your personal use. But, by sharing and/or
downloading these files, you are breaking copyright laws. To my knowledge, P2P
scam sites are not actually breaking any laws. But why pay for something you don’t
have to?



One of the most common techniques these scam artists use is to set up sites that
are misspellings or derivations of popular P2P file sharing programs. KaZaA is
probably the most hijacked name being used these days.



Other sites may not actually charge you anything at all, but they’ll “give you the
software for free” if you give them your email address. This too is a scam.
Because once again, they’re just sending you along to a proper P2P program, but
after collecting your email address, they’re selling it to third parties. Don’t give
these scammers any of your personal information!



If you’re on a website you trust, even this website, you may see ads by these scam
artists, preaching their lies about 100% blah, blah, blah. For your own security, don’t
click on the links. They’re still scams. (Many independent websites rely on ads to
pay the bills. We don’t always have full control over what advertisements appear on
our sites. Keep in mind that most online advertisements are arranged and
distributed by third-party companies who pair up advertisements with appropriate
keywords. So a page that discusses “music downloads” is likely to have an ad from a
scam site singing their own false praises.)



On this note, there are sites all over the Internet that actually promote P2P
scam sites. Why? I have my opinions. First, these scam sites are paying large sums
of money to affiliates who promote their sites. For example, a scam site may be
charging you $29.95 for their non-service. Well, they’re paying affiliates over half
(I’ve seen the pay-out as high as 75%) of that just for getting you, the visitor, to
their scam sites.

I Think I’ve Used One of these Scam Sites. What Do I Do Now?

Stop! Right now, stop using that service. If you’ve got some type of monthly
payment with them, stop paying them. Cancel your “membership,” contact your
bank or credit card company, and stop paying them immediately! Secondly, your
computer has probably have been infected by spyware, and you need to remove it
right away. I recommend purchasing spyware-removal software like Pest Patrol
because they do the best job at clearing out spyware parasites.



If you’ve been pulled into a scam site, just rack it up to experience. Their ad copy is
very convincing, and you just wanted to “be legal” while downloading. Take heart in
knowing that you’re not alone. But you’re better off now, with this information at
your disposal.



In my opinion, this is another reason to consider not using P2P file sharing
programs as a means to get your online music. I think that these P2P scam sites will
increase in number, and will use more clever tactics to get your money and your
information. Until the peer-to-peer communities are regulated in some way, I fear
that these types of activities will get worse before they improve.

A former financial advisor and NYC book editor, Bill Paulk blends these two
experiences by helping people make sound buying decisions. His passion, building
digital music collections through MP3 downloads, is the subject of his first website.
http://www.mp3-music-downloads-scout.com reviews and recommends the best in
legal MP3 downloads.

Most people choose an upright piano as a necessary evil. If they had the money, they would probably get a grand or baby grand piano.

But there are many benefits to owning an upright piano. Economy, lower prices, and decent sound are all factors to consider when purchasing an instrument. In this respect the upright piano wins hands down. You can place it flat against a wall. It saves space and adds it’s own special ambiance to a room. In fact, upright pianos are beautiful pieces of furniture in their own right!

What about sound? An upright pianos sound comes from the back of the piano. Most uprights have lids that allow the sound to come out and bounce off the walls giving a more expansive acoustic quality. It’s a fact that some very good uprights sound as good or better than their baby-grand counterparts! Key action these days is computerized and set at the factory for optimal response. While the touch and feel may never equal a grand piano, the needs of most players do not require concert pianist key action.

They’re excellent instruments to learn on. Why spend thousands of dollars on an expensive piano when an upright will serve your needs? You get a real acoustic instrument that will supply you with years of satisfaction. And when or if you want to sell it, the upright pianos of today have a high resale value. They’re traded in and sold all the time on ebay and through newspaper classifieds.

Overall, upright pianos are a fantastic bargain if you’re looking for an instrument that gives you a real acoustic performance at a low price.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music’s online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

“Turn it down!”

How often have you heard that command in your musical lifetime? It’s a plain fact that old people just don’t like loud music. They should all be taken to soundproofed old people’s homes where they can live out the remainder of their lives complaining about each other, and let us get on with some fun.

OK, exaggerating a little. The real fact is that unless a live music venue is out in the desert somewhere, it is likely to annoy people if the music is too loud and goes on too long. That’s one reason why entertainment venues in most jurisdictions have to be licensed. If a venue causes annoyance and raises complaints, then the licence gets withdrawn. Suddenly the proprietor doesn’t have a business any more.

So the venue owner or manager needs a way to control the volume of sound produced by musical acts, including both bands and DJs. Standing by the mixing console or amplifier rack isn’t seen as a good option, and telling the performers to turn it down only works for about five minutes before they turn it up again.

So the only solution is to apply the ultimate sanction - cut the power. That gets the job done.

The problem with this is that cutting the power causes an immense amount of ill feeling. Would you play in a venue where the manager had cut the power on you?

So an intermediary is needed; an automatic intermediary that will give the band a warning, then cut the power if that warning is ignored. The performers won’t like it, but if they know that the system is installed and how it operates, then at least they know the rules they have to abide by.

One such system is the Castle Electronic Orange. The ‘orange’ is an orange globe that illuminates when the sound is too loud. This is pointed out to the performers before the gig by the venue manager. If it comes on during the performance, then that is a warning. If it stays on for more than a predetermined time interval, usually a few seconds, …

It cuts power to the stage.

This might seem like a drastic action, and it is. But it certainly gets the job done. For the DJ it isn’t too bad as he or she can set the level to the maximum that the Electronic Orange will let them get away with.

For a band it is more tricky. Chances are that the loudest parts of the performance are where the lead singer is singing together with backing vocals. When no-one is singing, the level will be much less.

So the light flickers on and off during the performance. The eyes of the band become fixated on the dreaded light. Every time it comes on, they back off from the microphones until it goes off again. If the sound mixer is on the ball, he will take care of this with the master output fader. But his attention is on the light and not on the band.

The result is an uncomfortable evening for the band, and a lackluster performance. Maybe the Electronic Orange gets the job done. But there is a cost for both band and audience, and for the venue owner because his customers are not as happy as they really should have been.

Probably this is something we will just have to put up with until quiet music comes back into fashion.

David Mellor, Record-Producer.com

Tomorrow’s MP3 digital music - will it be small with tons of storage, larger with a video screen, or non-existent and end up in a cellphone.

Changes in the market will likely split into all three markets the way as stated in the title above. Most of it really depends on the Americans and Europeans and which continent will be more aggressive in marketing. Basically Europeans tend to like their gadgets in one source. But Americans seem to have more than one gizmo on them. Music players probably will not get much smaller because they are at the limit of there usability.

Future of digital music

Flash memory players may eventually not be able to keep up with the hard drive mp3 players due to manufacturers working on potentially offering more storage where 5 to 10 gigabit players will become available on the hard drive end. Going forward, they could be all about video and image playback just like they are now all about music. This will not move forward until manufactures and software companies are convinced their copyright is secure since being such a new area in music development.

Future music around the house

More music digital video will eventually change music listening at home. Manufactures are constantly creating devices to take music from a computer and have it play hi fi digital music on your home stereo. There are a few wireless systems currently available on the market, like the wireless music centre from Phillips, the Sonos digital music system, or Microsoft’s media center extender. Apple also has it own product called airport express. All of these can stream wireless music around your home.

Okay, y’all…remember that old TV show called “Name That
Tune?”

Well, I couldn’t wait a full week to get this one out because,
not only is it so important, but it is, in fact, vital and can get you involved *very* quickly in a lawsuit, which could be
financially devastating to your career.

Plus, as I would have normally published this article on this
coming Friday, I am otherwise headed to Houston this weekend
to record my new single titled, “Vampire Love.”

But, getting back to the main point, if you have become a
successful independent band, and just happen to have the
same name as a band that had the name before you, you can
be legally forced to pay back all those royalties and sales
profits, in addition to an incredible amount of damages. This
little pleasant process is known as a lawsuit.

Okay, Kenny, what are you hammering about NOW?

I’m very glad you asked because there is an increasingly big
problem with successful bands being legally forced to change
their names because they were *lazy* and did not bother
to thoroughly check to see if another band had the name first.
They have become victims of the “It can’t happen to us”
theory. In fact, not only can it happen to you, if you become
successful, it *will* happen to you.

That’s right…if you have managed to assess a small fortune
in royalties, and have not conducted a trademark search on
your band’s name, look out! Because, the chances are great
that a less than successful band is waiting on you, figuratively speaking, just around the corner. And, all this less than successful band has to do in order to turn your day trading into a nightmare, is simply prove that it had the name before you.

And, if you happen to reside in the Third Ward district of one
of my beloved hometowns (Houston, Texas) and, particularly,
near McGowen or Scott streets, one of these bands could be
waiting on you, literally, and usually after dark wielding a
Lone Star-studded machete.

But, I’m not here to discuss geography…I am here, however,
to discuss topography…and, specifically, the topography of
your music career.

Several years ago, during one of my stints as a broadcast radio
host, my then business partner and I were considering starting
a record label, and were interviewing a very nice vocal group
whose music we had been playing on our station, for our label’s
first signing.

However, the group’s name (perhaps as hindsight) simply
seemed like a name that might already be in existence. Lo and
behold, after searching the ‘Net, I discovered a similar group
with the same name, that had been in existence much longer,
as well as had a couple of releases out.

The group that we were considering signing has now folded
because they were so distraught and were so in love with the
name, and simply could not move on to another. I guess that’s
why they call it the Blues.

Now, I’m betting that, as a result of reading this, a good
number of you who are in bands will find tonight’s sleep a bit of a disconcerting effort, and for that I am truly sorry. But, it is my civic and patriotic duty to be the bearer of bad news if it helps protect your career.

Ever heard the phrase, “This is going to hurt me a lot more than it’s going to hurt you?” Well, this ain’t one of them times.

At the very least, if a trademark search is not within your
budget at the moment (around $300-$400), at least, register
your name at BandName.com or BandRegister.com.

And, much success to your getting “legalized.”

Note: To see how far the lack of proper registration of your
band’s name can escalate, take a look at some popular name
artists who found out the hard way, so to speak, and whom
you may recognize below.
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Black Sabbath - they were originally a cover band called
EARTH. The band saw Boris Karloff’s 1963 horror movie “Black
Sabbath” one night and were inspired to call their first original song “Black Sabbath.” They found out at a gig that there was another band called “Earth,” so they changed their name to BLACK SABBATH.

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Blink-182 - They were originally called BLINK, but were forced
to change their name because a techno band from Ireland was
already called that. 182 doesn’t actually mean anything. The
band has helped start rumors about 182 like: Al Pacino said
“f–k” 182 times in Scarface, Al Pacino said “f–k” 182 times in “The Godfather”, etc.

____________________________________________________

Testament is a North American thrash metal music group from
California. Being one of the most influential American thrash
metal bands, while recording their first album, the band was
forced to change its name to Testament because another band
held a copyright to the name, “The Legacy.”
____________________________________________________

Kenny Love is president of MuBiz.com, a radio promotion, media publicity and multi-service firm for independent musicians andd recording artists. Get more extensive details at Kenny’s MySpace.com page.

If your band is in rehearsals, either preparing for gigging, or practising new songs to add to your repertoire, the chances are you will have to hire a rehearsal room. The costs of hiring a room can soon mount up if you don’t organise your time effectively. You could be wasting time and money going around in circles, with a growing frustration that your band doesn’t seem to be making any progress.

The answer is to set a Schedule for your rehearsals. Without a schedule it’s difficult to monitor progress if in fact any is made. Disorganised rehearsals can soon turn into chaos, with everyone throwing in ideas and playing different things at the same time. The rehearsal is not the time for your guitarist to hone his right hand tapping skills, or your drummer to perfect his lightning fast paradiddles, it is valuable time for working together as a band, and should be used as such. Band members should have their own private schedules for practising instruments and learning new techniques. During a rehearsal you should all be working towards the same goal and making each other sound as good as possible. The rehearsal should never turn into a ‘who can play the loudest’ competition.

What should your schedule consist of?

Set goals for your rehearsal times and WRITE THEM DOWN! You should know which songs you are going to rehearse in advance. If you have planned your strategy, you will avoid getting stuck in a rut and your time will be used constructively. Songs you already know can be perfected and the little nuances worked on, stamping your own identity on cover songs and putting the finishing touches to originals.

You should make a list of ‘finished’ songs, ‘work in progress’ songs, and ‘new ideas’. As each one progresses, move it up into the next category, thereby revising the schedule for your next rehearsal.

I would suggest starting with 2 or 3 songs you are happy and comfortable with, simply to give the band a positive vibe to build on, and then start work on new numbers. Set aside a certain amount of time for each song, and then move on! Don’t waste time trying to perfect something that just isn’t working, you can come back to it later or at the next rehearsal. Perfect the numbers that do work, and you will see positive results as your repertoire builds up considerably.

Always take regular breaks. Coming back to a number that wasn’t going too well with fresh ears can often be all it needs to make a distinct improvement. If that doesn’t help, there’s no point in flogging a dead horse, so move it to the bottom of the list or consider dropping the song altogether and concentrating on another one.

Work on band dynamics and expression, i.e. fast, slow, loud, and quiet. Get your fills as tight and as fluent as possible. What you are working on is that elusive ‘feel’ that is the hallmark of a good band. Everybody should not only be playing his/her own instrument, but also actively listening to the rest of the band.

Tape your rehearsal. You don’t need any fancy recording equipment - a simple tape deck and mic will be sufficient. The idea is simply for the band to be able to listen to their efforts afterwards. Listening to a song while you’re not playing means you can listen more subjectively and discuss the merits. Take notes while you listen, that way you are already forming the schedule for the next rehearsal.

And finally, remember; you are in a band! As such, the sum of the parts should be greater than the individual contribution.