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Happy Birthday Sir Roger!
Yesterday saw the Orchestra travel from Boston to New York for that evening’s concert at Lincoln Center – and it was also Sir Roger Norrington’s Birthday. At the Boston concert he was presented with this very appropriate T Shirt (we were playing the music of CPE Bach) which he proudly wore on the coach down to New York. A full report on the tour to follow soon, and if you’re in New York you can still catch the OAE when we combine with the London Sinfonietta tomorrow for a performance of Heiner Goebbel’s Songs of Wars I Have Seen tomorrow evening (18 March).
HOW TO GET YOUR JAM ON WHILE TRAVELING
HITTIN’ THE ROAD
I recently went out of town for work for a month. My first concern, before wondering about sleeping conditions and food opportunities, was how to keep up with playing, primarily with respect to the new songs I had to learn for my band. I was hauling a lot of gear for my job, so whatever I brought had to be compact, easily transportable, and rugged in order to survive any mishaps. Furthermore, I needed a way to hear my guitar and be able to play along with the songs I needed to learn.
TRAVEL GUITARS
I had two travel guitars prior to this journey. My Baby Taylor is perfect for taking to the park, the beach, or even plunking on at home on the couch. When acoustic is the flavor of choice, it’s compact enough and resides in a nicely padded gig bag that’s ideal for travel, but it didn’t meet my needs for this trip. Though durable for an acoustic, I didn’t want to subject it to being knocked around. I was going to be spending a lot of time in airports and on buses and wanted something that wouldn’t disturb others. Finally, learning the solo to ‘Flirtin’ With Disaster’ just wouldn’t have cut it on any acoustic.
My Aria Sinsonido is super compact and also comes in a nicely padded gig bag. It’s been all over the world with me, proving itself as road-worthy time after time. The headphone output meant I’d be able to play anywhere, anytime, without drawing attention. But it’s a steel string model – not so friendly to high register pitch bends and other electric-style gymnastics.
My neighbor had an electric-style guitar from Traveler Guitars that he really enjoyed so I got in touch with them and told them of my plans. They sent over the very appropriate EG-2: full-scale neck, compact and solid, yet small framed and short in length with the tuners built into the body, and both standard 1/4″ guitar and 1/8″ headphone jacks. Add to that a well padded gig bag with extra pockets and carrying handles and straps. Guitar – check.
PLAY THAT FUNKY MUSIC, WHITE BOY!
My next challenge was figuring out how to play the song list for my band and jam with it at the same time. I had all the songs on my trusty iPod Touch, but had no way of looping sections for practice. I was also figuring out how to listen to the songs while playing along at equal volume. IK Multimedia’s Amplitube app and iRig interface to the rescue! Uploading the songs to the app, I was able to loop sections and adjust playback speed. With the iRig, my guitar interfaced perfectly with the app, allowing me to set playback and guitar levels, dial in killer tones through the amp modeling, and further shape my sound through pedal effects. With the inclusion of the built-in tuner and metronome, I had the perfect all-in-one practice solution on a pocket-sized device. This setup was just what I needed and served me well, but when I was holed up in my hotel room, I wanted to break free of the headphones and extra cabling and rock out in the open (as much as rocking out in a hotel room will allow).
THIS ONE GOES TO 11! (but won’t disturb the neighbors)
I took a quick trip to Guitar Center (they’re everywhere!) and scoped out the micro amps. There was good variety and I tried every one, excitedly settling on a Danelectro HoneyTone. It had the best sound of all the amps, it was perfect in size (easily tossed into a backpack) and power (quiet enough to rock and not get kicked out of the hotel, to loud enough to rock and get kicked out of the hotel), and looked damn cool. Done!
I had my Mac laptop with me. One of my favorite practice tools is software by Roni Music called ‘Amazing Slow Downer’. Similar to Amplitube, it allows looping sections of music and adjusting playback speed, but also includes equalization, mix control, saving loop presets, and more. I initially balked at the $50 price tag, but it has become one of the best purchases I’ve made and I use it on a daily basis.
With the songs playing through my laptop’s speakers, and my EG-2 through the HoneyTone, I wailed to my heart’s content. The laptop, guitar, and micro amp were enough, but incorporating Amplitube into the mix really made for a fun time as I ran the guitar into the iRig, through the app’s amp modeling and pedal effects, and out to the HoneyTone. Now I was cookin’!
GO FORTH INTREPID TRAVELER!
With all the great, innovative, travel-friendly products on the market, there is no longer concern as to how to keep up with your six-string while on the road. With the gear mentioned above, I had everything I needed for full-on practicing and jamming: one small, compact padded gig bag for the guitar, and one laptop bag which easily held my computer, iPod Touch, HoneyTone, cables, picks, guitar magazines…
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Dan Coplan is senior staff writer at SMG. Dan is a Los Angeles based cinematographer and self-admitting guitar junkie. Email: dancoplan@sharemyguitar.com
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Baroque. Contrasted. Staff picks
On 6 April our next mini-festival at Kings Place, Baroque. Contrasted. kicks off with 5 days of concerts, talks, demonstrations and even singing-along showcasing the depth and variety of Baroque Music. We asked around the office to see what people here are most looking forward to:
I’m really looking forward to Steven Devine’s Sing Baroque event on 9 April. It’s been a while since I’ve been able to stretch my vocal chords and being able to sing choruses from the beautiful Dido & Aeneas is a pretty decent way to spend a Saturday lunchtime 
Natasha Stehr, Marketing and Press Officer
It’s hard to chose, because there’s lots of fab music. I’m going to chose two events. First, Baroque Strings on 7 April, because it includes Vivaldi’s La Folia variations. It’s what the German’s call an ‘earworm’ – i.e. a tune you can’t get out of your head which just goes round and round on repeat…My second pick would be Sunday’s coffee concert. Not only is it just really lovely to start your Sunday with a coffee and great music, but it’s always fantastic seeing the students on our Apprenticeship scheme play. Plus the concert includes Purcell’s Abdelazar, which reminds me of playing it in my school orchestra – though I suspect this performance will be considerably better…
William Norris, Communications Director
The Sing Baroque event, because the OAE hasn’t done anything quite like this before and it will be a great opportunity to learn to sing some Purcell in an authentically OAE way from Steven Devine. I’d also like to prove to my colleagues in the office that the regular singing (or more like wailing) that I do on a regular basis in the office is merely scratching the surface of my raw talent…
Ceri Jones, Projects Officer
Having had a sneak preview of the concert on Friday 8 April at 6.45pm (The Sprightly Hautboy and the Soft Complaining Flute) when it was performed at the Garrick Club in February, I can speak from experience when I say that this event will be entertaining and illuminating. I was captivated by this repertoire, both familiar and less-familiar, and look forward to hearing these fabulous instruments being brought to life again (by the equally fabulous players) in this spring concert at Kings Place.
Stephen Carpenter, Chief Executive
You can view our online brochure for the festival here, or if you feel motivated to book you can do that here
SMG CONTEST: WIN A CLASSIC VIBE JAZZ BASS® ’60s with HYPER-MOD!
WIN A CLASSIC VIBE 60s JAZZ BASS!
Are you familiar with a company called AweSome Musical Instruments? They make an assortment of killer products to mod your favorite guitars and basses and in particular, I am very fond of this AMAZING controls mod for the Fender Jazz bass called the JCP-T2 Pickup Tone Multiplier Board Hyper-Mod that they gave us to review! We just reviewed the mod and installed it on a brand spankin’ new Olympic White Fender Classic 60′s Vibe Jazz Bass and it ROCKS!!! Now that the review is complete, it can be all yours. You can enter our contest to WIN IT!
If you’re interested in reading the review you can CHECK IT OUT HERE.
Please by forewarned, this bass BLEW OUR MINDS! The Fender Vibe is truly an unbelievable bass for the price and the controls mod actually DOUBLES THE ANALOG TONES that you would get with the stock setup. We are giving this modded bass away to one random person. Enter now for your chance to score this BAD ASS bass package, which includes a brand new Olympic White Fender Classic Vibe 60s Jazz Bass, an AweSome Musical Instruments’ Jazz Hyper-Mod (pre-installed) and a brand new Road Runner soft case. ENTER HERE!
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OAE Released: Cover art
Through the history of recorded music the cover artwork on a CD or LP has always been an important part of the finished product, and in the pop world in particular, there are have been some truly legendary and iconic designs – just think of Abbey Road, The Dark Side of the Moon, Sgt. Pepper and Nirvana’s Nevermind. The fact I don’t feel a need to post pictures of these to remind readers is a testament to the way their cover art has entered the popular conciousness.
It has to be said though that classical music hasn’t done so well with its cover art (though do feel free to tell us about any of your favourite covers) and it’s probably easier to find some really bad cover art than anything really distinctive. There are some exceptions of course (two of my favourites being the Virgin Ultraviolet range and Decca’s Argo line, both now out of print, and some more in this blog article) but they are the exception and not the rule.
So when we came to produce the first CD on our OAE Released label we wanted to think long and hard about the artwork. We tasked the designers, Harrison and Co, with coming up with something that would be very ‘OAE’ – distinctive, different, something that would stand out from other CDs and tie in with the Orchestra’s values. Importantly the artwork would need to be a distinctive series – so that while each CD would look different they should also be recognisably from the same stable.
The designers came back with a range of options and there were two frontrunners for us, but we ultimately went with an alphabet theme…in the video below designer Chris talks through the different options he came up with, including the one we eventually picked.
The first CD on OAE Released, Monteverdi’s 1610 Vespers is out now and can be bought through our website.
William Norris, Communications Director
OAE office playlist March 2011
As it’s Friday afternoon, and the office are making the final preparations to next week’s US tour, we thought you might want to know what music was keeping us going!
- Wolf and I by Oh Land
- What Became Of The Likely Lads by The Libertines
- Hound Dog as sung by Big Mama Thornton
- Forget You by Cee Lo Green
- Sospiri, Op. 70 by Elgar
- Fire by Kasabian
- I’ll Forget You by Lior
- Fire with Fire by Scissor Sisters
- Heartbeats by The Knife
- Symphony No. 9, Movement 2 by Schubert
- Don’t Talk To Me About Love by Altered Images
- Band On The Run by Foo Fighters
- Going Underground by The Jam
- Footloose by Kenny Loggins
You can listen to the whole playlist on Spotify here: OAE office playlist March 2011
My last day at OAE…already!
For the last four weeks I’ve been in the OAE office working as the Communications 
Intern – and those four weeks have flown by! I’ve had a great time, mainly working in the Communications department, but I’ve tried to get an experience of how the orchestra works by going to as many events and meetings as possible.
The highlight of the four weeks for me was definitely the CPE Bach concert last Thursday, but everything about my time here has been enjoyable – especially meeting the players and members of the audience at events, but also the gossips over lunch, or a cheeky Nando’s, or the “PFA” (Projects Food Area – where all the biscuits and cake end up!)
I’ll be going back to Cardiff next week, as on Tuesday I go back to lectures for my Masters in Arts Management. However, I will be coming back up in May and June for the next Night Shifts – from what I’ve heard, they seem to be amazing events and I can’t wait to go to one, especially as I’m looking forward to having a boogie with some of the guys from the office – apparently, their dance moves are legendary.
I’ve learnt a lot about the orchestra, and about marketing in general, in my time here – but more importantly, I’ve had a fantastic time, made some wonderful friends, and gone to some amazing concerts for free!
David Hopkins, Communications Intern
Waste not, want not
As you know we’re currently very keen on being green here at the OAE. It’s even extended to our recent photoshoot, where we indulged in a bit of recycling.
One of the ideas for next season’s photoshoot was to use white cut outs of instruments as we thought the projections would work better on them than real instruments. Rob, from designers Harrison & Co, had spent a long time making some fantastic cut outs of all the possible instruments we would need. However, after a few test shots this idea was ditched and we decided to go with the real thing. The cut outs lay discarded and unloved in the corner…
However during a break between photographing players the designers Chris and Rob and photographer Eric had a bit of a play with the cut outs and with the aid of some nifty lighting and what looks like some fishing line they made some really interesting shots.
The pictures didn’t really fit into the theme of the brochure though, so for a while we thought they might just remain interesting curiosities, destined to live in some far flung corner of the OAE’s server. But then – we came to design a brochure for our week of events at Kings Place, Baroque. Contrasted. and realised the pictures would be perfect. The designers added some colour to the pictures and they look fantastic. Below is a selection of them, and if you’d like to see a virtual brochure with them in you’ll find it here.
William Norris, Communications Director
Inbox hell
Our Projects Manager, Megan, just wanted to share her inbox with you. This is what happens when you’re organising 3 overseas tours simultaneously. Each email here represents an individual itinerary for one of the tours. Megan is in remarkably good spirits considering…
