Feedback Protection

Going Through the "Sound Control Options" to "Dial In" the best sound

• "Reverb" and "Echo" options
• Compression Options: "Piano Smooth" and "Piano Upright"
• Noise Gate -60 (Any higher and the sound cuts obviously cuts out)
• Graphic EQ - (Ok, Finally now I can have the option of turning up the high end!
• AUFilter - Allows EQ changes in less options.  (5 buttons) 

To me it doesn't sound "stereo", it sounds "mono" 

but at least I got it finally working!!

Feedback Control: turn "on" position

Microphone an Upright Piano - - - - - - - - - - for "Garage Band" and "Logic"

Testing the equipment to get sound recorded for "Bethena" and "Dill Pickles" Practice

1) Two Condenser Mic w/ new batteries are on 2 separate stands.
2) One covers the right side high notes + the left on the low ones.
3) XLR into "ONYX Black Jack 2X2 USB" user interface.
4) Plug in headphones, can hear Audio + Light Display moving.
5) Open "Garage Band" Application.
6) New Track "Real Instrument"
7) Untangle headset wire around chair!
8) Press Record!
9) Set Phantom Power to "Off" since they already have power.
10) "Stereo" setting
11) Hi-Z
12) USB + Power light are both light green.
13) Record a test with volume down on the computer

SET SYSTEM Preferences

General Preferences let you add a click, but do I need to create a click track first so it's not on the final recording?  Need to experiment first to see what happens.

Audio/MIDI

Here is where you set the interface to interfere with your creativity

I don't want automatic loops.  Should I click these?  I don't know.

These just allow you choose number of track, kind of silly really.

"Logic Pro" Installed

It took me all day yesterday to install Logic Pro.  I have been very happy with my own way of recording but since someone got me this program I thought I better give it a try.  The only problem is that when I go to play the demo I can not hear anything.

LOGIC PRO SUPPORT  

Alfred Hitchcock Presents

Here's is my final for today.  

In making of "French Music and Favorite Potpourri" here are two drawings I recently did.  I haven't drawn in awhile and I think that it helped me to appreciate and identify that my first versions are pretty good.  I will have to go over these with ink and then add half tone shading to make final.

The Alfred Hitchcock Presents" Theme song is called "Funeral March of the Marionettes" by Charles
Gounod.

Today I got together the cover artwork 11x19 saved as a PDF.  Now I just need to get it printed up and I can complete this project.  I made all the corrections on the music that I type set in PRINT MUSIC and they should not need fixes except for "Bella Notte".  Also "Indiana Jones" was never submitted.

Photo by Todd Stefani

PRINT MUSIC: "Slurs and Ties"

I have always had trouble using "Slurs" and "Ties".  They have these four "anchor points" you have the option to pull on in order to shape and properly place them.

But this morning I noticed that if you take the furthest "anchor point" and simply drag it directly a crossed to the last note you want it to end on . . . when you release the mouse . . . the slur "jumps up" into the exact place you need!  Placed Perfect and Angled Accurately!

What Song Is This?

User Accounts for Mac.

Did you know that if you have two different "User Accounts" on a computer,  you can only "Sign On" to just one at a time.  So the computer stores information completely different from the other account? Yes.  This is for privacy between different people.

I did this by accident,  I have two accounts and I was working on one, and when I came back a week later I signed on to "wrong user account" so my work was not there after signing on.

Later after thinking about maybe using "Time Machine" to restore my files, I remembered having the two "user accounts".  So I restarted the computer and signed on as the other "user account" and found all my updated information.

File Sharing Between User Accounts 

You can use "share folder" that allows transfer data between two accounts.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3309

"Strawberry Rag"

This song has been actively pursuit in perhaps leading me to a new CD.  Although Lotso the Bear from sent me some sour vibes, I will not let his encounter steal my dreams even if he does smell like Strawberry's.

Here's the flyer to my up coming recital.  Dec. 3rd, 2011

BlackJack - Driver for Interface

ONXY 2x2 BlackJack

Here's the driver you need to download to operated the interface.

Mackie USB Driver V2.0

The guy showed me several different options. The lower end ones seemed to be made of plastic and didn't had the stereo XLR L/R for microphones. I asked to check out high end ones. He explain they work with "Firewire and Firewire 800" but USB for sound works basically the same digitally.

The last one he show me indeed had a more "professional" hardware and wasn't too high in price, $150. He mentioned it had Phantom Power and knobs that I'd seen on Large Studio Soundboards.   The two stereo inputs are both "XLR" and "Quarter Inch", which is just what I need.

Check out the video at this website:

http://www.mackie.com/products/onyxblackjack/

Later I saw they make a head set with microphone,  I paid $80 to use when doing the LIVE Puppet Show.

Mackie - ONYM Driver Download

Today I picked up a new ONYX Black Jack made by "Mackie"

I wanted to get better sound when recording my own performances so I

was hoping to go directly off the Roland 16 Track recorder in to the computer.

The guy at Guitar Center said the best thing to do is get a stereo interface.

Previous day I pick up a small pair speakers to help let me know what the final

sound will sound like. I will hopefully start posting these performances if there

is anything magical happens.

"Vaise D'Amelie" (2001)

This version of this song was written for piano and was too small and blurry to read. I retyped it up in 'Print Music" for accordion so that I could read it without guessing.

It was on 4 pages without repeat marking, just written out, although it's not perfect it's much more useful to me now in this format. And yes, I am aware the movie came out 10 years ago.

The Strawberry Band's in Town

The Strawberry Band's in Town

Please stay and listen to the song I've written

it's not like the one's before

it may sound familiar but this one ain't filler

I guarantee that, you love this more

The melody to sing is very pleasing

when it goes right along as planned

Pull up a chair, I swear it’s easy

the Strawberry Band's in Town

the Strawberry Band's in Town

Hear it again you might just start a humming

when I'm not there, it's there for you

Yes it's "On the level" but brother it ain't easy

it picks you up, when your feeling blue

The Strawberry Band is not a bowl of cherries

but the tune sure can carry well

Please take a listen to the song I've just written

the Strawberry Band's in Town

the Strawberry Band's in Town

(Take a Listen)

the Strawberry Band's in Town

the Strawberry Band's in Town

"Strawberry Rag" - (Hour 2) Lyrics

"Day At The Races" - Abrahamson

Practice a new piano song "Day At The Races". Has lots of scale type melodies that back track then expand on the same idea using "8va" variations. The left hand is using simple 1, 4, 57 progressions but mixed up in an interesting ways.

After wresting with just the right hand while programming I found myself reading it pretty quickly once I got to know what it is they are trying say. To me it sound like a Irish Dance rather than a Day at the Races.

Pay attention to the fingering and relax wrists. Tempo was at 90. I plugged it in with pianos but later gravitated towards the organ and playing is like a 'Bach' or 'Church Hymn'.

With all this movement throughout the piece the bass noted "A" remains in place like the weight holding the song in place while the rest is suspended, flowing above.

Title "Bossa Per Due" Artist Nicola Conte

I was instructed to learn arpeggios on the guitar. I always wanted to learn them on piano or accordion but never came up in a lesson. Seems to me a good way to learn to play using broken "triads" instead of only scales.

Here's a three chord Bossa Nova tune from the Starbucks "In a Bossa Nova Mood" we broke down. The up tempo track is exciting and gets your attention. I really like the odd "60's chord progression", and loose repeated vocal jibberish. Something out of a Austin Powers movie.

Gminor7 - Eb7 -Gminor - Eb7 Transcribed by Michael Hayes from Dave's Accordion School.

Music Theory "Modes"- by Michael Hayes

"La Mariposita" - P. Frosini

This song has some usual rthyms and sounds very sophisticated. The Chromatic section near the end of page one is VERY difficult to play. Smaller size accordion seems to free me up from being strapped behind a large one and demanding music.

This Frosini was a Master of the Accordionist.

"Blue Note" - Test Your Reading Skills

There is an App on you can download for free that allows the user to practice reading notes just like you would "Flash Cards". I've been using regular Flash Cards to learn my "musical notes" for about a year but still am slow reading bass clef.

The App called "Blue Note" has helped me and is loads more fun than the cards. The problems that still occur are the notes above and below the lined staff. Tonight though I just realized the notes above the bass clef stave are just like reading the treble clef. Just find Middle "C" and then you can see them.

I still not to sure how to memorize the ones below with Bass Clef or the ones above on the treble clef but I will just keep working.

The only way I've been learning the other notes above the treble is by finding the 'octave' or the same note that's below it 8 notes. This works but still am counting ledger lines which I've been told it not the correct why to read.