SaxRules

While the guitar has been a popular instrument for many years, more and more people are wanting to learn to play it for themselves. Teens may fantasize about becoming the next big rockstar, but there are many people who just want to learn to play the guitar just so they can enjoy making music. So many of these enthusiastic guitar fans don't find the best way to learn guitar however, and after a few fruitless attempts they give up. Everyone learns a bit differently. Besides that fact, we all have different resources, different schedules, jobs and demands on our time. If you are not making the strides you wish you were, perhaps it is because you haven't found the best way to learn guitar. There are...

Convertible term insurance is a type of term life insurance, it is also called guaranteed renewable or conversion privilege or guaranteed insurability. The policyholder is allowed to convert the policy to other type of permanent life insurance without any penalty or evidence of insurability. The policyholder may convert this policy to a whole life or endowment life insurance with a higher premium, and he can do the conversion at any time he wishes and the new premium will base on the age at the time of the conversion. This policy is often initially purchased when the insured is young, and at this stage a convertible term insurance may provide sufficient coverage to meet simple needs. At older age...

Life insurances are mostly designed for long term, some of the policies can have refund but some are not, depends on which policy you purchase. For example term life insurance has no cash value, it is designed solely for life protection, upon the maturity the buyer receives no refund, and all the premiums paid will not get back. Whole life insurance has cash value, but it has no maturity, it is a life-long investment. Some people want to have protection and have saving at the mean time; endowment life insurance is the ideal policy, because the buyer can have not only protection, the maturity of the policy is short, and he also benefits the interest and the full amount premium refund upon maturity...

When someone passed away, it is a sad thing, but we still need to claim what he left to us. Therefore it is important that if you bought a life insurance or personal accident, you should immediately inform your family or the beneficiary. A person purchases a life insurance policy he is called the policy holder or insured; the person who in future will receive the compensation upon the death of the insured is called the beneficiary. It is also possible if you want to split the proceeds to two or more persons, then the policy will include their name, then there will be a few beneficiaries endorsed in the policy. In the event of your death the beneficiary will be the one who is legally and eligibly to...

Everybody is interested to learn how to play violin as this could be a very interesting instrument to deal with. You have seen people playing it and you could not help but be awed with how classy it sure looks like. Getting yourself a tutor for taking up violin lessons could be quite pricey but since the technology is a powerful tool these days, the internet could help you out with your violin lessons that would allow you to save both money and time. Online violin lessons is a better, if not, the best solution to your concern. Learn violin fast through the help of the internet. Since the internet is known to have scams, one might get worried if online violin lessons are the best choice. Of course...

The most basic minor scale there is is the natural minor scale. But there are others. Two of them are called the harmonic and melodic minor. Harmonic and melodic minor scales actually come from the natural minor scale. They provide more color to your lead playing, and are easy to learn. Let's go over the natural minor first. This scale comes from the 6th tone of a major scale. Here's the C major scale: C D E F G A B C The 6th tone of this scale (A), gives us the starting point for the A natural minor. Am is also called the relative minor of C, and C is the relative major of Am. This relationship always comes from the 6th tone of a major scale. A B C D E F G A The definition of a harmonic minor scale...

What are AMEB exams? Exam time, the stress, the tension, the hours and hours of practice. Then the day comes, it is your turn to enter the exam room. You play your set pieces; you fly through your technique. The aural tests and sight reading are easier than you thought they would be. What’s left? The general knowledge section, it’s the section that seems to elude many students. The questions they ask are easy! It’s over, you wait for the envelope marked “to the teacher” it holds your exam mark in it. How did you do? You have a peek, you passed! All that hard work finally paid off. What a relief, now to start on your next exam. The Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB) emerged in 1918...

Guitarists have a tendency to be self-taught or, at the most, to have taken a few lessons in an informal setting. This is a very different approach from that of most other instruments, which are generally taught formally and with a heavy emphasis on musical theory and written music. A guitarist, for whatever reason, will usually try to work his way through a new song without the aid of written music. Anyone who has ever participated in a campfire sing-along will be familiar with the blunders of an inexperienced performer trying to get through an unfamiliar song. This does not, however, mean that written music for the guitar does not exist. It does, and it is called guitar tab. If you look up the...

Are you worried about making right career choices for yourself? There are lots of people who tend to choose the wrong career paths and hence they are never satisfied with their work. While choosing your career you need to be very careful. There are certain factors that affect career choices. The factors the affect can either be intrinsic as well as extrinsic. There are certain people who are affected by the choices of their parents. Each and every parent usually has some kind of choices for their child. Some parents have the tendency to force their choice on their child. This is one of the biggest mistakes that the parents commit. If the child does not prefer the career then it can have a bad effect...

I have been asked several times how do you get those great vocal tracks. After the trial and error of engineering for many years, this is what we have found to work for us. Setup: First after listening to the singer we look through our microphone selection and choose 5 or 6 that we think would work well with their voice. Than we setup these microphones and go through the process of them singing though each microphone and each preamp, until we find the combination that brings out the quality of their individual voice. Once we find the combination of microphone and preamp, we go though all the compressors until we find the one that tightens up the track and colors the vocal that produces the sound we...

My dreams of being a young and retired 35 year old went up in flames on my 35th birthday. Having to face the gloom of another 30 years working for the man was just too much to think about. It is not just turning 35 (no it was no mid life crisis) it was more the fact that another one of my dreams didn't come true. I had done all the work on home businesses, and wasted a lot of money, yes they are a great learning school, but really all I was doing was replacing my job with a business which was another job. I have had my fair share of business failures as well. Yes, you do more hours than if you were employed, and you pay yourself a lot less while you are getting your business off the ground, but you...

-> Love Comin' Down is the latest release from Sue Foley, and I can only think of one word to describe this CD... AWESOME! This one grabs your attention right from the very beginning with Two Trains and won't let go until the very last note of the very last song How Strong, which by the way is another great track. One of the refreshingly nice things about this CD is the way all of the participating artists seem to be really enjoying themselves. Combine that with the overall presentation and you've got one of Sue Foley's most impressive releases ever. If you're a Sue Foley fan this is a CD your collection flat cannot be without. In fact, this is one of those CDs that you don't even have to be a fan...

If you don't have a drum set in your home recording studio and you generally only record yourself then you can likely get away with having just one condenser microphone and one dynamic microphone in your studio. If you really want to get great results then you'll want to choose the Shure SM57 as your dynamic microphone and the Neumann U87 as your condenser microphone. These are the two absolute standards in their respective areas. First you need to understand which microphone you use for what. For example for recording vocals you will want to use the Neumann U87 condenser microphone, in fact it's probably the best known vocal microphone in the world. Major music studios all over the place have...

No Assembly Required is the latest Smooth Jazz CD put out by the extremely talented group Pieces of a Dream who once again has delivered a brilliant collection of tracks. I'm confident Pieces of a Dream fans, and Smooth Jazz fans alike will be pleased with this one. It's a rare day indeed that I get a CD from an artist that I can truthfully say does not have a bad track in the bunch. I'm more than happy to announce that's exactly what I must say about this one. There simply is NOT a bad one in the bunch. No fillers here at all, with each song standing tall on it's own. Pieces of a Dream possesses the characteristic of being able to bowl you over with their talents alone. The kind of artist I frankly...

Cinco de Mayo, a wonderful holiday celebrating Mexican independence and Mexican pride, takes place every year on May 5. Mexicans and Americans come together for Cinco de Mayo to enjoy Mexican traditions and festive parties. No matter how you plan to celebrate on Cinco de Mayo, more likely than not you will hear mariachi music. Mariachi music is one of the most familiar of Cinco de Mayo traditions. Mariachi is probably the most well-known genre of Mexican folk music. Almost every American knows the two most popular mariachi songs, "La Cucaracha" and the "Jarabe Tapatío" (a.k.a. "Mexican Hat Dance"). With its distinct sound and characteristic western costumes, mariachi has come to symbolize Mexican...

If you ever get in to a conflict about a verbal agreement that you might have done then the best digital voice recorder will help you come out of it with a lot of ease. We all make agreements as we trust the person involved but what if he does not agree to the agreement and you don't have a witness to prove yourself right. At this time the digital voice recorders can help you come out of the situation. There are a lot of voice recorders that are available in the market and choosing the best digital recorder might be a concern for some. The best thing to do is such a case is either to get an advice from your friend or look for things that you find comfortable. The first thing that you will have to...

My Epiphany As a college music student, I am constantly looking for ways to improve my playing. Although as musicians we are often more concerned about the instrument we are using to create the music, it is important to remember that we must also take care of ourselves. My teacher is a huge advocate for stretching before playing. At first I laughed at the idea. I considered stretching to be exclusive to athletes. Why would I, a wimpy music student, want to be concerned with contorting my body in different ways before I took my instrument out of the case? The answer was simple. I tried a few simple stretches before practicing one day and as if like magic, I had technical accuracy I had never...

After a 9 year hiatus, Sade, the famous one-name neo-soul Jazz singer, on February 9, 2010 released her new CD, Soldier of Love. While Sade has said that she wants to always try something different, this new CD is very close in style and theme to her prior release, Lover's Rock. The majority of songs on Soldier of Love continue to eke out all the pain from Sade's main themes, which are often about love found with sorrow, and love lost with even greater sorrow. Even though it may be more of the same, for those of us who love Sade, that's fine. Her fans have heaped overwhelming praise on Soldier of Love and it is perched firmly at the top of Billboard's Euro Charts. It's been almost 10 years since her...

Many people want to learn how to play the guitar.  Learning to play an instrument with the help of professional teachers will usually cost you a lot of money since you will have one-on-one sessions with the teacher.  You will have to pay the fee per hour.  This is the reason why many people don't want to learn the instrument.  Usually, teenagers want to learn how to play a guitar because they want to play during parties or campfires.  They don't intend to become a professional player.  They just want to know a little bit about guitar playing and play for leisure.  If you are this type of person, online guitar lessons are perfect for you. Online lessons are free or paid, depending on the...

When you think of buying life insurance, you might have term life and whole life insurance come to mind. However, you should consider the mix of these two policies before you start looking for life insurance quotes. This is universal life insurance. Definition This policy also called universal life, it is a type of permanent life insurance that has additional features and advantages; it accumulates cash value through investment of the premium payments, it is similar in some ways and was developed from whole life insurance. The attractive feature of this policy is that it has flexibility of premium payments, and has greater potential for cash value growth; the buyer has the chance to change the...

I had always laughed at the idea of keeping a diary or a journal or whatever you want to call it. I thought it was just a waste of time and something that only innocent little schoolgirls bothered with. However, that all changed when my roommate told me that she liked to write down her thoughts and had pages and pages of it. So, I thought that maybe there was something to be learned here. I gave it a try once and absolutely loved it. I find that I am the most alert and the least distracted first thing in the morning, so that is when I write. It can be about anything, whether what you are feeling, if you are looking forward to something, or if you just need a place to write down your ideas. Sometimes...

A very important, and sometimes overlooked scale is the subject of this article. This one is called the pentatonic scale. The word "penta" means five. This is a five note scale. If you take a major scale and use the 1 2 3 5 and 6 of the chord, then you get the pentatonic scale. This scale is very useful because it doesn't contain a 4th or a 7th. The 4th can be problematic, and the 7th tends to define a chord like dominant 7th has a flat 7 and major has a regular 7. By using the pentatonic scale I avoid these issues. If you want to play pentatonic over a Major scale, just pick the pentatonic that shares the same name. For C Major, use C pentatonic. If you want to use Pentatonic over C7, then pick the...

Being a college student, I have been told time and time again by my professors that the professional life starts now. So I have compiled a handful of tips that should help everyone get on their feet and into the professional world. #1- Make a Resume... A Good One I have several resumes that each highlight different things. Make sure you have at least one good resume (I call it my "General Resume"). It is a nice thing to have on hand and something you can whip out at a moment's notice. Also, make sure you are updating your resume as you go along. Nothing is worse than forgetting some really important detail in your working and volunteering life. #2- Have a Cover Letter Template I have this certain...

I have always been a worrywart. I hate putting myself out in the open and potentially making a fool of myself. I am very shy and do not like to be put on the spot. However, that all changed (and had to!) when I went to college. As a music education major, I am asked to do some pretty ridiculous things every single day (sing in front of your friends, play a piece by sight on an instrument you just learned how to play, to name a few!). I realized that being a shy, overly conscientious person was just not going to cut it. So how did I overcome the idea of making a fool of myself? I just did it. Early on, every time I was asked to do something out of my comfort zone I had this internal war with myself...

Promotional stress balls are very popular promotional gifts.  They are low cost and very good value for money.  Here we look at the popular music themed stress shapes. It seems funny to someone in the stress ball business that people always seem to assume that music themed stress balls will need to be custom made to order. Promotional Stress balls are manufactured in over 1000 popular shapes to promote businesses in almost every industry imaginable, including the music industry. Whether you are promoting a rock concert or a classical symphony concert there are shapes ready and in stock that can and will promote your event in an eye-catching an fun way. Music themed stress balls have in the past...

The exceptionally talented Rock group Dave Matthews Band have released their CD entitled Everyday. I am very confident and happy to announce that I believe Dave Matthews Band fans, and Rock fans alike will be pleased with this one. With the release of Everyday their artistic excellence is on full display as they have once again delivered a brilliant collection of tracks that could very well be their best work to date. It's a rare day indeed that I get a CD from an artist that I can truthfully say does not have a bad track in the bunch. I'm more than happy to announce that's exactly what I must say about this one. There simply is NOT a bad one in the bunch. No fillers here at all. These days it's a...

Electric Ladyland (released in October 1968) is widely considered The Jimi Hendrix Experience's crowning achievement and focuses attention on Hendrix's abilities as singer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer. This stunning collection provides the earliest insight into Hendrix's "Sky Church" concept with featured guest appearances by Steve Winwood, Jack Casady, Al Kooper, Chris Wood, and Buddy Miles. The first time I picked up this album, I knew it was something very special. It really conveys all the different nuances of the Hendrix style. Firstly, the soulful "Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland)", is a great example of Jimi at his thoughtful best with his guitar sounding very mellow. However...

Before These Crowded Streets is the latest release from Rock Artist Dave Matthews, and I can only think of one word to describe it... AWESOME! Before These Crowded Streets opens with a great track, Panatala Naga Pampa, that I suspect will be heard on radio stations everywhere, and deservedly so. It's a really nice track. One of the refreshingly nice things about this CD is the way all of the participating artists seem to be really enjoying themselves. Combine that with the overall presentation and you've got one of Dave Matthews's most impressive releases ever. Listen to Before These Crowded Streets and I believe you'll find there's not much to dis-like about it. The songs are inspired, the...

Violin is a bowed stringed musical instrument that has four tuned strings. It consist of a bridge, peg box, sound post, and chin rest, fingerboard, tailpiece, belly, bass bar, sound holes, and back. Who were the great violin makers in history? Andrea Amati, Gasparo da Salò, Giovanni Maggini, Antonio Stradivari, Giuseppe Guarneri, and Jacob Stainer of Absam were some of the earliest noted violin makers. What instruments make up the violin family? The Violin family of instruments was developed in Italy during the17th century. It consists of instruments such as the violin, viola, cello and the bass viol. Among the different members of the violin family, violin is considered the king of musical...

If you're looking for a perfect way to keep your mind sharp, piano playing is the solution. It exercises several different parts of the mind and body, while providing you with years of musical enjoyment. Whether you play piano currently or are thinking about starting, playing piano is great brain food. Our population is aging. People are living longer lives, and they are constantly looking for brain food to keep their mental prowess in peak condition. One of the best ways to keep those hamsters running might be sitting in the corner of your living room gathering dust. That old piano of grandma's has more than its share of brain teasers. Here are 7 benefits of learning to play the piano: 1.Piano...

I've never met an adult that says "I sure am sorry I learned to play the piano so well when I was a kid." But I've met hundreds of adult who have said "I sure wish I had kept up my piano lessons -- I'd love to be able to play" However, some adults who have been out of practice for several years may find returning to piano lessons challenging. Re-learning piano as an adult can be intimidating. Starting piano lessons again can be fulfilling though for those prepared to tackle the challenges. One of the biggest challenges of re-learning piano as an adult is changing methods. Adults who took only a few years of piano lessons as children may have initially learned to play by rote. Playing piano by rote...

Notes are the musical notation representing a fixed pitch. While the word strictly refers to the physical notation of a pitch, it's more commonly used to refer to both the pitch and the notation. Notes are named after the first seven letters in the alphabet -- A, B, C, D, E, F, and G -- and keep the same letter value as they are repeated up or down the keyboard or other musical instrument. But since there are twelve notes in a diatonic scale, the seven notes can be altered. To get the extra five notes,we sharp notes(raise by a half-step) and flat notes (lower by a half-step); the sharped and flatted notes are the black keys on a piano. All notes can be altered this way, but a C flat is enharmonic...

Wouldn't it be great to be able to write a song especially for a special celebration, or to honor someone that you love? Some people seem to have a natural talent for writing songs. Perhaps you've always believed you aren't one of those people. Think again. If you've ever had the inkling to write a song, you probably have what it takes. All you need are a few tools to help you get started. Would it surprise you to know that many bestselling books, blockbuster movies, and even songs started out as nothing but a title? Believe it or not, starting with nothing but a title is your best bet. Forget lyrics for now. Don't worry if you can't read music and don't play an instrument. Focus on a title...

Gospel music is full of history and soul. It comes from a rich tradition of folk songs and church hymns. Gospel stays alive by remaining relevant, taking various aspects of the musical culture of the day and bringing those aspects into the spiritual fold. In modern gospel, jazz has been introduced into traditional songs. This has sparked the musical term "gospel chords." Gospel chords are extended chords, such as the 9th, 11th and 13th. Maybe you're not familiar with these chords. If you're not sure how to form these chords, here's a brief lesson. Start with a dominant seventh chord. This is a basic triad with a flatted seventh added. For example, in the key of C, the basic triad is C-E-G. This is a...

The piano style is called "swing bass" because your left hand swings back and forth between a low note (or group of notes, such as a 10th, alternating with a chord in the area right below middle C. You definitely know the sound of swing bass when you hear it, even though you may not know its characteristic name. The swing style of playing is great for the piano because of the left-hand, right-hand ability the piano affords. You can play swing bass on the piano with the left hand while the right hand improvises a melody over it. Swing bass starts with an underlying lower register note feel given to a song. Its roots are in jazz from the 1920 to 1940 era. During the 1920s, dance music was very popular...

Our population is aging. People are living longer lives, and they are constantly looking for brain food to keep their mental prowess in peak condition. One of the best ways to keep those hamsters running might be sitting in the corner of your living room gathering dust. That old piano of grandma's has more than its share of brain teasers. If you're looking for a perfect way to keep your mind sharp, piano playing is the solution. It exercises several different parts of the mind and body, while providing you with years of musical enjoyment. Whether you play piano currently or are thinking about starting, playing piano is great brain food. In order to play piano, your hands must develop independent...

Key signatures are a type of musical notation that indicate which key the song is to be played in. But key signatures, despite the name, are not the same thing as key. Key signatures are simply notational devices; just as a note is the notational name for a pitch, key signatures are the notational names for keys. It is what it says it is: a signature, a simple piece of information that tips you off to the physical form (the key) to be played. What does it mean to be "in the key of F", or "in the key of Bb"? It means that the composer based the composition on the scale of F (which has 1 flat in it), or the scale of Bb (which has 2 flats in it). Key signatures appear right after the clef (before the...

Copyright (c) 2010 Robert Hinchliffe Many beginners on the guitar first learn the technique of playing chords. However, there will probably come a time when they want to be able to play tunes or melodic passages too. It is at this point that they will need to learn guitar scales. Scales are the basis of all melody as they are, quite simply, all the notes of a particular key played in ascending or descending order. Whatever instrument you play, scales are important if you are ever going to master the instrument. Many people find the thought of playing scales daunting, but they shouldn't! The secret with scale practice is the 'little and often' approach. Spend just a few minutes at a time on a...

The role of the military drummer is a fascinating chapter from the hidden history of drums. Hidden, because most people are unaware of the vital role played by the military drummer in communicating strategy and keeping the machinery of battle oiled. Battle Stations In the 17th century, in preparation for battle, before the head on clash between rival armies, considerable time was spent maneuvering men into position. The drums were used to convey orders - each 'beat' having a specific meaning instantly recognisable to the soldiers. When the drummer's 'Call' was heard, the men dropped what they were doing and immediately regrouped by their lieutenant or platoon commander to await further signals. The...

How do transposition and modulation relate? Are they the same? Let's take a look at both of them and see what makes them tick. I am sure that you have had the experience sometime in your piano-playing life when someone asks you to play a song -- but in a different key than in which it is written. It might be a singer wanting you to lower the song a step so he/she doesn't screech. It might be a song leader wanting you to play a song in a more comfortable keys for a congregation or group. It might be a trumpet player looking over your shoulder and wanting to play along with you -- but when he/she plays the same note you are playing, it sure doesn't sound the same! So....it's your job, as pianist, to...

George Shearing was born blind on August 13, 1919, but his life has been fast-paced and full of accomplishments. Born in London, Shearing was the youngest of nine children and even though blind from birth, went on to create one of the most recognized sounds in jazz. By the age of three, Shearing learned to play the piano. Then, Linden Lodge School for the Blind was his home away from home for four years. While in school, Shearing also learned to play the accordion. He even performed at a local pub for the equivalent of almost 5 dollars per week. Shortly after, Shearing joined a band of blind musicians. In 1937, at the age of 18, George Shearing began recording music with Leonard Feather. After...

Your choice of clarinet mouthpiece will largely affect the quality and type of sound that you will produce. After all, the mouthpiece is where sound starts and clarinet players have to use the right mouthpiece according to their level of expertise. Choosing a clarinet mouthpiece according to your specific needs and expertise is important to avoid problems while playing. The mouthpiece has several purposes. First of all, it allows the user to get air vibrating through the clarinet in order to produce sound. And second, the mouthpiece works to hold the reed in place. A lot of things go into the decision on the type of mouthpiece that you should use. These include the material, interior and exterior...

Most professional musicians play from a book called a "Fake Book". I bought my first fake book containing only about 200 songs when I was a teenager -- they were illegal then, but most musicians owned them -- for $50. That would be equal to $500. or more now. But fortunately, they have since become legal, so you can buy a real good one with 1000 songs now for $50. or less. A fake book contains just the melody (tune) and the chord symbols of a song, so you have to know chords to use one. But when you do, your playing comes alive -- you're only reading a few notes, but playing lots of notes. Most people learn to play the piano by playing just the written music. Playing by written music is exactly what...

If you've ever wondered how you can know which chords go with which melody notes, I've got good news for you! It's easier than you might think to learn how to go about matching the melody notes (the tune) of any song to the appropriate chords. It's really a simple 2-step process, once you understand it, but if you don't know the secret, you can wonder about it for years. But if you learn it now, you will know it the rest of your life. Back when I was a teenager learning to play the piano, it used to puzzle me which chords to use with which melody notes: "I wonder how those top pianists know which chords to use? I mean, they don't always use the C chord to harmonize the C melody note, or the D chord...

Playing the keyboard is not as difficult as a lot of piano upstarts think. In fact, the piano is the perfect instrument for music beginners, as, unlike other instruments, its layout is straightforward and easy to understand. Plus, in contrast to instruments like the guitar, to play the keyboard doesn't require a lot of unnatural hand contortions -- at least until you get to more advanced pieces, but by then your fingers will be buff. When learning how to play the keyboard, the basics are quite simple. Looking at the piano, there are two types of keys -- white keys and black keys. As you may already know, the musical scale consists of the letters A through G with some sharps/flats mixed in. The...

Jazz pianist Dave Brubeck is one of the stalwarts of jazz piano. His music is characterized by unusual time signatures and can be either extreme - totally dynamic or or completely relaxed. His most famous piece - Take Five - is so popular it has taken on almost cult status, and rightfully so. David Warren Brubeck (aka Dave Brubeck)was born on the 6th of December, 1920. His thing for music came from his mother - an aspiring concert pianist who was formally taught. She used to take piano classes to supplement her income. Despite having such organized music at home, Dave Brubeck took to his own way of learning and playing the piano opting to create his own melodies. He purposely avoided a situation...

Do you recall the advertisement that used to be run in countless magazines and newspapers? "They laughed when I sat down at the piano...but when I started to play..." ? I remember very well the first time I played piano for a group. They DID laugh. It was a disaster. I overheard the leader say "Let's get somebody with some rhythm in there to play." Ouch! That hurt. I determined never to be embarrased like that again, and set out to make sure I never was. Guess what? Nobody laughs anymore. And they don't laugh at my students, either. Why? Because I discovered... -- The BACKDOOR to piano playing -- What in the world is the "backdoor to piano playing? Chords. There is a "backdoor" to playing the piano...

My freshman year of college I got well-acquainted with a little something called "coffee." I blame my addicted roommate for getting me hooked. However, to begin with for a while, I found that after I drank a cup of coffee, the only thing I could think about was how much more I wanted to go to sleep once I had downed it. After going through countless times where my roommate would laugh at me as I turned in for a midday nap and she was raring to go until four in the morning, I realized that perhaps something was a bit strange. After all, why would the beverage known for keeping people awake do nothing but put me to sleep? I set off to do some research. Obviously when we talk about coffee keeping us...

Just what is it about the tritone chord progression that makes it so mysterious? Perhaps it has to do with its dissonant, clashing sound. It may have something to do with its dubious history. Whatever it is, the tritone chord progression in music made a comeback in music after several centuries of bad publicity. 'Tritone" is defined as a musical interval that spans three whole tones. A tritone chord may also be called an augmented fourth or diminished fifth chord. The tritone sounds like a clash, or as a dissonant chord. For this reason, the tritone chord was often avoided during Medieval times through to the end of the Romantic era. For hundreds of years musical styles were, in large part, dictated...