As you can see, I've attempted to make some posts from my mobile device. It hasn't worked as well as I hoped. It says I should be able to post pictures, which I really want to do, but those haven't worked at all. I'll get some pictures on here soon.
We've been on the road quite a bit the last several weeks. Each week just kinda feels like the last one, and something that happened during the previous day or two feels like it was a long time ago. We've performed in several different places in the Northwest, including the states of Washington, California (northern), Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and of course Utah.
Right now I'm in Billings, Montana, playing 9 days straight at the Metra Park Montana Fair. The hotel has a couple computers in the lobby, so here I am posting on the blog about an hour before I go to work. I'm playing shows with a country group which you can check out at www.charleyjenkins.com. My job is background vocals, keys (piano, organ, etc.), and acoustic guitar.
The previous post I made from my cell phone got chopped into separate messages. Here it is pasted back together:
So far I've earned over $3,000 being in a band this summer, with over $2,000 more coming soon. So, going back to my original question at the beginning of Capstone 1 "Can I make money being in a band in Utah?" The answer is yes, of course. I'm not making a living at it but it's a start, right?
Friday, August 19, 2011
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Saturday, April 9, 2011
No Audio Support
since blogger has no way of just posting audio files, here is a video of me playing a link of one of our demos. awesome, right?
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Demos and some recording work
Click on the Prince of Whales facebook page link. It is
<------------------------ right over there on the left side of the blog.
You'll have to scroll down a bit but there are five links to audio recordings. Three are acoustic demos that haven't been realized in a full band setting. Two of them are recordings we have all done some work on and are focusing effort toward getting them to sound the way we want.
Our show yesterday night was very fun. It was nice to play for a good cause.
Alex
<------------------------ right over there on the left side of the blog.
You'll have to scroll down a bit but there are five links to audio recordings. Three are acoustic demos that haven't been realized in a full band setting. Two of them are recordings we have all done some work on and are focusing effort toward getting them to sound the way we want.
Our show yesterday night was very fun. It was nice to play for a good cause.
Alex
Sunday, March 27, 2011
The Postal Service
Citing a music group called The Postal Service as a recent reference (although there are others who have done this I'm sure), we are planning now to implement a sort of "assembly line" method of recording songs. We each have accessible, compatible recording equipment at our homes and will send recorded files to one another. This will allow each of us the opportunity to add parts to the song without needing everyone to be at one place or even at a particular time. Since we have a show this Friday evening at Velour Live Music Gallery in Provo, our main focus this week will be preparing for the show, but I'm excited to report on how the assembly line starts.
Alex
Alex
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Yes I Can...
I remember when we first got up in front of the class to briefly describe what we wanted to do for our thesis. My first question was "Can I make money being in a band in this area?" Yes I can. I auditioned for, and have officially been invited to perform with country singer Charley Jenkins. From what I can tell, this is one of the better paying gigs in Utah. I'll be playing keyboard, guitar, and singing harmony vocals. check it out at www.charleyjenkins.com
The next Prince of Whales show is a benefit to help International Action and Help International raise funds for Haiti and Uganda. April 1st (no that's not a joke) at Velour Live Music Gallery in Provo. An easy way to experience great live music and help a great cause! You can see the scheduled date on the Velour Show Calendar
Advisors update: in English, Dr. Boyd Petersen; music advisor will be confirmed after spring break.
Alex
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Securing Advisors
Now I have an advisor and another one pending. So far that has turned out easier than I thought it would be. It seems like advisors will be a great avenue for ideas, suggestions, follow-up and accountability, all of which I like.
I have been spending more time this week listening closely to recordings with the purpose of deciphering what techniques are being used to get certain sounds and how those sounds create the "right" feel on a song. While developing a vision for how the album will be represented, studying this way will make it much less of a struggle to get the sound we want in the studio as well as for live performances.
A performance is slated during the beginning of April. I'll post the date when I know it's firm.
Alex
I have been spending more time this week listening closely to recordings with the purpose of deciphering what techniques are being used to get certain sounds and how those sounds create the "right" feel on a song. While developing a vision for how the album will be represented, studying this way will make it much less of a struggle to get the sound we want in the studio as well as for live performances.
A performance is slated during the beginning of April. I'll post the date when I know it's firm.
Alex
Saturday, March 5, 2011
End Goal and Why?
The end goal is to create a finished, marketable product: an album consisting of 10-12 recorded songs.
Right now we are mostly in the idea phase. An initial track is being recorded, along with a couple of other tracks that have been started. Having a few recordings will give us a better feel for what direction we want the sound to go. So what will move us significantly toward the realization phase? Finding the "personality" that dwells within a concept and implementing it in the recording process, giving the record both a distinct creative purpose and a unique image, while keeping some reasonable guidelines to make sure the end result is marketable.
Maintaining consistency between image, sound, and personality might be challenging, but with a little patience and some common sense it shouldn't be too difficult.
Throughout the grouping process I will be drawing from the collective past experiences of everyone in the band. Each of us has different influences or sources, if you will, that shape our understanding of this process. Listing every single one is impossible, of course, but here are a few relatively recent (since the electric guitar came into prominence anyway) well-known musicians/groups that for some reason or another (not just the music) I have paid closer attention to: Buddy Holly, Nat "King" Cole, the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Boston, Queen, Smashing Pumpkins, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, more recently Taylor Swift, and the Killers.
I have spent significant time (years) studying, analyzing, and performing works by many "classical" composers such as Bach, Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, and Chopin. I have also studied works that are much less "classical" such as those created by John Cage.
Sometimes I come across a source in the form of a book, as is the case with Victor Wooten's The Music Lesson. It does a good job of summarizing (in less than 300 pages) my reasons for doing music, my reasons for changing college majors multiple times for a field that is notoriously less dependable than just about any other. Besides the fact (yes, this is an absolute) that part of me literally dies without Music, here is a quote from The Music Lesson that helps explain why I keep motivated: (This is the author's mentor talking)
"Now, listen to what I am about to tell you: Musicians do not have to be believed in. We do not have to be trusted. Our Music speaks for itself without the listener having to know anything about us. Music touches people's emotions in a way that nothing else can. When people find a musician they like, they are usually fans for Life. If they like the musician and his Music, they will open up their hearts to whatever that musician has to say. It matters not what country the musician or the fan comes from. Music is a language that all understand. It goes beyond and breaks down barriers. This makes the musician very powerful, and with power comes responsibility." (103)
I have always believed this about Music. That's why my end goal for this thesis even feels worthwhile at all.
Right now we are mostly in the idea phase. An initial track is being recorded, along with a couple of other tracks that have been started. Having a few recordings will give us a better feel for what direction we want the sound to go. So what will move us significantly toward the realization phase? Finding the "personality" that dwells within a concept and implementing it in the recording process, giving the record both a distinct creative purpose and a unique image, while keeping some reasonable guidelines to make sure the end result is marketable.
Maintaining consistency between image, sound, and personality might be challenging, but with a little patience and some common sense it shouldn't be too difficult.
Throughout the grouping process I will be drawing from the collective past experiences of everyone in the band. Each of us has different influences or sources, if you will, that shape our understanding of this process. Listing every single one is impossible, of course, but here are a few relatively recent (since the electric guitar came into prominence anyway) well-known musicians/groups that for some reason or another (not just the music) I have paid closer attention to: Buddy Holly, Nat "King" Cole, the Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Boston, Queen, Smashing Pumpkins, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, more recently Taylor Swift, and the Killers.
I have spent significant time (years) studying, analyzing, and performing works by many "classical" composers such as Bach, Mozart, Haydn, Beethoven, and Chopin. I have also studied works that are much less "classical" such as those created by John Cage.
Sometimes I come across a source in the form of a book, as is the case with Victor Wooten's The Music Lesson. It does a good job of summarizing (in less than 300 pages) my reasons for doing music, my reasons for changing college majors multiple times for a field that is notoriously less dependable than just about any other. Besides the fact (yes, this is an absolute) that part of me literally dies without Music, here is a quote from The Music Lesson that helps explain why I keep motivated: (This is the author's mentor talking)
"Now, listen to what I am about to tell you: Musicians do not have to be believed in. We do not have to be trusted. Our Music speaks for itself without the listener having to know anything about us. Music touches people's emotions in a way that nothing else can. When people find a musician they like, they are usually fans for Life. If they like the musician and his Music, they will open up their hearts to whatever that musician has to say. It matters not what country the musician or the fan comes from. Music is a language that all understand. It goes beyond and breaks down barriers. This makes the musician very powerful, and with power comes responsibility." (103)
I have always believed this about Music. That's why my end goal for this thesis even feels worthwhile at all.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Putting Things in Perspective
This week's video blog, which I am now calling "the whale blog".
Although not directly related to Prince of Whales, I received a call today from a performer who was in the finals of a well-known American music competition television show. I'll audition within the next few weeks or so. At this point it would be silly to give more details but I'll let you know how it goes :)
Alex
Saturday, February 19, 2011
To start, here is a video of me exposing some of what I call the "abstract musical development process". During the process I take some ideas I have started within the last day or two. I try to provide just a small bit of structure as I go, while poking around in different directions to see what happens. As this particular instance is not focused (it's abstract) on a particular piece of music, the result is something that doesn't necessarily go anywhere (it doesn't have to), which may or may not contribute to a more focused musical project.
I'll aim at getting some videos of Prince of Whales material on here soon.
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