Last night hubby was listening to the saxophone piece of Kenny G, the theme from Dying Young. A friend requested him to transcribe and transpose the notes so he can play it comfortably in his sax. Hubby is a very good guitarist and he plays well. The good thing about his playing is, he can widow a tune. His weakness is, his reading of notes is slow.

After listening to the Dying Young theme once, he got the classical guitar (the only guitar available) and tried to follow the recorded music as close as possible. He mentioned, though, that if it would be better if it was an electric guitar that he was holding. We got back to his dream of owning one for his retirement and it looks like the les paul studio guitar would take longer to save for but worth ithe wait.

What band started in the 70s, made it internationally in the 80s, continued to make waves in the 90s, still solid during this decade and still going strong towards the next? This British band received its first Grammy in 1988 and had 22 in all out of 34 nominations. The 4-member band also won 14 Meteor Awards since it started in 2001. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005, have sold more than 150 million records, and in 2010 the Rolling Stone’s updated list included 8 of the band’s songs in The 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time.

As the title suggests, they have now 25 concerts in queue until 2011. Having been around on the top for about 30 years, U2 tickets for their concerts will be difficult to find…unless you know where to look!

If you’ve been a fan, what are your favorite songs? If you just started to hear of them, it’s not too late!

Behind me, classical guitar music is playing. It’s that time of the year when hubby has to practice for several Special Music for Church performance.

He used to play rock. Any song from the 60s up to 90s, he can play just by listening. When he accompanies someone, he can do so even without knowing the song, better, though, if he at least hears it once.

When he came into the Church, he shifted to classical, which he now uses as offering to God.

I have a favorite piece of classical guitar music. It’s Cavatina played by John Williams, from the movie, The Deer Hunter. I had a cassette tape recording of it, including all sorts of other pieces. A week later I was amazed that he could play it! It became our “theme song” though it’s without lyrics. Theme music, rather. I love instrumentals, especially from classical guitar and piano.

With him playing, I wish I have one of those outdoor chaise lounges which I can relax on while looking at the stars. It’s very relaxing.

Are you an emerging music artist? Perhaps you got the talent (rock, R&B, indie, hip-hop, metal, solo artists, DJs, etc. genres) but don’t know where to start to reach your musical dreams of making it big in the industry.

Well, now is your chance! Thanks to the internet and the likes of Charice Pempengco, Moymoy Palaboy, and Arnel Pineda of Journey were given their respective musical breaks in the music industry. Now, the opportunity is wide open for you!

With MTV, Jeepney Music, and Department of Tourism collaboration, you are given that opportunity. It’s an open door right now but it’s going to close soon so you have to jump in sooner than later.

A contest is going on at MTV Emerge and 7 talented entries will make it to having a year of recording contract with Jeepney Music and be mentored by Apl.de.Ap, who is, by the way, one of the judges after public voting. (He is also the founder of Jeepney Music and a member of Black Eyed Peas.) MTV Emerge is the platform for displaying and hunting unsigned music talent in the Philippines and it’s also a community where new works can be discovered. As a talent, you are invited to signup and upload your picture and samples and your profile for everyone to see, hear and scrutinize….and of course, vote on.

With the success of Apl.de.Ap, he wants to give back to his country people and the world. That’s what Jeepney Music is for. It’s an opportunity for your music to be promoted on Jeepney Radio and be invited to collaborate with the Jeepney Project. With its mission to give back to the community and the environment while maintaining a profitable business model, Jeepney Music aims to serve with a triple bottomline with corporate social responsibility woven into all its endeavors and the Apl Foundation.

Grand winners will be selected on Nov. 20, 2009. That’s just a few days away so you better hurry and sign up now if you’re one of those budding music artists.

As the general public, here is your chance to vote on your favorite composition/music artist. You can vote every 5 minutes. I have not all the time to listen to all entries but I know what I think will make an influence to the general public…or at least what I’d like to make an influence. I based my vote on the content and the ease of listening and since I have high regard on moral issues and optimism, I favor Himig Ng Kabataan by Slio Bulakenyo.

This is a wonderful opportunity to have new compositions out as OPM. I get irked at new singers/groups who know nothing to sing but revivals…and it takes me quite a long time for me to get irked so if I do, it means it’s worse. It doen’t mean, though, that any original will do. Actually, the highest voted entry is something I won’t listen to (I just did for the sake of knowing what it’s all about…Gago Ako (Filipino Jerk)…but with the trend the voting is going, it’s scary how depleted the quality of compositions most of the listeners want to listen to! I hope to hear more quality compositions out there…Go ahead and start listening and voting.

It’s nice to see that the Department of Trade is collaborating in promoting the Philippine talents with its current marketing slogan “7,107 islands beyond the usual” for a better country and tourist destination showcasing our cultural treasures.

The musical play Evita, performed by Madonna and Antonio Banderas, was one of those I often played in my tape player before it was destroyed by my then 2-year old eldest (she’s now 15), together with my other favorites, Les Miserables, Phantom Of The Opera, Miss Saigon, and classicals such as Chopin, Liszt, Beethoven, Bach and many others. I had a collection but now all is a memory.

Reminiscing those days, I thought, since I’m plotting my future travel, Argentina will be one of those places I’d like to visit. I think I’ll have to buy a CD version of Evita so it will last longer. As a file, I can store it in my computer and my phone. I will bring it with me when I visit Argentina. Got to plan for my Argentina travel!

I’m currently listening to some orchestra. I just want to share the pieces that I find captivating. (It’s 1:30 AM and I’m still listening!)

Ravel’s Bolero

Gershwin’s Rhapsody In Blue

Korsakov’s Flight Of The Bumblebee

More likely than not, that line rings a bell to you. Perhaps you know it too well or perhaps you know you heard it somewhere but you just can’t pin down where from. It goes…

“I’ve been alive forever
And I wrote the very first song
I put the words and the melodies together
I am music and I write the songs.”

Yes, that’s the song that Barry Manilow is famous for. For some, the dual meaning can be seen but that’s beside the point.

What I’d like to point out is music has been in our lives since the very beginning. For whatever type of music we do enjoy, it varies from person to person. It also depends on the mood we are in and sometimes the music we enjoy changes.

I’d like to invite you to my favorite music forums community that encompasses all kinds of music plus other stuff that makes our own little worlds go round.

It’s free and you can even get some downloadable stuff from our princely forum owner, Frederik Magle; truly a friendly chap and a great musician, to say the least.

When you go there, let the community know by introducing yourself. The party would love to meet new people. You can say you got there from here.

By the way, if you look for me over there, my handle is ‘C5 Says‘ which actually refers to my other blog.

For a long time since UCG-Manila was established in 1995, finally Special Music every week is possible by the following performers:

- Adult Choir (conductor/s: Benny Lorenzo and son, Abraham Lorenzo, and daughter, Ruth Lorenzo)
- Youth Choir (conductor: Wilson Cinco)
- Children’s Choir (conductor: Gracielle Remo)
- Violin solo or duo (performer/s: Gracielle and Teene Remo)
- Piano/Organ solo (performer/s: siblings Abraham and Ruth Lorenzo, and Trina Santos)
- Guitar solo (performer: Wilson Cinco)
- Vocal Solo (performers: Gener Santos, JC Evangelista, Giselle Ellamil, Esther Grace Cinco)
- Rondalla (conductor: Wilson Cinco)