Don't miss this concert!- Jeb McIntyre [ 5/5/2006 - 08:11 ] #
| We're proud to present GRAMMY® Award-winning guitarist Ed Gerhard this weekend. Considered by many to be the finest guitar player around today. As one critic said, "Ed Gerhard plays songs only the guitar can sing". This is perhaps an understatement. I promise, you won't be disappointed. |
|
|
5/6/2006 (7:30 PM - 10:00 PM) (doors open at 6:30 PM)
Location:
First United Methodist Church
22331 Woodward Avenue
Ferndale, MI 48220
GRAMMY® Award-winning guitarist Ed Gerhard will appear on Saturday, May 6 at the First Methodist Church, 22331 Woodward Ave., Ferndale, MI. Showtime is 7:30pm. Gerhard will be presenting a fingerstyle guitar workshop the following day, May 7, 1-3pm. To register for the workshop call (248) 646-4030.
From sold out tours of Japan to headlining festivals in Italy, Ed Gerhard's music has touched concert audiences all over the world. Gerhard stands out among instrumental performers for his ability to captivate audiences of any size with a combination of virtuosity, generosity and humor distinctly his own. Known for his gorgeous tone and compositional depth, Gerhard can move a listener with a single note.
Ed Gerhard returns to Ferndale celebrating the release of his long awaited blues CD "Sunnyland." It is in homage to his blues heroes. “For me, the blues has been a deep source of inspiration since I began playing the guitar as a kid. Guys like Blind Willie McTell, Tampa Red and especially Mississippi John Hurt were my heroes. While I’ve always played blues I’ve rarely recorded any of it. When James Jensen at Solid Air Records suggested this project to me I jumped at the chance to revisit my old musical stomping grounds. This unexpected trip back to the well really inspired me, and I had a great time writing the music for this record. I think there’s a pretty good mix of styles on there, from great gospel tunes like “Just a Closer Walk With Thee” and “Amazing Grace” to some rollicking uptempo tunes like “Night Owl Blues” and “Little Road”. I hope you’ll enjoy the music.” Ed Gerhard
He has recently been awarded the coveted GRAMMY® Award for his inclusion on Henry Mancini; Pink Guitar. Gerhard arranged and performed "Moon River." His recordings and performances have received unstinting praise, including the Boston Globe Critics' Pick for "Top Ten Albums of the Year." Acoustic Guitar Magazine writes "...his recordings and live performances have established him as one of the most exciting of the guitarist-composers." His music is featured in the Ken Burns documentary Mark Twain.
Gerhard will share an evening of exquisite guitar music- performing songs from newly released CD "Sunnyland" as well as concert favorites. Performing on 6-string, 12-string, slide guitar and Hawaiian lap steel, Gerhard combines rare compositional depth with inspired virtuosity. Fans of guitar music won't want to miss this opportunity to see and hear one of the country's finest players. |
|  | House Concert at Jeb and Betsy's Place- Jeb McIntyre [ 4/21/2006 - 11:48 ] # Saturday April 22, Erika Luckett will be in concert at the Barn in Rochester. The Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society is pleased to welcome award winning singer/songwriter/guitarist, Erika (say “eddie-Kah”) Luckett, back to Rochester Hills to perform a concert at The Barn (2791 Walton Blvd Rochester Hills) as her spring tour breezes through the Midwest.
Get there early, because seating is on a first come first serve basis, and the venue only seats about 65. Doors open at 6:30, and the concert takes place at 7:30 on April 22, and tickets are $15 at the door. Since this is my home, BYOB is ok. This is Erika’s second performance presented by the Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society, a non-profit organization created to promote the appreciation of fingerstyle guitar through concerts, workshops and good will. She played to a packed house in April, 2005 and was so well-received, they’ve invited her back.
Unlike many of the artists we’ve brought in, Erika writes most of her own material, and sings, in addition to being a superb guitar player. She’s also a fine entertainer, blending humor and insight with her musical virtuosity. This is a show you won’t want to miss.
Jeb
Erika Luckett is blazing songs across the global frontier. Some say it's like Michael Hedges' guitar slipped its way onto a Bebel Gilberto vocal track; or that Carlos Santana hung out with Lucinda Williams and came up with a whole new repertoire. Others say she sounds like Shawn Colvin after a steamy adventure in Havana; or like Norah Jones with a funky edge. Performing Songwriter Magazine introduces her this way: "To be blessed with prolific songwriting skills and a captivating voice is one thing. But to absolutely master an instrument on top of that is indeed an enormous accomplishment. Meet Erika Luckett." Whatever the description, it’s clear that Erika Luckett has carved out a new niche.
Distinctions between styles fade beneath the undeniable talent and raw passion that characterizes Erika's music, whether singing in French, Spanish, English or Portuguese...whether tapping out a two handed Latin Funk groove or teasing a lilting melody from her six strings. Her audience may capture frames of Jazz, Folk, Pop, Latin, Flamenco, and Soul, but in the end the full reel of music offers a cohesive and captivating story.
A multi-award winning performer and songwriter, Erika has been honored as Female Artist of the Year 2004 by Just Plain Folks (the world’s largest independent music organization), as well as One of the 100 Most Outstanding Women of the Year 2005 by both Modern Woman Today Magazine and the Jewish Post. Her albums have received numerous accolades including Best International Music CD of the Year 2005 (World Art Celebrities Journal – “Unexpected”), Best Jazz Vocal Album 2003 (Just Plain Folks - “My Little Crime”) and Best Independent Release of the Year 2002 (Acoustic Guitar Magazine - “My Little Crime”).
This is an artist whose music and intention are about building bridges, upholding the beauty and depth of our human expression, and inspiring authentic connection. She donated 100% of the proceeds from the sales of album “The New Orleans Sessions” after hurricane Katrina for relief efforts on the Gulf Coast. Her next album, “Yaxche Live!” (to be released in May 2006) will benefit the Yaxche Learning Center in Taos, New Mexico, a school that cultivates creative and critical thinking as well as an integrative approach to learning.
Come experience the wonder of Erika Luckett in concert on April 22 at 7:30 pm at the The Barn in Rochester Hills - and step into a world where melody, lyrics and groove transcend the limitation of boxes and categories. For more information about this concert, call 248-705-1390, or visit the Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society on the web at www.fingerstyle.org.
| | Stephen Bennett in Concert- Jeb McIntyre [ 1/7/2006 - 14:38 ] # Presented at the First United Methodist Church
22331 Woodward Avenue
Ferndale, MI 48220
Concert at 7:30, doors open at 6:30
Tickets $15, seniors and children $10
Start the new year off with one of the very best!
Stephen Bennett is one of the finest guitarists playing today, and a favorite of the MFGS. His music is evocative, melodic, subtle and complex. His Beatles covers are amongst the best ever done, while his origional compositions are equally extraodinary. His technique is flawless, and his stage presence is delightful. He's one of those rare artists who's equally appealing to both the sophisticated fingerstyle guitar player and their grandmothers.
Whether playing his great-grandfather's harp guitar, his 1930 National Steel or a standard 6-string, Stephen Bennett is a guitarist to hear. His playing has won awards and critical praise. In live performance and on record, his diverse musical influences and interests are joined with a three decade long love affair with the sound of guitar strings.
Stephen's recently released CD contains some of the very best fingerstyle arrangements of Beatles songs ever recorded. Rumor has it another is on the way. Highly recommended.
For guitar players, Stephen's workshops are amongst the very best we've ever hosted. He is simply a brilliant teacher. Moreover, he teaches creativity as much or more than technique. Everyone who attended his last workshop bumped their playing more than a notch! His workshops are suitable for all levels of players.
Space for the workshop is limited, and advanced paid reservations are required. Contact Jeb McIntyre at 248 705.1390 (leave message) or jeb@fingerstyle.org for reservations.
Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society
255 E. Brown St. Suite 101
Birmingham, MI. 48009
248-646-4030 Office
248-646-4598 Fax
Rants, Opinions and Recommendations
| | | Pino Forastiere in Concert- Jeb McIntyre [ 11/13/2005 - 09:18 ] #
Pino Forastiere House Concert - Saturday November 19, 2005
In Rochester Hills at The Barn (private residence of Jeb and Betsy McIntyre)
Advanced Tickets Strongly Recommended!
2791 Walton Blvd
Rochester Hills, Mi
248 705 1390 Phone
 Doors at 6:30pm Showtime is 7:30pm
Cost: $10 per person (No MFGS Discounts)
When you hear him play, you will hear the influence of Michael Hedges, but Pino is no Michael Hedges wanna be. He’s a unique performer who’s advancing the meaning of fingerstyle ever bit as much as Hedges did. Simply put, Pino is at the leading edge of fingerstylests who incorporate the most advanced techniques of this so called “heavy mental” approach to playing. You might say that while Pino was influenced by Hedges, he has clearly picked up where Michael left off.
MFGS is honored and very pleased to sponsor Pino for an intimate house concert at the Barn. A friend once told of seeing Barbara Streisand in a small club in New York. He couldn’t understand how she could not be famous since she was so talented. Shortly thereafter she rose to fame as the broader public realized her talent. We feel that we are getting a rare opportunity to see this international talent before the rest of the world catches on. We believe he is destined to become one of the greats! We hope you will join us.
Directions:The Barn is on the South side of Walton Blvd., just East of Adams. If you know where Meadowbrook Music Theatre is, just go East (toward downtown Rochester) about a half a mile. It’s next to the Church. Pull all the way to the back for the parking lot, or park on any available grass. Alternatively park in the church parking lot if you can’t find a space. Advanced tickets are strongly recommended! We only have space for about 50 people, and when we're full, we're full.
Pino Forastiere Links
Website | Audio & Video | Press Release
Community Information Rants, Opinions and Recommendations Reviews, Recommendations and Warnings
| | | Great Concert Saturday- Jeb McIntyre [ 11/10/2005 - 23:41 ] # 
Billy McLaughlin in Concert
Billy McLaughlin Concert - Saturday Nov 12th 2005
Doors at 6:30 Showtime 7:30
22331 Woodward Ave
First United Methodist Church, Ferndale, MI
248 646 4030 Phone
 Billy McLaughlin will make history when he performs for the Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society on Saturday, November 12th. McLaughlin enjoyed a rising career complete with Top 10 Billboard charting releases (Narada Records/Virgin) and non-stop national touring when he was struck down in 2001 by a mysterious and incurable disease that attacked his fretboard wrist and hand. Rather than quit, McLaughlin has been quietly re-learning his virtuoso repertoire - left-handed! His first-ever-entirely-left-handed-concert is arguably the acoustic guitar comeback event of all-time.
Routinely compared to Stanley Jordan and Michael Hedges, McLaughlin uses unorthodox tunings and techniques, playing with both hands on the fretboard. His compositions have been called "melodic" and "accessible" by the likes of Billboard Magazine, Acoustic Guitar Magazine and the Washington Post. A documentary film, Rewired, is currently in production tracking McLaughlin's journey back to the stage and will be shooting this concert. For the complete rundown on McLaughlin's story, please visit www.billymclaughlin.com
Billy McLaughlin Workshop - Sunday Nov 13th 2005
1pm-3pm
22331 Woodward Ave
First United Methodist Church, Ferndale, MI
Billy McLaughlin will conduct an acoustic guitar workshop on Sunday November 13th at 1pm at the First United Methodist Church in Ferndale. Included in the workshop will be an introduction to two-handed tapping-style. You do not need to be an advanced guitarist to learn something valuable at this workshop! Developing and intermediate level players are encouraged to attend. Additional topics include practical use of alternate tunings, guitar amplification, and a music business question/answer segment.
Workshop space limited. Cost is $35 for MFGS members, $40 for the General Public. Contact Mark Hawks for reservations or info.
Billy McLaughlin Audio Samples
Helms Place | Hurricane Bob | God Rest.. | So Long
Billy McLaughlin's Website
Website | Regarding his MFGS Concert | On Focal Dystonia
Copyright © 2004 Michigan Fingerstyle Guitar Society
Reviews, Recommendations and Warnings
| | | Hard to argue with Yogi Berra - He's brilliant!- Jeb McIntyre [ 6/29/2005 - 13:11 ] # 
Article Courtesy AllAboutJazz.com | |
Yogi Berra Explains Jazz
By AAJ Staff
Interviewer: What do you expect is in store for the future of jazz trumpet?
Yogi: I'm thinkin' there'll be a group of guys who've never met talkin' about it all the time...
Interviewer: Can you explain jazz?
Yogi: I can't, but I will. 90% of all jazz is half improvisation. The other half is the part people play while others are playing something they never played with anyone who played that part. So if you play the wrong part, its right. If you play the right part, it might be right if you play it wrong enough. But if you play it too right, it's wrong.
Interviewer: I don't understand.
Yogi: Anyone who understands jazz knows that you can't understand it. It's too complicated. That's whats so simple about it.
Interviewer: Do you understand it?
Yogi: No. That's why I can explain it. If I understood it, I wouldnt know anything about it.
Interviewer: Are there any great jazz players alive today?
Yogi: No. All the great jazz players alive today are dead. Except for the ones that are still alive. But so many of them are dead, that the ones that are still alive are dying to be like the ones that are dead. Some would kill for it.
Interviewer: What is syncopation?
Yogi: That's when the note that you should hear now happens either before or after you hear it. In jazz, you don't hear notes when they happen because that would be some other type of music. Other types of music can be jazz, but only if they're the same as something different from those other kinds.
Interviewer: Now I really don't understand.
Yogi: I haven't taught you enough for you to not understand jazz that well.
Reprinted with permission. Copyright (c) 2005 AllAboutJazz.com and AAJ Staff .
Humor Rants, Opinions and Recommendations Water Cooler
| | | Community Building- Jeb McIntyre [ 2/8/2005 - 08:32 ] #
Community Information Industry Buzz Industry News Rants, Opinions and Recommendations Reviews, Recommendations and Warnings Technology
| | | Viral VW Ad May be Too Tasteless - But Maybe Not- Jeb McIntyre [ 1/20/2005 - 16:30 ] #
Industry Buzz Industry News Technology
| | | Blogs finally big time- Jeb McIntyre [ 1/4/2005 - 10:32 ] #
Blog reading explodes in America
Americans are becoming avid blog readers, with 32 million getting hooked in 2004, according to new research.
The survey, conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project,
showed that blog readership has shot up by 58% in the last year.
Some of this growth is attributable to political blogs written and read during the US presidential campaign.
Despite the explosive growth, more than 60% of online Americans have still never heard of blogs, the survey found.
Blogs, or web logs, are online spaces in which people can publish their
thoughts, opinions or spread news events in their own words.
Companies such as Google and Microsoft provide users with the tools to publish their own blogs.
Getting involved
The rise of blogs has spawned a new desire for immediate news and
information, with six million Americans now using RSS aggregators.
RSS aggregators are downloaded to PCs and are programmed to subscribe to feeds from blogs, news sites and other websites.
The aggregators automatically compile the latest information published online from the blogs or news sites.
Reading blogs remains far more popular than writing them, the survey found.
Only 7% of the 120 million US adults who use the internet had created a blog or web-based diary.
Getting involved is becoming more popular though, with 12% saying they had posted material or comments on other people's blogs.
|
BLOGGING IN AMERICA
Blog readership has shot up by 58% in 2004
Eight million have created a blog
27% of online Americans have read a blog
5% use RSS aggregators to get news and other information
12% of online Americans have posted comments on blogs
Only 38% of online Americans have heard about blogs
|
Just under one in 10 of the US's internet users read political blogs
such as the Daily Kos or Instapundit during the US presidential
campaign.
Kerry voters were slightly more likely to read them than Bush voters.
Blog creators were likely to be young, well-educated, net-savvy males
with good incomes and college educations, the survey found. This was also true of the average blog reader, although
the survey found there was a greater than average growth in blog
readership among women and those in minorities.
The survey was conducted during November and involved telephone surveys of 1,324 internet users.
Industry Buzz Industry News Technology
| | | How can this Country be so Divided & Stubborn?- Bill Swenson [ 12/21/2004 - 15:44 ] #
Let me give you a topic. What does this map of the long term impact of advertising on our language mean? Does it reveal some little known knowledge about the migrations patterns in the U.S.? I'm feeling verclemped...please discuss...
Community Information Humor Water Cooler
| | | discussion
- I frankly don't understand it. Probably too slow, due to too much pop!
- [Jeb McIntyre] read more (1 total) |
| Kelly's Thanksgiving Thoughts...- Bill Swenson [ 11/24/2004 - 13:29 ] #
Here are some interesting thoughts from Kelly's website on Thanksgiving...
People in Europe were living in squalid conditions, battling hunger and the aftermath of the plague, were being terrorized in the name of religion and came to America, the land of opportunity, in the hopes of building a new and better life. These immigrants, called Pilgrims, were welcomed by the inhabitants of America, the Indians, who were hospitable to the newcomers in every sense of the word. How is it then that the descendants of the Pilgrims managed to take over all the land in America and banish the Indians to hot, arid reservations in the middle of nowhere? Somehow, that has never felt right to me. Do the Indians celebrate Thanksgiving?
 Whenever I gather with my family on Thanksgiving Day and give thanks for the wonderful gifts of life and health, I cannot help but feel guilty. I feel guilty because there are so many people in our wealthy country who have no homes at all and are living on the streets. I feel guilty because in this land of plenty, there are so many people, especially children and the elderly, who have nothing at all to eat and go to bed hungry every night and cry with hunger pangs every day. I feel guilty because I have a family and there are so many in hospitals, institutions, and nursing homes who have no one and have to rely on veritable strangers to remember them for special occasions. I feel guilty because I have a job and although it is very difficult, unfair, and nearly impossible at times, there are people who cannot find employment anywhere and have families to support.
You know, I don't know how to change any of this except to step outside of myself and the comfort zone in which I live and try to be sensitive to the world around me. I thank God I have the inherent ability to empathize with those less fortunate than I. Heaven only knows, I haven't much money, but I am very wealthy in family, friends, and faith. I thank God, too, because I have not become indifferent and callous to the plight of humankind and because He allows me to find beauty intermingled with the hardships in life.
Celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday however you choose but remember to be thankful for whatever it is that you call your life for there really ARE things for which to be grateful. I admit that sometimes one has to search very hard to find something of value. When Corrie Ten Boom, author of "The Hiding Place", and her sister, Betsie, were being held in a Nazi extermination camp for women in a flea-ridden cell in Ravensbruck, Germany, and were being persecuted by the cruel Nazi guards, the other women prisoners were extremely surprised one night to hear Corrie and Betsie thanking God for the fleas. Fleas, for heaven's sake! When questioned about the prayer, the sisters simply replied that the fleas were responsible for keeping the guards away from the women's cell and, therefore, were a blessing for which to be thankful.
Life can be very trying. When your child is hungry, your body wracked with pain, or you have no idea where you and your family will find a place to sleep, it's hard to find something for which you can be thankful. So, for just a few minutes on Thanksgiving Day, step outside your situation and just "be". Find something, no matter how small, to be thankful for because in giving thanks, you will be lightening your load, even if for only a moment.
Community Information
| | | What the Bleep do we Know?- Bill Swenson [ 11/23/2004 - 12:26 ] #
Every now and then a film maker charts a course into little traveled territory and brings to the audience something fresh, stimulating and intelligent. This is the story of the new art film "What the Bleep do we know?". The marketing campaign for this movie has been strictly word of mouth as people who have seen the movie need to discuss it with their friends, so they encourage their friends to see it. It also got a big lift in attendance after the Wall Street Journal reviewer raved about the movie.
Why do people who see need to discuss it with their friends? Because this film maker has delved into the domain of mankind's most fundamental questions: "why are we here?", "how does reality work?", and "what is God?" The film brilliantly interweaves the nuances of quantum mechanics through story telling, interviews with scientists and philosophers all while we watch an unfolding story of a young woman's troubled life finding happiness again.
The use of animation to explain the bio-chemistry of our thoughts interacting with our emotions to form and re-form neural networks in our brain is certainly beyond anything I have seen before! There is something new for everyone to take away from this movie. For example, go here to find out how thoughts and feelings are captured in different shapes of water crystals...then ponder on how our bodies are composed of 80% water...how are our own thoughts and feeling affecting us physically!?
So, I guess I will join their marketing campaign by urging you all to see the movie before it leaves our area. It is at the Royal Oar Art Theater until Thanksgiving. We need to discuss this film!
Industry Buzz Rants, Opinions and Recommendations Water Cooler
| | | Changes in Television Advertising?- Bill Swenson [ 11/12/2004 - 10:02 ] #
Our friends at Adrants point out..." Among members of the American Advertising Federation, 76 percent feel DVR technology will lead to change in television advertising. Many (55 percent) stated non-traditional forms of advertising like product placement will grow but that the :30 will remain the mainstay of the medium. While 76 percent state the medium will see change, just 20 percent think the effect will be "dramatic" such as the death of the :30
MarketingVOX points out most members of the AAF are senior level marketing staff at brand companies who possess a certain level of "cluelessness" about new trends clinging, instead, to old models. This is, perhaps, why, as MarketingVOX claims, television buying rituals have not been affected much yet by this new technology."
Community Information Industry News
| | | Electoral Map- Bill Swenson [ 11/8/2004 - 15:00 ] #
Politics & Religion
| | | THE MASTER'S VERSE- Bill Swenson [ 11/4/2004 - 16:59 ] # Ad legend David Ogilvy treats his fans to three classic anonymous ditties in Ogilvy on Advertising:
Advertising's hallowed origins...
The codfish lays ten thousand eggs,
The homely hen lays one.
The codfish never cackles
To tell you what she's done -
And so we scorn the codfish
While the humble hen we prize.
It only goes to show you
That it pays to advertise!
Advice to illustrators...
When the client moans and sighs,
Make his logo twice the size.
If he still should prove refractory
Show a picture of his factory.
Only in gravest cases
Should you show the clients' faces.
"Copy should be written in the language people use in everyday conversation..."
Carnation Milk is the best in the land,
Here I sit with a can in my hand.
No tits to pull, no hay to pitch,
Just punch a hole in the son-of-a-bitch.
Community Information Humor
| | |
|
|
| << | September 2010 | >> | | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | | 29 | 30 | 31 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 1 | 2 | | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
|
