Music Tech Talk

I was looking around on forums trying to discover how one would backdate Posterous posts via email.  At first, I was unsuccessful.  It looked like I had to go in and manually change each post.  But then, I discovered that there is a “future post” feature that Posterous offers.  In fact here’s a link to it:  http://blog.posterous.com/new-feature-schedule-your-posts-for-the-futur

Well, the funny thing is that it never mentions you can also turn back time.  So I decided to give it a shot using the following format:  ((publish: on mm/dd/yyyy))

Guess, what it worked!  So, now I am simply copying & pasting from my Wordpress blog (Literally the actual published page) into Outlook 2010.  I copy the tags, pasting them into the subject line with the usual format:  ((tag: keyword))

NOTE:  For YouTube videos, I had to copy the YouTube video URL into the email to make it work.  I imagine a similar procedure will be necessary for other types of embedded content, but we’ll have to see.

Incidentally, you can do the same thing via the web posting option.  I’m not a big fan of that interface though. 

NOTE 2:  This will ONLY work posting to Posterous, NOT everywhere!  The other services made it the most current post…  And it was blank for that matter, on one of them!

I noticed that a lot of people have been trying to find the best email program for making Posterous posts.  While I have only used a handful of email programs such as Mozilla Thunderbird, Gmail, Yahoo, Outlook Express and Outlook (2010), there is one that has become my particular favorite for email posting…

Outlook is the clear winner for me.  There were always weird little things I had to do to ensure my post wouldn’t look strange with other programs.  With Outlook, I consistently get an acceptable post (no need to edit formatting) in multiple platforms.  Each platform will make things look a little different, but nothing really whacky for the most part.  One problem that I have not taken the time to overcome is getting post tags to appear properly in anything but Posterous.  When I’d include formatting for Wordpress, for example, that same formatting would then screw-up the Posterous post.  In the short-run, I have found it much easier to just login to my Wordpress accounts and paste in the tags (and quickly click on the appropriate categories, for that matter). 

So, just for fun, we’ll see how the following formatting posts (from Outlook):

plain

bold

italic

centered

left justified

right justified

RED GREEN BLUE

And here is an image (centered – 670x593 - PNG):

A link to my Posterous site:  http://musictechtalk.posterous.com/ (NOTE:  links will target the same page, unless you change them… Generally speaking.)

OK, that should be enough.  I’ll update the post in comments with any formatting changes that were necessary when I get the chance.  Good luck with your email posting!

Let the Contest begin.  For a while, I published my blog to as many as 15 different hosts to see which one’s I liked best.   Currently, I have narrowed it down to only 3 hosts to do a stats comparison:  Self-Hosted Word press, Wordpress.com and Posterous.  There are pluses and minuses to each platform, but stat-wise, there is a clear winner…  But before we get to that a few things:

First, the SH and Posterous accounts are tracked in Google Analytics.   Apparently, you can’t do that in the Wordpress.com account yet, so I’m stuck with the built-in version.  Second, an xml sitemap has been submitted for the Self-hosted WP account.  Third, I have excluded my own IP from the Analytics accounts and try not to visit the WP.com account unless logged-in.

I will track the stats for 30 days starting on the 6^th of January.  However, clearly Posterous is easily the current winner with approximately with the SH and WP.com accounts at a mere 9 & 12% of the hits generated by Posterous.  Now, I don’t know how all of this works exactly, but it is clear that Posterous is doing something different when it comes to submitting your posts to the search engines in general.  If anyone out there has any insight into this, I would love to hear about it.

Choir Music is a site designed around the concept that, while many composers, directors and musicians are writing great music every day, some of that music just doesn’t get the attention it deserves.  For example, directors will often arrange or compose pieces specifically for their own choirs, perform them, and then file them in the "we'll do this one again in a few years" category.  Most probably don't have the time or inclination to seek publication, especially as the proofing and correspondence can be tedious.  Unfortunately, this means other ensembles will never get to experience these well-crafted works. 

Choir Music, in coordination with a graduate research project, hopes to help fill this gap.  What composers need is a place where their work can be listed AND trusted.  While currently still under early development, the first proof-of-concept site has been constructed.  Once more research and feedback has been gathered, and if the concept is validated, further development in the form of formal website construction will occur.  Currently, only my work is being featured, as test content.  However, the work of other composers is being requested at this time.  Part of the concept validation will include the following simple tests: 

Did anyone demonstrate interest in the concept? 

Did anyone submit their work for consideration? 

So, what does it mean to be listed AND trusted?  It means that not just any music will be accepted.  Several standards must be met before music will be listed on the site.  For example, an endorsement from a music professional/educator or a quality recording of the music would make a composition eligible for consideration.  Several other qualifications or combinations of qualifications are initially detailed in draft form here:  http://choirmusic.wordpress.com/submissions/  It will be imperative that anyone interested or curious about the concept provide feedback, as such feedback will be greatly relied upon for project implementation.

A couple things you should know: 

1.  This is no fee or subscription involved.  The project as a whole, will involve instrumental music as well.

2.  No transactions will take place on the site.  Choir Music will function as a catalog of quality compositions that are not otherwise published.  In that light, it may be possible to list published works as well in the future.  However, it has not yet been determined whether that would detract from the other works being featured.

3.  All transactions or communication with composers will occur outside of the host site based on the contact or purchase information provided by the artist (see example).  Initially, all listings will be accomplished by the site administrator.  However, future versions will be designed to allow users to simply upload all required information and await notification of acceptance.

4.  Eventually, a small panel will be formed in order to more equitably make decisions on acceptance of submissions.  If you are interested in becoming a panel member, please contact me at composer@dmgardnermusic.com.  If you are interested in designing a site for this application , please do the same.

5.  It is my intention to go forward with this project regardless of its association with my graduate studies.  I simply adapted a concept that I am passionate about to my educational goals, hoping that each will complement the other.

6.  Choir Music needs to start featuring you music now!   While the project is still in its infancy, it will need momentum to carry it to the next stages.  Building a catalog now will help build a good foundation for the future.

7.  Tell others and tell me!   TELL ANY COMPOSERS YOU MEET.  SPREAD THE IDEA AROUND ASSOCIATIONS AND CONVENTIONS IF YOU CAN.  The collective interest in new compositions will benefit everyone and hopefully evolve into a brand-new well-known resource.  This project will not succeed without your input.  If you think there is a better way to do things, I need to know.  If you hate something about the concept, I need to know now.  I have already started to consult with other composers and directors and hope to begin featuring new works soon. 

I encourage you to please be a part of this exciting new project.  ...Even if it means only giving me your input, that would be infinitely valuable.  If you have scores for consideration, please submit them.  So take the little survey on the Choir Music sidebar and submit your work!  I look forward to hearing what you think and posting new music!

If any of you recently signed-up for a Google Analytics account, you may have also received one of these $100 coupons encouraging you to try Google AdWords.  The email says all you have to do is go to this link http://www.google.com/ads/offers/analyticscoupon.html and follow the instructions... 

But here’s a few things you might want to know should you fail to perform step 3 properly (especially if you hate reading really fine print):

The Easy-to-Read Summary:

1.        Actually, before you do anything, know that Google is going to charge you $5 on your credit card ($10 for option 2 – PrePaid Billing).  …But the good news is that it looks like you get that back.

2.       You have to enter your billing info BEFORE you can enter the promo code (ensuring step one, I suppose).

3.       At that point, you are supposed to enter the promo code…  (I wouldn’t know…  Missed this step)

4.       This coupon is for a NEW account.  Don’t try it on an existing account.  It won’t work.

5.       “Advertisers will be charged for all advertising that exceeds the promotional credit.  Advertisers will need to suspend their ads at the time the promotional credit amount is exhausted if they do not wish to receive additional advertising charges.”  It’s like those offers you receive in the mail for CDs, I guess.

Hmmm, well, that didn’t seem hard. 

But oops, I somehow missed step 3, you say?   No worries!

Good luck trying to locate the user-friendly coupon code portion of AdWords.  Just do this instead of giving yourself a headache:

1.       Log in and go to your “Billing” tab.

2.       Locate the not-so-obvious coupon redemption area as seen below.

3.       Enter the long code that was in the promotional email you received.

4.       Click “Submit.”

5.       Check your work.  Look at the picture above where it says “Current balance.”  That’s where it should show ($105.00) credit remaining.  Congrats, you just used a coupon.  Your mom would be proud.  (Also, note that the registration fee was removed in the form of an extra $5)

Recently I was contacted by a person/group affiliated with storytelling.  They wanted me to participate in something called a “reinvention summit,”  but I could never quite figure out why they were contacting me… Except to gain more participation in their event,  which is, incidentally, not free.  This isn’t the first “offer” I have received because of my blog, nor is it the first I have ignored.  It will likely not be the last either.  I’m not trying to be rude, but you must understand that before I endorse or participate in anything associated with my music, it will be after careful consideration.  …And it’s hard not to be influenced by correspondence with someone, especially a “storyteller”, I’ll wager.  Who knows, maybe next week I will be singing their praises, but only time will tell.

Anyway, this whole concept of storytelling has started me thinking…  I may not ‘get’ the summit thing yet, but I have been storytelling with music for a long time.  Now to be specific, there are (IMHO) several different degrees of storytelling in regard to music.  …In this case, choral music.

1.       ARRANGING – Retelling a story.  Existing text, existing music… Everyone likes it because they already know the tune.  And on that note, most people want an arranger around, not a composer… But that’s another post.

2.       COMPOSING (with existing text) – Retelling a story, but capturing its essence in an original musical format.  This method can often tap into and deeply emphasize the emotional context behind a story.  I’m sure many could argue that it distorts the original intended presentation of the text too, such as in the case of poetry.  I mean, Shakespeare may not appreciate his work being set to music.  …And while the music is original, I think a good text can almost write the music for you. 

3.       STORY-COMPOSING – Yeah, I made that up, but for the sake of terminology…  This is the composition of music, story and text at the same time.  It’s a hybrid combination of poetry,  prose and music. 

Anyway, story-music is something I have tried to develop as a concept, but have never really tried to formally construct.  I think it originated out of frustration trying to find good texts that weren’t copyrighted.  Then, I got a little sick of using public domain texts and especially of the “A” word…  Arranging.  There’s so much out there that is just being recycled, and I wanted (for better or worse) to add something completely new to the world.  I’ll be the first to admit that this is not necessarily “better,” but I can at least say that it is something new.  For example, would you rather have a rudimentary Crayon drawing on your refrigerator from your four-year-old or a collage of magazine cut-outs?  For me, I prefer the Crayon.  It may not be perfect, but I know that it was a completely original creation from the mind of my child.  I think that’s significant.

And now that I have likened my compositions to Crayon drawings…  I hope that you realize where I am coming from here.  I am hoping that a greater appreciation for truly original creation will emerge, and that in the process, my storytelling and composition will converge at a point that will also equate to high quality choral music.  I really don’t know how successful a concept this will be in the long run, but without even realizing it, I have already composed at least five pieces using this concept… Some of which, have been my most successful endeavors. 

I think this is because instead of having to fit music with text, or text with music, each evolves and transforms simultaneously, creating a perfect symbiotic relationship (at least in theory).

…And this is not just limited to notes or words.  The emotion of this music and each individual note is shaped and formed as the story is being told.  I have found that this method has often resulted in a very conversational feel for the narrative, not just a third-person perspective, but more of a first-person view of events from multiple characters.  In some ways, this seems to be most closely related to opera or operetta , only to the extent that each exemplifies multiple-character story development.  I can only hope that the final result is something that you and I like way more than opera…

Well, it’s been about 6 months since I’ve written a post…  Meanwhile I have moved across country and am trying to settle in.  I don’t know if I am quite settled yet, but today I felt the inclination to test the blog posting waters again. 

So, there’s a lot of ground to cover, and I don’t have any kind of plan to cover it, so I’ll likely just piece things together for a while.  For starters, today’s post (for those who might care) will be posted via email, but from a different client.  Previously, I posted most of it using Mozilla Thunderbird, but now I am using Outlook 2010.  I like the calendar feature…  Anyway, don’t be surprised if the post looks a little weird. (And now I’ve lost most readers…)

Besides changing email clients, I was inspired to write a new choral piece.  I began singing with Sing Omaha just after arriving in town.  Wasn’t sure what to think at first, because I was expecting to join the Nebraska Choral Arts Society (may it rest in peace) and the first SO concert was a 60’s tribute.  First of all, I’m not quite that old and not a huge fan of pop choral music…  Turns out, I had a lot of fun, really enjoyed the music and dressed-up like a hippie for the concert.  I think it went well, and we were told that the audience really enjoyed it too.   It went well for me, because someone complimented me on my groovy fake hippie mustache.  Although, I did have a slight wardrobe malfunction or two… No, not the Jackson variety, but my ‘stache’ didn’t like the combination of heat and moisture and kept trying to fall off.  Then, when I went to exit the stage, I felt this strange sort of tug on my head…  Apparently, I was attached by my luxurious hippie hair to a fellow singer.  By the time I became untangled, I had made quite a mess of the orderly exit Jen (the director) had in mind.  Oh, well… It was still far-out.

Strangely, this choral experience made me want to write some more music.  I had been wanting to “get back to my roots” for a while, but I have spent a lot of time writing music based on things like fitting into specific repertoire or making it work for a specific ensemble, blah, blah, blah…  This time, I decided to write something for me.  Just a choir, no accompaniment, 8 parts, no limitations… Well, you know, expect for those that make it a solid, moving, introspective, amazing specimen of choral writing…  But seriously, I am very happy with the results and will soon be recruiting guinea pigs from the choir, just to help me make my final adjustments, as necessary.  I have found that no level of scrutiny will prevent me from wanting to change a least something based on a performance or read.

I’m also going to try something new…  There’s little risk in this, as I have not posted in 6 months…  But if you reply through this blog requesting a copy of the new work, I’ll send you a digital copy for free (it’s not like I do it for the money anyway.. and now I’ve lost all credibility with my hippie picture)…  For a limited time… Though I am not sure how long that will be…  And oops, now I’ve rambled on way-too-long…  Until my next post…

Well, I guess now is as good a time as any to let everyone know that I (we) will be moving back to Omaha this Fall!  :-)

We’ve been away for over 8 years now, and it’s time to come back home.  This big move is partially why I haven’t posted in a while…  Busy, busy, busy…  Overwhelmed with the preparations, really.  Of course, this also means that I have had to set aside things like writing music in the interim…  I had been writing a lot of stuff, so this might actually be a good time to take a step back and gain some perspective.  Then, I can start fresh and go in some new directions. 

Anyway, it will be great to be able to see a lot of the people we have known over the years again and to hang out at all the old places we used to visit.  Sure, I’ll miss the mountain views and the crisp, clean mountain air…   But, I have always been a big fan of Omaha, and family and friends are much more important than the view out of my window.  Besides, the Omaha Symphony is way better than the orchestras I’ve heard around here (sorry, Colorado, but it’s true).

I was finally able to get hold of a recording of the March 2010 Gallery of Living Art (GOLA) Performance of Joseph, Look and See by First Lutheran Church of Colorado Springs.  Well, the singing was by First Lutheran, the music was by me.  Well, I guess I did sing too…

Anyway, a few things of interest about this piece, the performance and some general observations about choral music… 

One, it’s the first time I’ve had a Christmas/Nativity piece performed in the Spring (to my knowledge).  That’s because the GOLA tells Jesus’ story from birth through Resurrection.  It is my greatest honor and very humbling to have had one of my works performed in the setting that it was truly intended for:  The J-man’s Crib.  OK, just kidding.  That was supposed to be witty or funny or something, but it just sort of fell flat…  I meant “church,” and next time I should probably just stick to writing music and let someone else do the comedy…  Unless, of course, you actually thought that was funny…  So, this Roman Guard walks into a bar…  But seriously, very humbling.  I just hope it glorifies God the way it was intended to...  And the J-man too.

Two, for some reason I can’t stand the abbreviation “GOLA,” yet I insist on using it here…  Weird. 

Three, I intentionally kept the range reasonable and the form easy so it would be accessible to a number of different church choirs.  Since a lot of choirs aren’t nearly as large as ours, it’s always good to think about things like that.  The funny thing is, I actually wrote it for a different choir…  The director of that choir is very familiar with the types of harmonies that I used.  Our choir was not used to such close harmonies at first, but soon embraced this different style of writing. 

Four, I am never quite sure whether people actually like my music as much as they say they do or if they just feel obligated to say something because I am in the choir.  I have decided that I do not like all of the attention, and therefore my next piece will be atonal…  PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU REALLY THINK OR I'LL JUST GO ON WRITING THIS STUFF!  That goes for you readers too.

Five, while I am not a piano player, everyone thinks you are if you're a composer... Especially if you write something that has piano in it.  But let's think about this for a minute.  If I wrote something for for bassoon, would you assume that I am a bassoon player?  How 'bout the piccolo?  No way.  Personally, I think not being a piano player brings a distinct quality to the flow of my music.  There have been occasions when performing a choral piece when I have said to myself, "this choral piece sounds like it was written by a pianist."  An no, that is not intended as a compliment.  What I mean is that choral music, in particular, has its own unique qualities and doesn't always translate well from other styles of writing.   Really, in my perfect world of choral bliss all choral music would be a cappella, all choirs would be perfectly balanced and I would never have to worry about levels of difficulty or other such silly restrictions...  There certainly wouldn't be any pianos around.  Note: I actually love the piano, but lets face it...  A temper-tuned instrument accompanying a naturally tuned ensemble is kind of a contradiction in terms, don't you think?  I firmly believe a lot of choirs are just afraid to sing without one and have not yet realized their full potential.

Six, speaking of pianos...  I believe Satan invented Clavinova's (or other such fake pianos).  Come on, does anyone out there actually think those things sound even remotely real?  In Heaven, God only listens to full-size grands.  Pretty sure I read that somewhere...

Seven, I hate to say this, but I wish the recording of this performance had the piano amped a bit more...................Well, if I'm gonna write for it, I at least want to hear it.  Besides, I know it was played brilliantly, it's just hard to hear.  Probably just mic placement.  Good thing the choir is awesome! Thanks guys!