Newsletter Vol. 3 # 96 – August 15, 2009

Greetings,

Welcome to Volume 3, Issue #96 of Guitar Noise News!

In This Issue:

Greetings, News and Announcements
Topic of the Month
Guitar Noise Featured Artist
New Lessons and Articles
Exploring Music with Darrin Koltow
This Day (or Approximately) In (GN) History
Event Horizon
Random Thoughts

Greetings, News and Announcements

Welcome to the August 15 issue of Guitar Noise News, your free twice-a-month newsletter from Guitar Noise.

Our big news this time out is the announcement of the 2009 FODfest tour. I recently got word from Todd Mack yesterday with definitive dates for this year’s FODfest and wanted to pass them along. In case you’ve not heard or read about this show before, let me give you the lowdown from the FODfest website itself:

“In 2002, the world came to know Daniel Pearl as the Wall St. Journal reporter who was abducted and murdered by terrorists in Pakistan. What happened to him was unconscionable. To film his murder and use the video as a means to propagate the hatred that motivated it…there is no word for that. In response to this heinous act, Todd Mack, a close friend of Pearl’s, started FODfest (Friends of Danny festival) as a way to honor his friend with a legacy that reflects the ideals by which he lived rather than the tragic way in which he died.

In addition to being a journalist, Daniel Pearl was a talented musician who believed in the power of music to bring people together regardless of the differences between them. A classically trained violinist and avid fiddler & mandolin player, music was Danny’s way of connecting with people and learning about the local culture as he traveled the world. In a unique performance experience that is part jam session, part song swap, part concert, FODfest is a living celebration of this ideal. Some of the musicians performing were friends of Danny’s, while others didn’t know him at all. Most are meeting for the first time on stage. They all share Danny’s belief in music as a universal language.

MISSION
FODfest, Inc. is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote and strengthen community through the universal language of music by producing publicly accessible live music events and multi-media projects.

HISTORY
In just five years, FODfest has grown considerably from its humble beginnings as an informal backyard jam to a full-fledged national tour. To date, FODfest has toured to 20 cities with more than 350 musicians from across the country and across the globe participating. FODfest ’09 will include a 31 day national tour this October as a featured event of Daniel Pearl World Music Days, which is organized by the Daniel Pearl Foundation. All of the concerts are free and open to the public, with the exception of the two shows at the Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival (October 8 and 9 in Pittsboro, NC). ”

Having played in FODfest the last three years, I can attest to what a magical time it is. This year the shows are going around the country. Here are the scheduled dates and venues:

Oct 1 7:00 PM Narrows Center for the Arts Fall River, MA
Oct 2 12:00 PM TBA Boston, MA Playing on the streets of Boston/Cambridge
Oct 2 7:00 PM Frontier Cafe Brunswick, ME
Oct 3 7:00 PM Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center Great Barrington, MA
Oct 4 4:30 PM City Winery New York, NY
Oct 5 7:00 PM TBA Washington, D.C.
Oct 6 7:00 PM Beit Tikvah Baltimore, MD
Oct 8 12:00 PM Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival Pittsboro, NC Set times TBA.
Come visit us at the FODfest booth. *Cost: $35 – $95
Oct 9 12:00 PM Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival Pittsboro, NC Set times TBA.
Come visit us at the FODfest booth. *Cost: $35 – $95
Oct 10 3:00 PM Candler Park Fall Festival Atlanta, GA Danny Pearl’s Birthday!
Oct 10 7:30 PM Lake Claire Community Land Trust Atlanta, GA Danny Pearl’s Birthday Party!
Oct 17 7:00 PM TBA San Francisco, CA
Oct 24 7:00 PM Blue Moon Coffeehouse – Illinois Wesleyan University Bloomington, IL
Oct 25 7:00 PM Legion Arts Cedar Rapids, IA
Oct 28 7:00 PM Village Players Performing Arts Center Oak Park, IL
Oct 29 7:00 PM Kent Stage Kent, OH
Nov 1 4:00 PM Infinity Music Hall & Bistro Norfolk, CT

If you think you might want to play, check out more info at the FODfest website (http://fodfest.org) and send the organizers a note through the “Performers” page.

I’m hoping to be at the October 28 show in Oak Park, IL as well as the final show in Norfolk, CT. Maybe I’ll see you there!

Topic of the Month

Our Topic of the Month of August is “Soloing and Improvisation.” We’re featuring the many, many articles on this subject, coming from past GN contributors, such as Josh Urban and Gilbert Isbin and Randell Young and Mark Yodice as well as a wonderful piece from our favorite guitarist from the Netherlands, Arjen Schippers. And let’s not forget that we’ve also all eight parts of the current series, “Turning Scales into Solos” and other articles and lessons from current GN contributing writers as well.

And feel free to post an email to me if there’s a particular topic you’d like to see given “Topic of the Month” status at some point in the future.

Guitar Noise Featured Artist

Our Guitar Noise Featured Artist as well for the month of August is Bob Marley. Read about him on our artist profiles page and be sure to check out our lesson on “I Shot the Sheriff.”

New Lessons and Articles

A True Legend
by David Hodge

There are few people who have contributed so much to rock music, to music in general, and to the recording industry, as Les Paul. Join us in honoring this true musical legend that passed away earlier this week at the age of 94.

Exploring Music With Darrin Koltow

Tip for August 15 – Practicing Modes (Part 13)

We’re exploring the C Mixolydian sound at position 5. This is a continuation of our extended journey through modes.

The last issue got us started with C7 (Mixolydian) chords whose melody or top notes lay on strings 1 and 2. Can you guess what this issue has in store? Let’s dig in:

|----------------------|
|----------------------|
|-7--5-----------------|
|-8--8--8--7--5--------|
|-8--7--7--5--7--------|
|-6-----8--6--6--------|

Notice what we’re playing for the A melody note here: it’s Bb major 7, which shows up in the key of F major, as does C7. Because Bb maj 7 and C7 share a key center, they can sometimes substitute for one another. I like to mix up the chords, enough to add variety, but not so much as to confuse your ear. I hope your ear likes this exercise.

Thanks for reading.

This Day (or Approximately) in (Guitar Noise) History

Back in August 2003, I was still in Chicago but I got my first look at where I would end up moving to the coming New Year’s Day. Thinking back, it may actually have been my second or third look, but it’s hard to remember accurately. All I knew was that all sorts of things were going on and life was a bit of a roller coaster.

Looking back now, I’m tempted to say that some of the unsettledness had a subliminal effect in my choosing Cat’s Steven’s “Wild World” as a new Easy Songs for Beginners lesson, but I suppose that could just be me making a typical use of hindsight.

Whatever the reason, or lack of reason, it still makes a good lesson!

Wild World
Easy Songs for Beginners #23
by David Hodge

We’re going to hit the ground running here. This may be the most involved beginners’ song that we’ve done yet but don’t let that deter you! While the focus of this lesson is on switching chords smoothly, you’ll also learn some cool flourishes and riffs and strumming patterns and even find a good practical use for that pesky C major scale!

Event Horizon

If you’re in the Chicago area, you’ve got a chance to see GN Forum member Tommy Gun’s band, “U-Godda-Wanna” playing tonight at THE place to play on the Southside, at115 Bourbon Street, Merionette Park, IL. Show is from 10pm-2am.

Random Thoughts

When I found out that FODfest was going to run through Chicago, I made it a point to clear up my calendar so that I’d be able to be there. Not only will it be fun to play in my old stomping grounds, it will hopefully be a chance to meet up again with friends and former students and to make some music again.

To get into the spirit of FODfest, you need to talk with Todd Mack, who started this up. Last year I had the chance to interview Todd for Guitar Noise and you can find that interview here.

I hope that if you live someplace close to a FODfest show that you can make the time to attend. Or even sign up to be a performer. The shows are free to the public and this is a wonderful to both take in and give back to the music community as well as to the world at large.

Until our next newsletter, stay safe. Play well and play often.

And, as always…

Peace