Dr. Dre started his career with the World Class Wrecking Crew in the late 80s. Soon this Compton breed producer became the poster boy for gangster rap music. Dre would receive heavy criticism for the misogyny and violence surrounding his music, but there was one thing his critics could not deny, his music production. The success of NWA, Ice Cube, Eminem, The Chronic and 50 Cent all became proof positive of Dr Dres sonic touch. This is why he is considered one of the most influential music producers.
Many new producers are trying to emulate his sound. Here a couple of key points to produce music like Dr . Dre.
Dr . Dres production never veers away from the traditional four on the floor time signature. This Time signature is used in most dance records. Take For instance 5o cents get rich or die trying album, each song starts with a thick bass drum and the same time signature.
Whats also unique about Dr Dres production is the timing of the snare. Unlike most producers, his snares are played slightly offset. This is critical in creating the California laid-back Hip hop that has made him one of the most sought after producers.
When producing Music like Dr.Dre start with the right instruments. The legendary producer uses standard instruments found in old funk records. Rhythm and Strat guitars are woven to create the bounce of the track. Horns are also a favorite of the producers. Staccato horns, in particular, are used to create suspense and build the music. Another favored instrument is the Chorus Piano. Dr. Dre uses this in his production to complement the bassline.
Creating Music like Dr. Dre take time and skill to master. Be patience and persistent and soon you will also produce a stable of work to influence the next generation
Everybody deeply appreciate the great treasure that is Colombian musical instruments, such as Colombian tiple, made in coral wood, with clear lines and awesome authentic color, with twelve metal strings arranged in four courses. Any professional or student guitarist will find it easy to use in Colombian folk music, and in many Latin American songs. Musicians can use it in Latin American folk jazz music, but also in original songs as well. Tiple’s ethereal and clear sound is also used in classic guitar music creations.
Colombian Cuatro is concert grade guitar; it is made of slices and blocks from curly maple. It has a violin shape and has a great pitch accuracy and finish. The ‘seis’ is a hybrid of the cuatro and a supplementary sixth course tunes a fourth below the usual fifth bottom course. It is also a very popular Colombian musical instrument. This feature allows an expanded bass range. It can be used also for guitar intervals as well, and it makes a awesome music, It sounds as a guitar, but sweeter, faster and louder.
Original Colombian music instruments
Spanish and African traditions are strongly represented in Colombian music. Traditional quena, a king of flute, and Spanish guitar are very popular. Colombian bandolina has fifteen strings and its sound is beautiful, sweet and clear. It is usually made by hand, of unexcelled quality. The marimba is another Colombian musical instrument; it looks like a xylophone and its keys are made in wood. The arpa is a local version of the harp, the guassa is a rattle. The songs from the Pacific coast are using drums and are tinged with Spanish influence. Due to the Spanish influence, piano music is also very popular in Colombia. The newest music style in Colombia is “valenato”, based on the European accordion.
Many Colombian musical instruments are beautifully crafted, from the ancient times until our century. The charango, a kind of guitar made in wood, the vessel whistle, the erkencho, a kind of clarinet, the chirimia, an oboe, are carefully made and original Colombian folk music sounds great with them. There are six ethnic zones in Colombia; the music is a hybrid between Indian roots and Spanish traditions. In some regions, there is also a strong Negro influence. Guitars, flutes and drums are always necessary; in the Caribbean zone the most important Colombian musical instrument is gaita, a kind of oboe. In Colombia, music is a tradition. There is a habit to pass folk songs from one generation to the other.
The Midnight Funk Association was the 12 a.m. segment of the legendary late night Detroit radio DJ Electrifying Mojo, a.k.a Charles Johnson.
An entire generation of faithful fans and listeners from the late 70’s through the early 90’s recognize the radio show for shaping the musical tastes of listeners in the Metropolitan Detroit Area, Northern Ohio, and Eastern Ontario Canada.
Mojo broke many artists in the Detroit market including Prince, The J. Giles Band, The B-52’s and turned audiences on to classic legends like Pink Floyd and Peter Frampton, artist previously unheard on radio stations that were labelled as “black”, or “R and B” .
Nightly at 12 a.m., Mojo called to order The Midnight Funk Association, an homage to some of the great funk bands of the day and of all time. He frequently played original long versions, and entire sides of albums by George Clinton and Parliament / Funkadelic, Prince, Rick James and many other all time great bands and artists, as well as local groups like Ready For the World.
At the top of the show, Mojo opened membership to the MFA, and members new and old were asked to stand up to show solidarity.
* If you were driving you were to flash your headlights.
* If you were at home, you turned on your porch light.
* If you were in bed listening to the show, you were required to dance on your back.
And every night for years, people did it !
To become a card carrying member of the MFA, listeners wrote in the radio station and would receive their official MFA I.D. card.
Electrifying Mojo, and the Midnight Funk Association was one of the last great radio music shows of our time. Many fans of the radio show credit Mojo for being fans of music that they would have otherwise never heard of. He was a huge influence in turning millions of listeners into Prince fans, and many say was responsible for a six show sell out at Cobo Hall in Detroit in the late 80’s.
It is common to speak to fans of the show that will credit him for turning them on to Peter Frampton, The B-52’s, Pink Floyd, and many other artists that were never heard on Detroit’s “R and B” stations, yet he also supported emerging rap artists like Eric B and Rakim, Run DMC, Whoodini, L.L. Cool J, and the many styles of music heard of the show fit together semmlessly as if they were mean to be enjoyed together.
The Godfathers and Originators of Detroit House and Techno Music, Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, now known and respected around the world as groundbreaking, credit Mojo and the Midnight Funk Association as an early influence in their musical development and he frequently supported and played thier early and history making tracks that launched Detroit techno to the entire world including Inner City’s “Good Life”, Derrick May’s “Strings of Life”, Cybotron’s “Cosmic Cars”, Model 500 “No UFO’s”, “Technicolor”, “R9” and so many others.
Mojo was known to support and embrace electronic music in it’s early stages and frequently played artists like Africa Bambaataa, Kraftwerk, and New Order as part of his nightly radio show.
Common segments of the legendary radio show included:
* 10:00pm – The Landing of the Mothership. This was the intro to each show with spaceship sound effects and related dialog. Sometimes the music heard during the first hour was indicative of what you’d hear that night; sometimes it would be completely random.
* 11:00pm – Awesome ’84, ’85. In the mid eighties, Mojo played an hour of brand new music (hence the year in the title) and a lot of new songs were introduced.
* 11:30pm – Lover’s Lane. A half an hour of “slow jams” for lovers.
* 12:00am – The Midnight Funk Association. Consisted regularly of Parliament-Funkadelic, The Gap Band, Zapp and other funk bands of the era.
From 1:00am to 3:00am (2:00 am on Saturday nights), Mojo’s show was different every night. Sometimes, the MFA would stretch well beyond 1:00am, other times Mojo would introduce segments such as:
* Star Wars – A classic “artist vs. artist” set, where Mojo would alternate selections from two different groups or artists, and the listeners would call in to vote for their favorite.
* Journey – Sometimes a multi-night segment, where Mojo played songs by a single artist or group, spanning their entire career. This usually included a mix of hits and obscure songs by that artist.
* Shout-out – Everyone that called into the station during his show was the recipient of a “shout-out”. He would go on for as long as it took rattling off the first names of every single person who had called in to the show.
* 35-35-35 – Mojo would take suggestions from listeners about their favorite artists and bands. He then would choose the three most popular groups that night and play thirty-five minutes, commercial-free, of each group. This segment often gave airtime to groups that no other radio station in Detroit played.
At other times, Mojo would spend the last 2 hours of his show showcasing live mixes on two turntables, by bringing in local DJs to do the same. One such DJ, Jeff Mills, began his career with Mojo as “The Wizard.” Mojo also would air music by local groups at this time.
In the Metro Detroit Area, The Midnight Funk Association was more than a nightly radio show, it was an event that listeners looked forward to every night for years.
It was common to see cars flashing thier lights at midnight and horns honking on the streets all over town at Midnight.
Mojo crossed color lines and did not adhere to a play list like today’s prepackaged radio stations and while broadcast on stations marketed toward the African-American market, his programming was an inspired blend of the best soul, funk, New Wave, and rock that defied standard radio industry formats and genres.
He believed that good music had no color, and should not be packaged into “Black” stations, and “White” stations, a concept still lost on today’s radio station owners, and program managers.
Electrifying Mojo and his Midnight Funk Association was the last of the great radio shows, and the last show that had any originality, and independent thought outside of a prestructured play list or carefully crafted demographic studies.
By following his love of music and adhering to a standard of just playing what was good, Mojo accomplished something that radio has been unable to do since. Capture a cross section of music lovers that encompassed every age, race, and finacial demographic, and create listeners andloyal fans that tuned in simply because they loved the DJ and the music.
Most recently, Mojo is serving as Program Director for a handful of Detroit radio stations – he does not publicize which ones – and he was in negotiations to bring his show to XM satellite radio in 2006, but so far nothing has been heard about it.
Fans from all over still speak of the legendary radio show, as well as, others who have heard about it and what it meant to so many, for so long.
For those of us that were there, The Midnight Funk Association will live in our hearts forever, and we will always be card carrying members.
It was truly one of the last great radio shows of our time.
Antique music boxes are wonderful collectable stuff, although buying them requires plenty of information and preparation. At times you can get genuine materials that would make every collector proud, also sometimes antique music boxes are sold for greatly other than they really worth. Get the information what to look for as trying to find an antique music box.
Very first thing you should to worry about is if the music box in a operational condition or does it require repairs. Of course it is much easier to buy a functioning music box, but you will pay more for it. If the box is absolutely not working, don’t get discouraged. Music box is a delicate mechanism that can be easily scratched, but most damages typically should be repaired as well. You can in fact locate very good deals buying dented antique music boxes and repairing them.
Sorts of antique music boxes
There are two variations of aged music boxes – disc music boxes and cylinder music boxes. Cylinder boxes appeared on the market in the mid of 19th century, a bit behind music watches. Majority of them were created in Switzerland, therefore many people describe them Swiss boxes. They have been very rare and exclusive objects. Some cylinder music boxes were made in Czechoslovakia and France.
After that disc music boxes came to the market. They are inexpensive to manufacture, that considerably affected the charge and made them very admired things. Foremost company to circulate disc music boxes was Symphonion. Other popular models of antique music boxes are Polyphon and Regina.
Quite attractive items are antique music jewelry boxes. As these might be used to save your jewelry, it could be a great pleasure to wide open your music box frequently and to listen a beautiful tune.
How much would it expense to fix an antique music box?
In fact, fairly a lot. The challenge is that those who know how to do a excellent task repairing ancient music boxes are not easy to find. There can be not many experts. Another tricky might be parts, the majority of them have to be handmade. Setting up an antique music box would require getting numerous items often as well as comb work, cylinder repining, dampers, governors and mainsprings. So be ready to pay much more for the fix of your antique box. However on the positive part, once the music box is repaired, its charge will dramatically raise.