Every Monday night from 7pm to 10pm, the Fiesta Chorus of Tempe rehearses at Resurrection Catholic Church (McCarthy Hall) - 3201 South Evergreen Street in Tempe. Rehearsals are open to the public.
Every Wednesday night from 5pm to 10pm during the months of September, October, and November, Tempe Center for the Arts presents Walk-In Wednesdays Open Mic Night. Featuring Walt Richardson, Walk-in Wednesdays offers musicians a chance to play their songs in a friendly, attentive atmosphere void of noisy nightclub indifference. All musicians are welcome, and food and beverage are available.
Saturday, October 16th from 6pm to 10pm, Desert Sky Baptist Church presents Battle of the Bands at Desert Sky Baptist Church in Casa Grande. Bands are challenged to write an original song inspired by all or part of Psalm 40. The audience will vote to award one prize in addition to the prize awarded by the judges. Food booths and other vendors will be on-site, along with bounce houses for the kids.
Admission is free.
Saturday, October 16th at 7:00pm in the McClintock High School Auditorium in Tempe and Sunday, October 17th at 2pm in the Sundial Auditorium in Sun City, the Coastal Communities Concert Band of Southern California is coming to the Phoenix area for two concerts and will be performing music that has entertained audiences worldwide. The band has received the "Sudler Silver Scroll Award" from the John Philip Sousa Foundation, and in 2001 it was awarded the "Gold Prize" at the 4th Annual International Alpine Music Festival in Saas-Fee, Switzerland. The Arizona concerts will include music from the Broadway stage and the movies, along with a variety of other concert band favorites. These concerts will feature special guest Paul McDermand, percussionist, who performed for 22 years at the Hyatt Regency and currently appears alongside popular guitarist Esteban. Tickets are $12 for general admission and $10 for seniors and students.
Thursday, October 21st through Sunday, October 23rd, Monday, October 25th, and Thursday, October 28th through Saturday, October 30th, Act I Musical Productions presents Oliver! at MCC Theatre Outback in Mesa.
Based on Charles Dickens' novel about the orphan Oliver Twist and his adventures as one of Fagin's pick pocketing crew, Oliver! had the longest run of any British musical presented in New York in the 1960s. The show was revived on Broadway in 1984. All shows start at 7:30pm except for October 30th, which starts at 2:00pm. Tickets are $15 for General Public, $10 for Seniors and Students.
Thursday, October 21th through Sunday, October 24th, and Thursday, October 28th through Sunday, October 31st,
Mesa Encore Theatre presents Bye Bye Birdie at Mesa Arts Center Nesbitt/Elliott Playhouse. One of the most captivating musical shows of our time, it is a satire done with the fondest affection, and tells the story of a rock and roll singer who is about to be inducted into the army. This is the tops in imagination and good old fashion fun. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday shows start at 7:30pm, and Sunday shows start at 2:30pm. Tickets start at $15.
Friday, October 22nd at 7:30pm, the KOG Concert Series presents Tetra String Quartet at King of Glory Lutheran Church in Tempe. Tetra, a string quartet founded by four young professional musicians who teach and perform in the Phoenix community, will present a diverse program that spans three eras of the string quartet genre, including works by Haydn, Mendelssohn and Shostakovich. A free will offering will be taken.
Saturday, October 30th at 7:30pm, the Phoenix Chorale presents Nature Sings! at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Phoenix. From majestic mountains to tempestuous seas and from the four elements – earth, wind, fire and water – to plant and animal life, experience how composers over the ages have celebrated planet Earth. Featuring Aaron Copland’s masterwork “In the Beginning” for mezzo soprano soloist and unaccompanied choir, Les Chant des Oyseaux (“The Song of the Birds”) by Clément Janequin, “Sand County” by Jean Belmont Ford, six part-songs about nature by Felix Mendelssohn, and R. Murray Schafer’s frolicking (and a bit scandalous) “A Medieval Bestiary.”
Tickets are $25 for general admission, $20 for seniors and military, and $10 for students.
Saturday, October 30th at 8pm, Lakeshore Jazz Series presents Karrin Allyson & the ASU Jazz Orchestra at the Tempe Center for the Arts.
Tuesday, November 2nd at 7pm, join the Metropolitan Youth Symphony for their concert at the Mesa Arts Center.
Saturday, November 6th from 4:30pm to 6pm, the Orpheus Male Chorus presents Festival of the Male Voice: Boys to Men VII at Camelback Bible Church in Paradise Valley. Over 200 male singers - ranging in age from childhood to their twilight years - will take part in this unique education event. This year’s Boys to Men Festival is presented by Orpheus Male Chorus, Arizona’s oldest choir, founded in 1929. Organizers have invited the Arizona State University Men's Chorus, Phoenix Metropolitan Men's Chorus, Spirit of Phoenix, and Phoenix Boys Choir to join in this celebration of the male voice. Tickets are $3.00 (12 and under are free) and will be sold at the door.
Sunday, November 7th from 3pm to 4:30pm, the KOG Concert Series presents The KAT Trio at King of Glory Lutheran Church in Tempe. Their performance will feature classical works, well-known inspirational songs, and American pop standards, including Scott Joplin's rags, performed on clarinet, violin, and piano. A free will offering will be taken.
Sound of Music 45th Anniversary Reunion on Oprah Show Oct. 29th
"On October 29, 2010, Oprah will host the cast of the 1965 film version of The Sound of Music. The entire cast will appear on the program, which will feature a performance by the real-life von Trapp Family Singers. . The cast reunion is timed to The Sound of Music 45th Anniversary Limited Edition Collection, Blu-ray and DVD Combo Packs, all which include a version of the film that has been meticulously restored and re-mastered, will be available beginning November 2 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.
Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music film was directed by Robert Wise and stars Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer. Ernest Lehman wrote the screenplay.
The musical originated with the book The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria von Trapp. It contains many popular songs, including "Edelweiss", "My Favorite Things", "Climb Ev'ry Mountain", "Do-Re-Mi", "Sixteen Going on Seventeen", and "The Lonely Goatherd", as well as the title song.
The movie version was filmed on location in Salzburg, Austria and Bavaria in Southern Germany, and also at the 20th Century Fox Studios in California. It won a total of five Academy Awards including Best Picture in 1965 and is one of the most popular musicals ever produced. The cast album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Album of the Year. Adjusted for inflation, it made $1.046 billion domestically at 2010 prices, putting it third on the list of all-time inflation-adjusted box office hits, behind Gone with the Wind and Star Wars.
The Oprah Winfrey Show airs weekdays at 4pm on ABC." - Article from BroadwayWorld.com
With the Halloween Scream Machine, you can layer special effect noises over one of three looping background sounds, set a delay for you effects, and even record your own scary sounds.
This month until October 31st, we're selling 31 new guitars - all name brands, such as Alvarez, Hamer, Ibanez, Martin, Schecter, and Yamaha - at the lowest prices we’ve offered...ever! But you need to come on in, because these scary (to us) deals are only available in-store. You can also get a jump on Christmas while skipping the horrifying lines and crowds of Black Friday by choosing layaway for the holidays with just a 20% down deposit.
Martin SP® Lifespan™ Strings
From Martin: "The all-new Martin SP Lifespan acoustic guitar strings are
treated with Cleartone proprietary technology to bring you
the longest possible string life without sacrificing tone or
natural feel.
Martin SP Lifespan strings are designed to repel the oils
and dirt that can deaden strings. All six strings are treated
to preserve the natural Martin SP sound and feel that players
prefer."
These are the new coated extended life strings that are offered by Martin. Replacing the MS+ series, these are also very good sounding and feeling strings. The coating or plating on the strings prevents oils, dirt, and grease from deteriorating the string and dulling the sound. Like the previous Martin extended life strings, these feel completely natural. Some of the other coated strings feel greasy or oily to me. Some people like the fact that those strings have much less string noise. I’ll be using these as my new steel acoustic string choice.
-JP
This month, take 30% off all in-stock Martin Strings when you bring in the coupon. When ordering online, use Discount Coupon code "30MARTIN".
We get a lot of questions about mutes for strings. There are two categories: mutes and practice mutes.
Regular mutes are used while playing in an orchestra and will be dictated by the music ("con sordini" - with mutes, or "con sordino" - with mute). An entire orchestra or orchestral section playing with mutes creates a hushed or whispered effect. These mutes can be made out of wood, metal, or leather, but are most commonly made out of rubber, and are slid over the bridge to dampen the vibrations being transmitted across the bridge. Most have a method of staying on the instrument between bridge and tailpiece when not in use, usually by hooking around 1 or 2 strings. If your or your child's orchestra director is requiring a mute, this is most likely what he or she is referring to.
Practice mutes are used to deaden the sound almost completely. Also called hotel mutes, practice mutes make it possible to practice in places where excessive sound is a problem - such as in a hotel room, dorm room, apartment, or later at night. Practice mutes can be made of metal or rubber and are much larger than regular mutes. Whereas a regular mute slips over a section of the bridge, a practice mute will cover the entire bridge.
JP and fellow musicians Bryan, Bill, and Byron provided the music for a children's event at Community of Hope in Maricopa. The guys really got into the spirit of the event sporting their Daisy Rock guitars. The kids loved the spectacle and a good time was had by all.
