See them at Jameson's in Waterloo, March 30th, 8:30pm
Albert Jackson knew he'd touched a nerve when neurosurgeon Tim Ryken tracked him down outside the operating room.
"I saw Tim in the hallway and he had a serious look on his face," said the anesthesiologist, recalling the moment for the rest of the members of Delayed Gratification. "He said: 'Did you have to tell everybody? We don't even know if we can play yet.'"
The West Music practice room erupted with laughter. This winter Jackson and three other area doctors who met through connections with Covenant Medical Center traded their stethoscopes and scalpels for drum sticks and guitar strings as participants in the store's Weekend Warrior musician training program. University of Northern Iowa business professor Mike Klassen joins the group on keys. The band's first performance is March 30 at Jameson's Public House in downtown Waterloo.
Posted by: LeaAnn Huegel in Music Instruction on
Mar 18, 2010
Let your inner rock star out!
It's nasty out and you're actually tired of watching TV, so dust off that instrument that's in the ________ (insert appropriate word such as: closet; basement; attic; under bed; garage).
Ok, so you didn’t stick with it the first time, and you were too busy and whatever other excuses caused you to hide away the instrument in the first place. But now's the perfect time to dig it out and just have some fun!
You don't have to be perfect! Just think about sports: what if no one ever played miniature golf, family reunion softball/volleyball, or 1-on-1 basketball because they were scared they were not "playing right"?
Tuesday March 30th Jameson’s in Waterloo is going to be invaded by West Music’s Weekend Warriors.
At 7:00PM the teen band “Dead Innocence,” made up of local talent, will take the stage to wow the crowd with current and classic hard rock hits including “Enter Sandman” and “21st Century Break Down.” Dead Innocence premiers with Conner Andrews on drums, Tyler Russell and Chris Woodruff on guitar, Tom Bartlett rocks out on bass guitar, vocalist Nathan Carignan rounds out the band. Come early to get a good seat to see this band!
West Music Ottumwa – March 20, 2010
Call (800) 248-7001 for information/registration
West Music Quad Cities – April 3, 2010
Call (888) 788-6683 for information/registration
Each session has two hours. The first hour is free & open to the public. During this hour Dana will focus on his Guitar System method. The second hour is a seminar/Master Class, and Dana will work with each student on his/her music. The cost is $ 30, and each participant will receive a free book.
What a performance! Tyler Chrusciel showed off his amazing guitar skills at Jameson’s on February 10th.
As a student of Jeff Burak’s, Tyler has evolved as a player over the years learning many different facets of guitar playing. Over last summer, Tyler started bringing in music he wanted to learn, mostly songs he had seen performed on You Tube. Most of the songs are common rock/pop songs but played in fingerstyle complemented with tapping of the guitar body.
Posted by: Shannon Price in Music Instruction on
Mar 04, 2010
Help out the Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County, which provides much to their local neighborhoods, including free music lessons! Right now, they're looking for donations of sports equipment:
Spring is almost here and once again the Neighborhood Centers are getting geared up for the upcoming baseball/softball season. They are starting their annual baseball/softball equipment drive.
They are accepting donations of new and used baseball/softball equipment for boys and girls aged 5 to 13. Last year's drive was a great success, and they were able to fully equip over 25 kids enabling them to participate and succeed in the Iowa City Boys Baseball and Iowa City Girls Softball leagues.
Posted by: LeaAnn Huegel in Music Instruction on
Feb 25, 2010
By Megan Hofeldt
As a classically trained flutist, the idea of improvisation has always seemed intimidating. In our quest to perfect the notes, rhythms, articulations, and phrasing of written music, we often don’t leave much, if any, time for simply playing around with our instruments. Because of this, improvisation can quickly become a scary and overwhelming idea.
In addition, the popular belief is that improvising is for jazz players. The fact that most flutists don’t often find themselves in a jazz band may lead to a recipe for absolute fear of improvisation or even playing anything that isn’t written down and sitting on a music stand in front of us.
Simply asking my students if they want to play a few notes to warm-up before beginning etudes or pieces often results in a wide-eyed look and a quick response, “Nope! I’ll just start with my assignments.” Seeing this cycle occur daily in my studio teaching, I decided it was more than time for a change!
As your child progresses on his or her instrument they might need to find a private teacher.
You might be asking yourself, “Why a private teacher? Why can’t my child just take lessons from the school’s music teacher? It would be cheaper and easier for us. I wouldn’t have to find a teacher and find a time in my already packed schedule to drive back and forth to lessons.”
Well, school music teachers have to know a little bit of every instrument. Eventually, the teacher will have taught the student all they can. That is to be expected; it is not a sign of a bad teacher. If you are lucky, your child’s instrument will be the same as the teacher’s main instrument and a private teacher won’t be necessary. But if the teacher played clarinet and your child is a budding drummer, you need to find a private teacher who specializes in that instrument. So how to find a good private teacher?
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