Instrument of the Week! Conga!

What we usually refer to as Conga or conga drums have narrow heads and the appearance of staved barrels. It is said that the more appropriate name for these instruments is the tumbadora. The drums themselves originated in Cuba, though their origin has Afro-Cuban roots. The drums are commonly used in the styles Conga, Rumba Salsa, Jazz, Songo, Latin Rock and the like. The conga are most often associated with the Cuban tumbao rhythm and open tone singing. Conga is also the name of a dance and rhythm with African roots sung in many Latin countries. We call the drums associated with conga, conga drums. The dance is usually associated with the carnival season before the Christian Lent. There are four sizes of conga drums (here from biggest to smallest): tumba (or salidor), conga (tres golpes, the middle drum), quinto (the lead drum), and requinto (or Ricardo, this is the rare one not always used), now it is not uncommon to see people playing all four. People originally played one drum People who play the Congas are called congueros, while people who dance to the music of the conga’s are called rumberos.  Famous congueros players include: Daniel de los Reyes, Miguel "Angá" Díaz, Marc Quiñones, Fermin Goytisolo, Chano Pozo and Jimmy Morales. Photos and Videos Below!

Resources:

• Conga (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conga) The Wikipedia page! Yeah yeah, I know…but hay its distilled knowledge. If it still bothers you just look at the resources they site.
• Introduction to the Conga Drum (http://www.drumdojo.com/j15/learning/congaintro1.htm) A good introduction to the instrument.

Album Review: Heavy Metal, Original Soundtrack

Album Name - Heavy Metal

Artist - Various

Label - Full Moon/Asylum/Epic

Year - 1981

Genre – Heavy Metal, Rock

Preference Rating (1- Hate, 2-Dislike, 3-Okay, 4-Like, 5-Love) - 5

Production Quality (1-Noise, 2-Home, 3-Standard 4-Profesional) - 4

Music Quality (1-Bad, 2-Novice, 3-Amature, 3- Professional, 5-Great) - 3

This is the Soundtrack from the 1981 film animated fantasy film. The film is based on the heavy metal comic/magazines and is an anthology of fantasy shorts connected by a narrating theme. The soundtrack much like the film is an anthology of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock from the time. The soundtrack includes tracks by Sammy Hagar, Blue Öyster Cult, Nazareth, Grand Funk Railroad, Cheap Trick, and a list of ten other really famous artists and bands.  The title track Heavy Metal by Sammy Hagar is pumped full of high energy and early metal guitar electrics guitar riffs. “It’s your one way ticket to midnight call it Heavy Metal.” The lyrics with the music and energy define the film and soundtrack project as well as capture the magazine’s aesthetic. Another great track on the album is "Veteran of the Psychic Wars" by the Blue Oyster Cult. The song captures the fantasy feel of a great psionic war with great guitar solos and musical refrain. “You see me now a veteran of a thousand psychic wars. I've been living on the edge so long. Where the winds of limbo roar. And I'm young enough to look at and far too old to see, all the scars are on the inside. I'm not sure that there's anything left to me.” All of the songs of this album are by musical greats. Most of them are high energy songs fused with the sound of Classic Heavy Metal and Hard Rock. If you’re a fan of classic heavy metal or the film you already love the soundtrack. If not and any of this sounds appealing check it out.

Resources:

• OST Information (http://www.soundtrackinfo.com/OST/heavymetal-score/) Information about the Heavy Metal Soundtrack.

Instrument of the Week! Bass Clarinet!

The Bass Clarinet is an instrument in the clarinet family that plays in the lower range. To a layman it looks kind of like an anorexic Saxophone, however this instrument is fundamentally different. The bore of the Saxophone starts small and gradually increases. The bass clarinet has a fairly consistent bore size throughout until you reach the bell which is turned up and has a larger size than the bore. All Clarinets are members of the woodwind family. Most are made from wood though fully metal bass clarinets do exist. The keys, bell, and other connecting parts are metal in most cases. The Bass Clarinet is an orchestral and concert instrument. It is heavily used in Jazz. The instrument is also popular in film scores. The instrument is what is called a transposing instrument, which means that the music is written in a different pitch than it sounds. For the Bass Clarinet this usually means what is musically written as C sounds like B flat. Most Bass Clarinet’s are B flat instruments many professional instruments have a low C extension, or sometimes and even lower extension. The Bass Clarinet is heavy and has a peg stand and neck strap to take the weight off of the player. A Bass Clarinet player is usually called a Bass Clarinetist. The instrument has many arguments for who and when it was invented. One might comfortably say it was an evolution of different instruments, between 1750 AD and 1838 AD, resulting in its final appearance. The Bass clarinet is well known amongst musicians and spreading in notoriety amongst the public. It was used in the Beatles song “When I’m Sixty-four.” Famous Bass Clarinetist include Eric Dolphy, Rudi Mahall, John Coltrane , The Edmund Welles quartet, and the duet Sqwonk.

Resources:

• Bass Clarinet (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bass_clarinet) The Wikipedia page! Yeah yeah, I know…but hay its distilled knowledge. If it still bothers you just look at the resources they site.
• International Bass Clarinet Research Center (http://www.circb.info/) A group of academics studying the history and repertoire of the bass clarinet.
• The Clarinets Base Clarinet Page (http://www.the-clarinets.net/english/bass-clarinet.html) A great web site for all things Clarinet. This particular page is their bass clarinet page.

 

Album Review: 40 Acres by Caedmon's Call

Album Name - 40 Acres

Artist - Caedmon's Call

Label - Essential Records

Year - 1999

Genre – Christian, Folk, Rock

Preference Rating (1- Hate, 2-Dislike, 3-Okay, 4-Like, 5-Love) - 5

Production Quality (1-Noise, 2-Home, 3-Standard 4-Profesional) - 4

Music Quality (1-Bad, 2-Novice, 3-Amature, 3- Professional, 5-Great) – 4

Sometimes you look back at albums you liked in your past and think to yourself “how could I listen to that?” Other times you look at albums from your past and you see a lot to love and respect. This is one of the latter. While Caedmon’s Call has been less than stellar since the album right after this one. They really did produce some art here. The band is filled under the Christian genre, but there is still good music for all. Some of the tracks like "Daring Daylight Escape” are just love songs. In "Daring Daylight Escape" a guy is proposing a question to a girl he likes, and her answer might make him follow the tracks title. It captures that youthful hesitation and angst over matters of infatuation that most of us experience at some time or another. The album has a strong folk sound with rock and other influences wedded throughout the album. Songs that approach faith directly even when dressed in the language of faith, often are addressed to God without mentioning him directly. "Faith My Eyes" is a track that both address the nostalgia of having moved on from one’s home town while looking back on it, and a prayer that to keep them on the path they are on. The album has lots on unique percussion and talents, for the album they had a drummer as well as a second percussionist just to play the exotic stuff. Probably due to the influence of Derek Webb, at the time Caedmon’s Call didn’t have an issue addressing doubts and questioning faith. Such questions are woven into a multitude of tracks on their first three albums. "Shifting Sand" is one of the few tracks where the lead vocals are done by Danielle Young, the bands female vocalist. The Song addresses the tumultuous nature of faith by comparing its nature to sand which is changed by every wave. The album does a good job at capturing experiences from life, and is worth a listen.

Resources:

• Caedmon’s Call (http://www.caedmonscall.com/) Artist’s web site.