How to Start Up a FM Radio Station

Writen by Claire Calkin

Whether you are looking for information on how to start up a FM radio station that operates on a low power FM basis, operates on a full power frequency or alternatively streams on the internet, it is essential to first establish what the options available to you are. It is also important to understand the process for obtaining a frequency, what the licensing requirements are, and also what type of FM broadcasting equipment and studio gear you will need to run the radio station.

The following is a brief outline of some of the options that may be available. Please that not all options may be available in all countries, as license conditions do vary.

When it comes to how to start up a FM radio station, one of the options is low power FM. This type of radio station operates at lesser power than commercial stations and so they cover a smaller area. The exact area they will cover is dependent on terrain and the exact amount of power you are permitted. Again depending on the country you live in, the low power FM service may enable you to broadcast anywhere near from 500mW to 100W, and may be license-free or alternatively it may be licensed. This level of power is sufficient to cover anywhere between a radius of a few kilometres to several kilometres.

Another option is operating a full power licensed radio station. This type of frequency will give station maximum coverage and will enable you to reach as many listeners as possible. Depending on the country you live in, there can frequently be provisions to operate on a full power frequency, but either on a commercial, non-commercial or educational basis. However, operating a full power FM radio station can be a somewhat complicated process - especially during the initial stages of determining whether there are frequencies available in your area and also costing the equipment that is needed. If you want to start up a full power FM radio station, then it is essential to get expert guidance at the earliest stage. This will ensure you get the information you need to make an informed decision.

If these options don’t appeal or are not available in your area, you have one other method for how to start up a FM radio station. You are able to establish a station that streams on the internet. It will be available to a worldwide audience and can stream in your choice of format. Common formats include Winamp and Windows Media Player, although generally we recommend the latter as most people won’t need to download any additional software to listen to your station. This type of radio station can use a great deal of bandwidth, so it is important to have a fast speed internet connection with a high data cap limit.

When it comes to choosing the type of station you will set up, one of the most common constraints is budget. That said, it has been proven that a station can start out on a low power FM basis and successfully make the transition to operating a full power licensed commercial FM radio station. Some of the points to consider when looking how to start up a FM radio station include:

- The process for obtaining an FM frequency and what to look out for

- How many Watts you will need to achieve the broadcast coverage you want

- What your obligations will be when it comes to music royalties

- What specialist services you need before to assist you in submitting your application for a frequency

- What is the most appropriate powered transmitter and what type of antenna would be needed

- The type of radio automation software that will be used

For further information on how to start up a FM radio station please visit http://www.themulcher.com or email radio@themulcher.com

The Mulcher FM has over 5 years experience helping set up over a dozen low power FM and commercial FM radio stations across New Zealand and the Pacific Islands, as well as advising on countless other installations in the US, UK and other parts of the world…

Classical Music

Writen by Eddie Tobey

Classical music, like other forms of classical art, has not as many takers as those of light music. Nonetheless, classical music has its fans too and lots more are falling to its charms. Yet, those who turn to it often find it rather beyond their understanding and real appreciation. They are charmed by it, but they cannot critically explain why it appeals them. You cannot rationalize its appeal or beauty.

Another reason why a large majority of people are not very comfortable with classical music is its complexity and a sense of distance from the artist. Light music can be easily sung by ordinary artists with whom ordinary listeners can identify easily. It expresses the feelings of ordinary persons in their own language. Classical music, on the other hand, is rather mysterious and is rendered in diverse styles and it takes years, sometimes a life long time to understand .But its study has its rewards too. The more you study it, the more you enjoy it and the more you find it wonderful and worth the effort and hard work to study it.

The study or appreciation of classical music depends upon your individual taste. A form of music that appeals to you may not appeal to another person. You may come across experts who may try to influence you by their judgments about the quality of music. You may listen to them, but you should not compel yourself to like the music that they like. Or if you come across a much-acclaimed piece of music that you cannot really appreciate, you do not have to blame yourself for not liking it. You may of course try to find out why the particular expert likes a given piece of music. May be, you find some point to learn.

The most important thing about classical music is to listen to it as much as you can. Classical music CDs are available from many sources. If you are a student, your college library may have an abundant stock of classical music CDs. You can listen to radio, watch TV, and go to concerts and recitals. You can also get free downloads from the Internet, if you do not want to spend money.

Classical Music provides detailed information on Classical Music, Classical Music CD, Classical Music Downloads, Free Classical Music and more. Classical Music is affiliated with Country Music CDs.

Are Independent Voiceover Artists Reaping All the Benefits of Technology?

Writen by Doc Phillips

It’s already difficult enough just to learn the business of the voiceover industry, let alone attempting to keep up with the ever-evolving technological aspects. But, I assure you, it’s a must for those of us making a living with our voices.

Hardware is in a perpetual state of flux with companies competing with each other. While these companies certainly have their board of directors firmly embedded in their creative process, some are or already have developed some of the neatest new tools ever. What I mean by this is that, of course, bottom line and profits are the impetus of the suits involved. But, the creative types truly want to assist the voiceover artist or producer in providing the latest, greatest technology in an effort to make our jobs easier and more convenient.

Mobile production is gaining momentum within the voiceover industry. In order for voiceover artists to retain their established clients, they must be available at a moment’s notice, ready to produce the voiceover the client needed yesterday. Before mobile production technology, the voiceover artist remained confined to their studio 365 days a year. It’s not just the money for the voiceover artist either. It’s the prestige and the pride of being able to provide for their clients. Now, the voiceover artist need only pack a few pieces of gear to take that respite from the confines of their studio. Enjoy a getaway in the form of a vacation. Vacation? Yes, vacation. Oh, you’ll receive calls while you’re relaxing on the beach or hitting the slopes. But, you need only take a short break to deliver the client’s needs. You’ve made some money to pay for that vacation AND you’ve met your client’s needs and retained their business.

One of the latest pieces of gear simply amazes me. This hand-held studio manufactured by one of the largest audio/visual companies ever, provides everything the voiceover artist needs to produce that all-important voiceover in a self-contained unit that fits in your hand! It’s all there. You won’t need to pack up several hard-shell cases full of gear for the road. But, it won’t come cheap! You’ll have to decide for yourself.

Software is also being developed which will eventually replace clunky, expensive hardware. This will be a welcome problem-solver for the stationary studio user. Do you use ISDN in your studio? Sure you do. Remember what you paid just for the codec - let alone the line fees? I happen to know that there’s a software solution on the horizon that will replace the need for the extra rack space in your studio and will cost nowhere near what you paid for your Telos or your Comrex! There will still be fees for server maintainence and you’ll need a good broadband connection - but, you will welcome this technology when it becomes available. A little birdie told me that should happen within the next couple of months.

So, strap yourselves in, kids! Stay up with the technology. Hell, by the time this article is published it may all be obsolete.

Doc Phillips has been providing voice work in one way or another for 30 years. He is also an internet entrepreneur who hosts and manages several sites. He built, maintains and “markets” his website, http://www.docphillips.com

Piano Lessons: How Parents Can Support their Child’s Piano Teacher

Writen by Cynthia VanLandingham

Parents can play an important role supporting their child’s piano lessons and their piano teacher. However, about a third of parents do too much and try to take over responsibility for their child’s progress, which hinders their child’s ability to develop positive learning skills on their own. In contrast, about a third of parents don’t do enough, and fail to support and can get in the way of their child’s learning. The remaining 1/3 gets it right.

Take the survey below to find out which group you fall into.

1. Regarding your child’s progress, do you

a) feel personally embarrassed if your child is not progressing as fast as you think they should;

b) want your child to do their best;

c) feel that it doesn’t really matter how your child is doing, as lessons aren’t that important anyway.

2. When your child’s lesson is over, do you

a) come into the lesson at least five minutes before it ends so you can quiz the teacher about how everything is going;

b) pick them up on time and be available in case the teacher needs to talk to you about your child’s lesson;

c) try to get back to the studio within 15 minutes or so of the lesson’s end and figure that the teacher will come out and talk to you if anything really important is going.

3) Regarding bringing your child’s music books to lessons, do you

a) Send in other music books you would prefer your child play from;

b) Make sure your child brings them to their lessons;

c) Figure that the teacher has extra books in case you forget to bring yours.

4) if your child is going to have to miss a lessons, do you

a) demand an immediate make-up lesson to get your money’s worth;

b) call the teacher ahead of time to try to reschedule if a space is available;

c) figure it’s no big deal and the teacher will figure out that your child isn’t coming when they don’t show up.

5) When your child plays in a recital, do you

a) cringe with embarrassment if they miss a note and admonish them later for embarrassing themselves;

b) encourage your child to do their best but have fun with it;

c) tell your child it isn’t important enough to attend.

6) Regarding your child’s weekly piano lesson, do you

a) insist that your child practice and know every song perfectly before the next lesson;

b) know what they should be practicing each week and keep track of whether they are doing it

c) don’t sweat it if your child doesn’t practice during the week.

7) Regarding the music that your child’s piano teacher assigns, do you

a) want to be personally involved in picking the songs so that your child will play your favorites;

b) think your child’s teacher is the best person to assign music that is appropriate for your child’s skills;

c) try to avoid knowing what music your child is assigned.

Regarding your child’s practice, do you

a) tell the teacher each week in front of your child that they aren’t practicing hard enough to make them feel ashamed and spur them on to greater effort;

b) make sure you are home enough so your child can set a pattern of routine practice and make consistent progress over time;

c) Feel that your child shouldn’t have to practice if they don’t want to.

9) Regarding your child’s progress, do you

a) Compare how fast they are progressing to other children you know;

b) Encourage them to do their best and discuss their progress periodically with their teacher;

c) Believe that progress is all relative, so why worry about it.

10) If you are concerned that your child isn’t doing something right, do you

a) discuss it with your teacher in front of your child so they will know you are monitoring their progress;

b) discuss it with your child’s teacher, but not in front of your child;

c) don’t worry because it is the teacher’s problem.

If you find that you have answered “a” to several of these questions, you may well be taking TOO much responsibility for your child’s progress and can be viewing their progress as a reflection of your skills as a parent rather than your child’s own development. You may need to mellow out a bit and realize that your child’s piano lessons aren’t about you, but are a gift to them. If you find yourself answering “c” to several questions, you may well be abdicating part of your responsibility as a parent and may be missing out on a wonderful way to encourage your child’s success. If you find that you have answered “b” to most questions, relax. You are doing well as a piano

For great home piano activities parents can use to help children ages 5 to 11 develop their musical talent, visit Piano Adventure Bears Music Education Resources You’ll find a treasure box filled with piano resources to create an exciting musical adventure for your child - right in your own home! Visit their website and subscribe to their f’ree internet newsletter so you can download f’ree piano sheet music and mp3s of original piano compositions.

These exciting stories, games, piano lessons, and inspirational gifts feature the Piano Adventure Bears, Mrs. Treble Beary and her new piano student, Albeart Littlebud. Young students follow along with Albeart to learn what piano lessons are all about in a fun way that kids readily understand appreciate. Click here to visit PianoAdventureBears.com For a wealth of information about piano lessons, visit tallypiano.com

Guitar Tablature: Learn To Play Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star With Guitar Tab

Writen by Peter Edvinsson

Even if you haven’t played guitar tablature before you can impress or maybe shock your friends by playing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. Let’s start playing guitar tab!

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star is a popular English nursery rhyme with the French melody Ah! Vous dirais-je, Maman. You can play this song on the first three strings on the guitar.

The text is from a poem, “The Star”, by Jane Taylor. It was first published in 1806. Here you have the English lyrics:

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!
Up above the world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!

We will use guitar tablature so you will not need to read sheet music. You will only use the thinnest strings on the guitar. The string with the highest pitch is called the first string or E-string. Look at the following guitar tab:

1. 0-0-0-0—————–
2. ——–1-1-1-1———
3. —————-2-2-2-2-

This is a tablature staff and the four number 0 indicate that you play the first string four times without pressing down any finger on your right hand. This is called to play on an open string.

The four number 1 coming after is played on the second string pressing down your first finger on the first fret. Then you will play the third string four times pressing down the string on the second fret. This is what the previous guitar tablature notation is telling you.

Let’s play the first notes of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star with guitar tablature:

1. ————0–0————————–
2. ——3–3——-3—-1–1–0–0———-
3. 0–0—————————–2–2–0–

If you want to use your left hand in a professional way you can play the guitar tab notes on the first fret with your first finger, notes on the second fret with your middle finger and the notes on the third fret with your ring finger.

Now it’s only one guitar tablature part left:

1. 3–3–1–1–0–0—–
2. ——————3–
3. ———————

After having played this part twice, go back and play the first guitar tablature part and the melody is complete.

Now when you understand guitar tablature notation you can find many songs written this way on the internet. Search for guitar tab or guitar tablature. A complete guitar tablature staff has six lines representing the six strings.

If you have an ukulele hanging somewhere you can use the previous tablature too. The first three strings on an ukulele is tuned the same way as on the guitar.

Just one more thing for you to do. Play the song for your friends! Good luck!

Peter Edvinsson is a musician, composer and music teacher. Visit his site Capotasto Music and download your free printable sheet music, guitar tab and learn to play resources at http://www.capotastomusic.com

How You Can Improve Your Songwriting Skill

Writen by Mantius Cazaubon

Are you a beginning songwriter who strives towards writing songs that become hits? Do you need to know how you can improve your songwriting skill?

It’s not too complicated. Don’t try to re-invent the wheel. As far as I’m concerned the best way to improve your songwriting is to study what hit songwriters do. Forget about the mediocre stuff and learn from the leaders in the songwriting and music industry. Study what works.

As a songwriter who has written quite a few number one songs in my country, one thing that has helped me and continues to help me is the radio. I listen to the radio all the time so I know what type of song is happening. I know what people like, what they want to hear, and what is current. This gives me a good idea of what kind of song I should write to target a particular market.

When you listen to the radio, take notes on what hit songs have in common. Study the structure of these songs. What tempo seems to work? Are the chord progressions complicated or are the songs based mainly on riffs? What kind of chords are used? That way you can write songs that appeal to today’s audience. No matter how good your song is, if it sounds like something that would be better suited to ten or twenty years ago, you can forget it.

It is a shame how some songwriters treat the songwriting craft. I’m sorry, but if you do not spend time at developing your craft you are bound to fail. I don’t care if it’s baseball or dancing, those people who come out and top are the very same ones who practice everyday. Those who spend years at perfecting their craft. So learn form those who were there before you. Study and write songs everyday. Lay hold of songwriting books, get songwriting software, do anything to take you to the next level.

To improve, a songwriter needs to become more knowledgeable everyday. The more things you know about, and the more you can relate to different aspects of everyday life, the better for you. I never heard of a novelist who didn’t read constantly. The same applies to songwriting and great songwriters. You must put in a lot of work if you want to excel.

Nothing comes easy in life. Work, work, and work some more. Pattern your writing after what has been proven to work, but never copy. Do it everyday and reap the rewards.

Mantius Cazaubon offers lots of valuable songwriting tips, techniques, suggestions and advice on his site http://www.ultimatesongwriting.com Visit Ultimate Songwriting for the ultimate truth about lyric writing and songwriting.

Why You Can’t Play Piano

Writen by Edward Weiss

It’s really not your fault. You see, you’ve been taught that in order to play piano you need to first learn how to read music, and second, play other peoples music.

Don’t feel bad. You’re not alone. Thousand upon thousands of frustrated piano students long to understand the “mystery” of creating music on this fantastic instrument only to be let down.

They work so hard learning note reading that they miss the most important aspect - understanding how music works! Guitarists don’t have this problem. They jump into chords right away and are satisfied immediately.

For some reason, chords are not emphasized when teachers set out to instruct students. Their agenda usually revolves around starting you out on a series of grade books that progressively moves you up until you can play other peoples music. Absurd!

Now, I’m not saying that note reading is a bad thing. I am saying that there is no reason to start studying the piano this way. If you start by playing chords, you will begin to understand theory. And you will join the ranks of creative people who get it. They know that melody and harmony make music. They get the harmony part first (chord understanding) and then the melody is easy to play!

Of course, there are other aspects of music making that a student must understand if he or she is interested in making music. But by starting with chords, the piano student has quite an advantage over their note reading counterparts.

Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music’s online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lessons.html for a FREE piano lesson!

You Can Easily Learn To Play The Harmonica

Writen by Morgan Hamilton

If you’d like to learn to play the harmonica the best thing you can do is to take one. Even though there are hundreds of programs offering sheet music and instructions, may be it would be better for you to start experimenting on your own as playing the harmonica is not really hard. You can start on your own and later get formal instructions of various harmonica masters.

If you stick up to my advice, you’ll get what’s really valuable - your own ideas and understanding of the instrument. I personally learnt to play the harmonica about seven years ago and most of the time I was experimenting on my own, though I admit to having used some formal instructions from time to time, too.

As the harmonica is laid out in an intuitive way, learning how to play it by yourself is not a difficult task and it’s worth trying. You can purchase a harmonica with a small introductory packet explaining the layout enclosed in the box. What is important to know is that everything is already set up in the chords. You need to play most kinds of music on a richter, or ten hole diatonic, harp, which gives you the opportunity to pick out basic melodies as soon as you try playing the harmonica for the first time. Having the basic knowledge, you can easily improve your skills by regularly practicing playing this beautiful instrument.

If you have already learnt the basics, then you might consider getting some professional help. Of course you can start taking harmonica lessons by a teacher or you can simply start listening to harmonica music played by other musicians. Music is said to be the best teacher, so why don’t you gibe the second option a try. In case you do so, you will get many new ideas and in addition to that playing the harmonica might enable you to give your own musical expressions which will be added up to your repertoire.

If you choose to get a harmonica teacher verify that they are experts in playing the exact same style that you want. For instance, imagine you learned to play the harmonica in the Chicago bells mode, then you would not be able to play bluegrass or country blues harp as they all are very different styles.

"Who Else Wants to Get Screwed When Signing a Recording or Songwriting Deal?!?!"

Writen by Ty Cohen

You’ve got your recording (or songwriting) contract in hand and everything’s coming up roses, right? You get your check, finally, but it’s not quite what you expected. If you sign not knowing what’s owed you then you might be shorted some well-deserved income. So make sure that anything you sign contains a statement to the following areas (preferably in your favor):

Performing Rights - this means you get a chunk of the change when your songs are played over the radio, television, Internet and at some public venues like concerts and such. And who keeps tabs on this? Check out ASCAP-http://www.ascap.com/index.html, SESAC- http://www.sesac.com/home.asp and BMI- http://www.bmi.com.

Mechanical Rights - This is the most commonly known. It includes anything physical such as tapes, CDs, etc. The Harry Fox Agency is nearly 80 years old and for artists with 2500 or less recordings they can learn more at http://www.songfile.com/ regarding small licensing.

Print Rights - Exactly that - anything in print like lyrics or sheet music.

Foreign Rights - Again, anything that deals with foreign publishing and licensing.

Synchronization Rights - Ever heard a Garth Brooks or Rolling Stone song in a movie or television show? That’s synchronization and it can mean big bucks although some artists overlook this very important right when signing.

If you fail to have some or all of these areas covered when signing a contract it can mean the loss of big money for you. If you can afford it hire only the best entertainment attorney to handle your contracts. A good attorney can be expensive, especially if he has to do all the legwork but you can save time and money by looking into products such as the 101 Music Business Contracts software at http://www.MusicContracts101.com . This easy to use, contracts creation software features over 100, professionally drafted, music business contracts and agreements. As with any contract you sign - be it a house loan or a recording contract - it’s best to have an attorney look the documents over before doing a final signing. However, a great money saver is arming yourself with knowledge, like 101 Music Business Contracts, before you ever set foot in a law firm.

This article was written by Ty Cohen, the music industry’s most recognizable voice! Ty is the C.E.O of Platinum Millennium Publishing, Platinum Millennium Records as well as owner of http://www.MusicContracts101.com and http://www.MusicIndustrySuccess.com

How To Tune Guitar: How Do You Tune A Guitar? 4 Different Ways (Plus Drop D Tuning)

Writen by Alan Marquez

Is your guitar out of tune? There are many ways to fix that. Here are four methods to tune your guitar.

Use An Electronic Tuner
This is the easiest way to tune a guitar. Electronic tuners come in various styles and qualities. Some use a microphone to hear the pitches, and some you can plug directly into (if you have an electric guitar). They show the note with either a needle indicating how close to the pitch you are, or a simple digital readout. It can be with a digital meter, or it can be a set of lights with different colors to indicate when you’re tuned to the proper note. The best tuners can tune any string to any note. Be cautious about buying a cheap tuner, as it may not pick up the sound of your guitar accurately.

Use Another Instrument
This method means you’re tuning by ear to another instrument that can play the notes for you. This can be another guitar, a piano, a handheld pitch pipe, or even your computer. To tune with this method, you have to play the proper note for each string, then tune the string until it matches the pitch played.

Tune The Guitar To Itself
To use this method, it’s assumed you’re doing standard tuning, and you’re trying to tune your strings to EADGBE (from low to high). If you use this method, it’s a good idea to have at least one of the strings in proper tune, although it’s not necessary. If you don’t have another instrument or an electronic tuner, you can tune your guitar by playing the right note for the next string.

This means that if you want to tune your A string, you play the fifth fret on the low E string.

e——–
B——–
G——–
D——–
A—0—-
E—5—-

The fifth fret is an A note, and it should be exactly the same pitch as your open A string. You do this for every other string. The fifth fret of the A string is a D, the fifth fret of the D string is a G, the fourth fret of the G string is a B, and the fifth fret of the B string is an E. So when you play the fifth fret of every string (except for G), it should sound exactly the same as playing the next string open (without fretting it).

Tune The Guitar To Itself (using harmonics)
You can also tune the guitar to itself in a similar way to the above method by using harmonics instead of fretting the guitar. The big advantage to this is that you can actually tune the guitar while two strings are ringing from harmonics, and still hear the pitches. If you do the “normal” method above, you can only play both strings once, then you have to tune, stop, play them again, and so forth. This method lets you tune at the same time you hear the strings ringing. Harmonics are played by fretting lightly (barely touching) the space on the string immediately above the fret (the metal bar). It should be a bright ringing sound. To tune with this method, you’re using harmonics on the seventh and fifth frets.

The fifth harmonic (the harmonic on the fifth fret) on the low E string is a higher E, and the seventh harmonic on the A string is the same E. So the fifth harmonic on E and the seventh on A should be exactly the same. You can tune the strings to match.

e——–
B——–
G——–
D——–
A–<7>–
E–<5>–

Same with most of the rest of the strings: the fifth on A matches the seventh on D, the fifth on D matches the seventh on G, and the fifth on B matches the seventh on the high E. The exception is again the G and B strings. The fifth harmonic on G is G, but the fifth on B is an F#. There are different ways to handle this - you can tune the fifth harmonic on the low E string to the open B string (they’re the same pitch). You can also just tune the B with the “normal” method, by playing the fourth fret normally on G to get your B note.

Additional Info
Those are the four methods to tune your guitar. Here’s some extra info you might find useful:

• Make sure to tune UP into your pitches. Drop the note low, then tune up into it. The reason you want to do this is because it keeps the tension on the string when you tune up, so the string won’t go out of tune as easily. If you tune down to the note, playing the string will often pull the string farther out, tuning it down more. Tuning up makes sure your tension is tight enough that this won’t happen.
• Drop D Tuning. To get your guitar into drop D tuning, you simply need to tune your low E string to an open D. This is dropping it a full step. To tune it relative to the A string, you should match the seventh fret with the open A string, instead of the fifth fret. You can also play the twelfth fret and match it with the open D string, since they should be the same note.

Conclusion
Keeping your guitar in pitch is a good idea to do every time you play. Make sure you keep good fresh strings on for the best results. If your guitar goes out of tune after playing it once, even after tuning it - it’s probably time for new strings. If it happens even with new strings - it might be time for a new guitar. At any rate, playing guitar while it’s in tune is polite for you, your guitar, and anyone listening. Now that you know how to do it properly, you don’t ever have to play an out of tune guitar again!

Alan Marquez is a guitarist with over 10 years of experience. He plays on a weekly basis and has taught guitar for over five years. See his reviews on online guitar lesson packages at http://LearnGuitar.ReviewsOfStuff.com/