How to Sell Classical Music? Give it Away!
The economy is soft, New York is always a competitive market for culture and entertainment, and classical music is not exactly the first choice of many younger audiences. Veteran presenters Jacqueline Taylor and Omus Hirshbein decided on a bold approach to drawing in new audiences under these tough circumstances. Their "Free for All at Town Hall" concert series is literally free for all. More...

Top 10 College Towns for Live Music
According to Rolling Stone magazine, the web hasn't changed EVERYthing when it comes to going to college. Although downloadable music is available everywhere, being able to experience good live music still counts. And that comes down to location, location, location.  More...

Czech Hockey Legend to be Honored with new... Opera!
In Boulder they burn couches in the streets when the home team wins. In Prague they draw on their classical European heritage and burst into song. And their national hockey team's surprising gold-medal win in the Nagano Olympics is still considered such an epic win that only epic song can do it justice.  More...

A Music Critic's Modest Proposal:
Listen to Music, not Walls & Ceilings
New York Times music critic Bernard Holland reflects on the aftermath of the recent opening of Philadelphia's new Kimmel Center, which included being asked "How did it sound?" over and over. The "it" people were interested in was the hall itself, while Holland sheepishly admits that he was listening to the music within. He suggests only somewhat facetiously that music critics be banned from reviewing acoustics. "It's none of their business."  More...


Integrating the Navy with Jazz:
The Great Lakes Experience, 1942-1945
The US military is often held up as a vanguard of racial equality and opportunity, but before 1948 segregation was the rule. Although President Truman ordered formal integration, his predecessor Franklin Roosevelt opened the door in 1942 -- by suggesting that the Navy create black bands to elevate the status of black Navy men.  More...

Othar Turner, Mississippi Fife Legend, 1907-2003
Othar Turner was older than the blues when he died, and so was the musical tradition he carried with him. Turner played a cane fife cut from reeds growing on his farm, and his band was the last survivor of a form of music that merged sounds of a Civil War military band with African rhythms and pentatonic scales.  More...

Canada’s Harry Manx - B.B.King meets Vishwa Bhatt
Harry Manx is one of the few musicians who can literally claim to be a "world music" man - born on Britain's Isle of Man and raised in Canada, having lived the life of an itinerant musician in both Europe (ho-hum) and Japan (Whoa!), Manx found his ultimate voice after years of study in India with the legendary slide guitarist Vishwa Mohan Bhatt.  More...


Digital Watermarks Hide Data, Identities inside Songs
The same technology that may someday reduce illegal copying of music may also deliver extra content and features, such as pictures and liner notes. And these tough, new digital watermarks are really built-in, able to persist through analog re-recording -- and even to survive the degradation of being broadcast over the radio.  More...

Resonance makes Earthquakes Rock ‘n’ Roll
Singing in an echo-y room can lead to a beautiful sound, if you hit the precise frequency at which the room itself resonates. But if an earthquake is doing the singing, being in tune with nearby soil and buildings can be disastrous.  More...

AI vs A&R? New Computer Algorithm Picks the Hits
Many of us imagine we can identify talent better than the labels' "Artist & Repertoire" (A&R) staff. Recently a company tried using artificial intelligence (AI) and announced it could reliably predict the success of recordings.  More...

Wall Street’s Bulls & Bears get Plucked
When the stock market goes through convulsive shocks, some scientists see earthquakes in the charts of erratic price swings. Others, like Hebrew University's Lev Muchnik and Sorin Solomon, hear the sound of a muffled guitar.  More...



GPI (Guitar Price Index) beats the Dow
The real "blue chips" these days come in cherry red and sunburst: pre-1965 Les Pauls, Stratocasters, and Telecasters are vintage electric guitar models that have skyrocketed in value. Some more recent instruments of distinction are also making Wall Street look like Tobacco Road.  More...

Beethoven Heeds Call, Rolls Over
Has the great composer summoned, from beyond the grave, a new press agent? Beethoven has gotten more press lately than Madonna, and better press at that: a new book, an auction jaw-dropper, and even a starring role in the European Union.  More...

Tribute to Alan Lomax, Field Music Collector
Alan Lomax made a career out of helping our cultural memory. He traveled the back roads to find and record folk music, to capture it for all time -- and to find an audience to celebrate it. At an April conference, it was his turned to be remembered and his life's work celebrated.  More...



Harp Guitars make Heavenly Return
If you're feeling a little old-fashioned playing your French theorbo or Italion chittarone, try updating to the harp guitar.  More...

The Bells Ring Digitally True
Is it live, or is it "Select-a-Season"? When Verdin comes to your block, you could be getting a cast bronze bell that outweighs an elephant... or a clever digital facsimile.  More...



WAMU Streams ‘High Lonesome Sound’ to the Faithful
The March 2003 issue of business magazine Fast Company recognized a public radio station for keeping the bluegrass flowing. American University's WAMU appeared in the 2nd annual "Fast 50" list -- along with the organizations promoting democracy, sustainable agriculture, AIDS awareness and solar-powered hearing aids -- under the heading, "These leaders made the right moves by doing the right thing."  More...

The New World of ‘Legal Bootleg’ Concert Recordings
In an age when the movie industry is starting to send anti-piracy enforcers with night-vision goggles into movie theaters, to locate people who are making unauthorized recording, some parts of the music industry are still thriving on the power of the passed-on tape. New technologies are making it easier to make -- and share -- "bootleg" recordings, and some bands and their fans couldn't be happier.  More...



Harvard Professor Tries to Unravel Music’s Mystery
Where exactly are you when you're "lost in the music"? Music professor Christopher Hasty wants to find out.  More...

100 Best Communities for Music Education - 2003 Results Announced_
The American Music Conference (AMC), a non-profit group dedicated to promoting music education and appreciation, has just released its 2003 list of the Top 100 school systems for music education.  More...