Saturday, December 12, 2009

Music Industry Job Training

The music industry is undoubtedly one of the 'sexiest' fields in which to work, according to a recent survey by the editors of Time magazine. There are music industry jobs that require nearly any skill set that you can bring to the job, and the training required varies with each of the music industry jobs that may interest you. This is where learning how to play violin can come in handy. Here are some general guidelines for finding work in music industry jobs.

Love Music.

It's not a prerequisite for music industry jobs, but loving music of any kind is a definite step in the right direction. While loving music may not be important in a record company accountant's position, it's practically required for anyone who works with artists or in promotion.

Check the qualifications for the job.

In general, most jobs in the music industry require at least a two year college degree - with the exception of performers who can get by without a degree if they have talent. Expect that the more involved the job, the higher your level of education and/or experience will need to be. A record promoter may need to demonstrate networking skills or developed contacts in the local music scene, for instance, and a contracts lawyer will obviously require a law degree. Music teachers working for the schools will need to have a teaching license as well as the demonstrated ability to play an instrument.

The best training is on the job training.

For positions like band manager, road work, publicists and promoters, the best training is through an internship or through your own work promoting and/or managing a band on your own. Some publicists and promoters come to the job from their own fanzines, or have developed a network of contacts in radio and advertising through their college or teen year extracurricular activities.

A degree in music is respected in many music industry jobs.

Colleges that specialize in music education like the Berklee School for the Performing Arts offer training in many different aspects of the music industry. You can study music and performance law, accounting for the music industry, and business management for music companies as well as composition, performance and other music-specific jobs.

Join the band.

One of the best training grounds for a career in orchestral music is your school or college band. If you're already beyond the school years, take advantage of county and city music societies to both train your ear and keep in the practice of playing with others.

Music ministry jobs often require special certifications.

If you have a calling to a job in music ministry, you'll find that many churches and synagogues require that their full time music minister have pastoral training as well as musical training. The American Guild of Organists and the National Council of Pastoral Musicians offer professional certifications at a number of levels.

Music therapists require a bachelor's degree in music therapy from one of the approved universities that teach music therapy.

In addition to regular studies, the bachelors in music therapy requires 1200 hours of clinical practice.

The requirements for training for music industry jobs are varied, but this is a brief overview of the training required for some of the major careers in the music industry.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Choices In Music For Your Wedding

American weddings have come a long way over the years. In a society that is made up of people from so many different cultures, lifestyles, religions, and backgrounds, it is no surprise that the traditions in the wedding ceremony are as vastly different as well. Wedding music is no exception. From the ceremony itself to the party atmosphere of the reception, the wedding music sets the tone for the event.

Traditional Wedding Music:

At most weddings we can expect to hear selections that have come to be known as traditional wedding music. Titles like Ave Maria, the Minuet from Don Giovanni, and, of course, The Bridal Chorus and The Wedding March have long been the standard music for a wedding. Particularly religious ceremonies may include hymns like Amazing Grace and a Jewish wedding almost always includes a hora danced to a medley of tunes like Hava Nagila, and Siman Tov U Mazeltov.

The traditional wedding music holds a special place in our hearts and many think that a wedding ceremony is incomplete without it. The couple must decide whether or not to use traditional wedding music in the ceremony, as well as how much of it to use. If this part of the wedding tradition is important to you, then traditional wedding music is the way to go.

Modern Wedding Music:

Often couples will forgo the traditional wedding music selections and instead include modern or popular music in the wedding ceremony. This practice is so common that some titles are becoming traditional wedding song selections themselves. It is not unusual to hear When a Man Loves a Woman, Always and Forever, or I Will Always Love You sung, performed, or played at weddings today. Often more modern titles like these will appear in a ceremony along with the more traditional wedding music.

Avant-Garde Wedding Music:

As people’s attitudes change and varying forms of wedding ceremonies take place, the choice of wedding music often changes right along with them. Occasionally couples will choose music for their wedding that reflects the stark difference in their personalities and makes a unique and bold statement. While your wedding ceremony is primarily for the couple getting married, it is important to remember that it is an event attended by your family members as well. While you may wish to make an impression on your guests with your choice of music, you should still be cautious not to offend your respective grandmothers. As such, a selection by an artist like Marilyn Manson may never be appropriate for a wedding ceremony. This does not mean that your wedding music choices are restricted to traditional classics or sappy love songs. I once attended a very avant-garde wedding where three couples married in the same ceremony. It was a beautiful event and was made memorable by their choice of music. The couples strode down the aisle to the sounds of Pink Floyd’s Signs of Life, an instrumental track from the album A Momentary Lapse of Reason. It was a wedding ceremony that I will remember forever.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Hearing Aids

Loss of hearing is perhaps as normal, if not more, as losing hair with age. Reduction of hearing can also be caused by illness, certain medicines and in a large number of cases; it could be a birth defect. It can also make it difficult to learn how to play violin.

Diminishing of hearing, however, can be helped with the use of hearing aides, which are electronic widgets that convert sound pressure waves into electricity by a microphone.

The electric impulses are increased and then reconverted to a great deal more strong sound pressure waves by a receiver. These increased waves are subsequently presented to the impaired ear. The goal of a hearing aid is to make speech available to a listener, whatever the technology being used.

How do you know you need a hearing aide? Being sensitive to your bodys need and accommodating to its deteriorating parts is a resourceful and enjoyable way of life. If you:

1. Find yourself asking people to repeat themselves too often.

2. Feel that you understand them better when you are facing them.

3. Find the need to increase the volume of television or radio when nobody else seems to need it.

Perhaps, it is time to see an audiologist and get an audiometric evaluation (AE) done. It is a pain-free method and takes a few minutes. An AE helps a certified audiologist evaluate your Diminishing of hearing and prescribe the right course of treatment.

Many hearing problems are a result of earwax and middle ear infections. Before buying a hearing aide, it is imperative to consult with a hearing aid specialist.

Which hearing aid to choose?

There are various types of hearing aids available in the market today. You need to work with your audiologist to figure out which model suits you best.

In The Ear (ITE) products have the largest custom made styles; In The Canal (ITC) units are smaller and require more dexterity; Mini Canal (MC) units are in between ITE and ITC; Completely In the Canal (CIC) products are the smallest aids produced; Behind The Ear (BTE) are the largest and hugely reliable; and Post Auricular Canal (PAC) is a new device planned to supply comfort and acoustic alternatives.

Your audiologist will be able to guide you through these opportunities as well as with the levels of technologies available in hearing aids. The best technology available is a 100 percent digital aide. This means your hearing aide is a complete computer.

These widgets are wonders of 1990s and allow the highest control over sound quality and loudness. They process sound at extraordinary speed and the output is amazing.

Lastly, if you have suffered hearing Diminishing in both ears, you will need two hearing aids to achieve normal sound balance. Two aides help your central nervous system to process sounds better and filter noise from speech. One aid, regardless how efficient, will give you flat sound!