Karyokinesis, an original mallet quartet, composed by Aaron DeWayne Williams, for xylophone, vibraphone, and 2 marimbas. Aaron was a student of mine at CSULB. He is an amazing musician and tap dancer.
All video and audio recorded, edited, and mixed by Aaron DeWayne Williams.
“I firmly believe that music will someday become a “universal language.” But it will not become so as long as our musical vision is limited to the output of four European countries between 1700 and 1900. The first step in the right direction is to view the music of all peoples and periods without prejudice of any kind, and to strive to put the world’s known and available best music into circulation. Only then shall we be justified in calling music a “universal language.”
Percy Graniger (June 20, 1933)
Thanks to Chal Ragsdale for sharing this quote with me.
YouTube is an amazing resource for world music. Here’s a great example of some of the videos I have been watching lately. Amazing Balafon music from Africa. What have you been watching? Leave a comment below.
It is graduation time and all over the US, college and university students are walking down the aisle and moving on to grad schools, internships and other opportunities that are waiting for them. For some, this is also a time of uncertainty while they figure out the next step. Being a musician/artist is difficult. Not kind of difficult or even a little difficult, EXTREMELY DIFFICULT. I recently watched a video GaryVee posted on YouTube (What to do After College) where he talks about taking the next 5 years of your life to build your career path. It is all about the hustle! That means turn off Netflix/YouTube/SnapChat and make every minute count. Below are some other sources of inspiration. I hope you find them enriching as you grow and continue down your path. Good luck and please feel free to leave a comment if I can ever do anything for you. (more…)
Music students of the world: Your teachers spend more of their lives than you can imagine right now perfecting their crafts. They have studied their instruments and repertoire. They have spent hours in the practice room and performance halls. Then, they become YOUR teacher. They spend endless amounts of time teaching you, advising you, counseling you and more, all while continuing to work to still improve their own craft. They go to your rehearsals, your coachings, your concerts, your recitals and more to support you. Our teachers become some of the most important figures in our lives, and you, the students, become some of the most important figures in your teachers lives. (more…)
Skype Lessons with Dr. Gerhart