Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Music. Show all posts

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Pianophile


Just as a blogophile loves blogs and blogging, I would consider myself a pianophile. Any time a pianophile walks by a piano, it is hard not to hear what it sounds like and how it plays. My piano motto for a long time has been: I Like To Play. Seeing the inside of a piano (especially while playing it) is always fun, not to mention the increased sound from having opened up an upright piano. This is when it's nice to have some music memorized. You can watch the hammers hit the strings while listening to the giant surround sound of something that doesn't even need to be plugged in. It is never too late to start playing piano, and you can do it for the rest of your life.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Slasher

Americano Idol Show Notes
May 5-6, 2009: Rock n Roll Week


It seemed appropriate that one of the American Idol towers fell down (stage right) just before the show started during "Rock n Roll" week. Adam starts out the show TOTALLY rocking "Whole Lotta Love" almost better than the original. Allison follows with a strong performance of Janis Joplin but doesn't blow me away. Duet by Danny & Kris: "Renegade" by Styx - nice harmonies. KrisAllen: "Come Together" playing guitar with Slash - great song, great band, but the lead vocals are forgettable ... sorry, altho Kit begs to differ ... she gliked it (she thinks he's cute.) Danny: "Dream On" by AeroSmith - more embarrassing than captivating, for my tastes ... where's the "Advil"? Final duet: Allison/Adam. As usual, Adam Ant Iguana Boy is the clear winner in this "singing competition". You cannot honestly say that Kris, or Allison, or Danny have enough $tar Power to be the next American Idol?! At this writing, this author might even try to procure tickets to attend an Adam Ant Concert at the historic Fargo Theater.

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Rat Pack Week

American Idol Show Notes
Week of April 28-29: Rat Pack Week

Well, it's come down to the Season 8 Five Finalists (Adam, plus the four non-Adams) who are all going to be singing songs from Martin, Davis, and Sinatra. American Idol's Rat Pack of Adam, Allison, Danny, Kris, and Matt will be fighting to get into the Fab Four. Any thoughts on the matter?

Monday, April 20, 2009

Discographically Speaking

American Idol Show Notes
Week of April 21-22: DISCO WEEK

With seven remaining finalists, two will be voted off this week. Who do you think should go? Who do you think will go?

Monday, April 13, 2009

Pulp Friction

American Idol Show Notes
Week of April 14-15
Songs of the Cinema with Mr. Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino as the mentor!


Now that Scott from Scottsdale is out, we can get down to business. I am posting this on Monday since I will be conferencing in Orlando the rest of the week. All show notes can be entered as comments below as we document history in the making.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Mericano Idolization

American Idol Notes - April 7, 2009er.
Songs from the: Year They Were Born.

Act One
Danny: 1980-Stand By Me. Las Vegas Nightclub version. OK.
Act Two
Chris Allen: 1985-All She Wants To Do Is Dance. Didn't stand out in the performance.
Little Rounds: 1984-What's Luv Gots 2 Do Wits It. Not as good as Tina's version. Backup singer-ish.
Act Three
Anoop: 1986-True Colors. Better than his usual. Liked original way better. Didn't do it for mwah...sorry.
Act Four
Scott - hated it (don't hate him) hate sound of his singing voice (and talking voice) and his looks don't mezmerize me ither. Embarrassing to watch...sorry.
Allison: '92 Bonnie Raitt. Nice choice for her. Really liked it overall. Tender notes sound great. Might even consider purchasing that version.
Act Five
Matt: 1985-Partime Lovers. Pretty darn good. Slower jazzy rock version. More than OK.
Act Six!
Adam will win this competition (now that Alexis Grace got mistakenly booted). Perfect pitch and crazy vocal range. Incredible. Want to hear more.
1st Place: Adam
2nd Place: Allison
3rd Place: Anybody but Scott!

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

A Merican Idle

American Idol Notes - March 31, 2009
Grouped by Grade

A
Adam: Played that funky music.
B
Danny Go: Good but can he win?
Allison Red Head: Looked like Pebbles.
Kris Allen: Pretty good.
C
Anoop: Just OK.
Megan: female Jason Castro - is she even trying?
Matt: song choice really sucked.
Lil: lots of yelling.
D
Scott: please go back to Scottsdale (and bring Alexis Grace back into the competition).

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Am Idol

American Idol Notes - March 25, 2009
Motown Week
(In order of performance - with overall "Grade")
Matt G: A Awesome performance, started on piano, a front runner.
Kris A: B+ Nice sound & performance, too repetitive, narrow range.
Scottsdale: F Please leave to put me out of my misery. Please.
Megan: D Sounded terrible, doesn't move well, sucked overall.
Anoop: D Too slow, lame, pitchy falsetto, not good dood.
Mike S: C- OK but below par, not a winner, lounge act feel.
Lil Rounds: C- Weird hair, yelling, did not meet expectations.
Adam: A+ Wow! Could have won the whole thing with this performance! Looked like Kurt Russell with the Elvis hairdo. Incredible vocal range. Best performance of season 8.
Danny G: B+ OK but nothing special, seemed too rushed.
Allison: A- Great song choice to show off her pipes, not real likeable.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

American Idolization

Americano Idolizer Notations
from March 17, 2009'er
Happy Saint Patricia's Day

For the Top Eleven Big Show, here is a little different format for the show notes. Jumping right into the Conclusion Phase which is sprinkled with some details.

Those singers who could all be immediately flushed from the finalists:

Michael Sarver: Showed he can memorize well, but lacking any star quality.
Allison Irahetta: Strainy sound of her voice is irritating plus looks freakish.
Scott from Scottsdale: End of the road time for a nice guy but not going to win.
Adam Ant Iguana Boy George: If it's a love/hate thing, then sorry, but a slow weird evil Egyptian version of Ring of Fire is not going to be on a CD under my Christmas Tree.

Either great performances tonight, or have enough to be in smaller subset of finalists:

Kris Allen: Really sounded good with a slower ballet. Sang well in what IS a singing competition.
Little Rounds: Country music not her thang but did well enough to still impress.
Alexis Grace: Song choice (Jolene) was poor but still a strong favorite from this perspective.
Daniel Go-Key: Strong great emotional performance. He still has it and affects the listener.
Anooooop: Biggest surprise of the eve. Deserves to be in final smaller group.
Megan Joy: Nice retro look and feel. For being quite sick, she deserves to go on.
Matt Giraud: Following four strong performance, he definitely made it five strong performances.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

American Idol Notes 4

American Idol Notes. March 5, 2009.

Idol Notes for Wild Card Week:

Jessie Langseth (Jonny Lang's sister): vocal=8 look=8.5
Matt Giraud: vocal=8 look=6
Megan Alanis Morisettee Joy Corkrey: vocal=7 look=7
Von: vocal=5 look=4
Jazzmin: vocal=5.9 look=7
Ricky Baddy: vocal=6 look=6
Tatiana's Del Toro: vocal=7 look=6
Anoooooop: vocal=7 look=8

Kit & Johnnny possible top group predictions were:
Jessie, Matt, Megan, Anoooop Dog.

Final Results:
1. Jasmine....YES!
2. Ricky.........bye bye.
3/4. Megan OR Tatiana.......MEGAN!
(Tatiana: don't make a scene!)
5. Jessie......."you nearly made it".
6. Von..........negatorial.
7/8. Matt OR Anoooop......MATT!


AND ANOOP!

FIRST EVER TOP 13!?
What a majorly major surprise ending.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

American Idol Notes 3

American Idol Notes. March 3, 2009.

Idol Notes:
1. Von Smith - weak voice. yells. energetic. vocal=4 look=5.
2. Taylor Vaifanua - genericly ok. forgettable. vocal=6 look=6.5.
3. Alex - dorky raspy growly screamy & uncool. vocal=4 look=4.
4. Ariana - button cute but depressingly dreary. vocal=6 look=7.5.
5. Ju'Not - nice & likeable. reserved but good. vocal=7.5 look=6.
6. Kristen - karaoke host & it showed. alice in wonderland. vocal=3 look=3.
7. Nat - nose-ring cryboy. please leave. future drag queen. vocal=2 look=1.
8. Felecia - resurrected to top 36. pretty good. vocal=6 look=7.
9. Scott from Scottsdale - not hot but has a chance. vocal=6 look=7.
10. Kendall Beard - cute country girl. vocals ok. vocal=6.5 look=8.
11. Jorge Nunez - likeable guy. accentuous. vocal=7 look=7.
12. Lil Rounds - wow. already a star. powerhouse. wow. vocal=8 look=8.

Predictions:
3rd place..........Kendall Beard

2nd place..........Ju'Not!
1st place..........Lil Rounds!

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

American Idol Notes 2

American Idol Notes. February 25, 2009.

Idol Notes:
1. Jasmine Murray - not too bad. vocal=6 look=7.
2. Matt Giraud - weird weak vibrato voice. vocal=5 look=6.
3. Jeannine Vailes - terribly painful. vocal=3 look=4.
4. Nick/Norman Gentle? - entertaining but not serious. vocal=x look=x.
5. Allison Irahetta - good but annoying. vocal=8 look=6.
6. Kris Allen - ok. not best singer. good effort. vocal=6 look=7.
7. Megan Joy Corkrey - nice tone. like her except for tattoo. vocal=7 look=8.
8. Matt Breitzke - uncomfortably boring. vocal=6 look=5.
9. Jessie Langseth - ok. weird. too cool. vocal=6 look=7.
10. Kai Kalama - want to like him. not great. vocal=5 look=6.
11. Mishavonna Henson - really liked it a lot. vocal=8 look=8.
12. Adam Lambert - smirky screamer. weird high voice. vocal=4 look=2.
Predictions:
3rd place..........Kai Kalama
2nd place..........Megan Joy Corkrey!
1st place..........Mishavonna Henson!

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

American Idol Notes

American Idol Notes. February 17, 2009.


Idol Notes:

1. Jackie Tohn - annoyingly clownish. vocal=6 look=3.
2. Ricky Braddy Bunch - ok. no star quality. vocal=7 look=7.
3. Alexis Grace - previous "early favorite". still is. vocal=8.5 look=8.
4. Brent Keith - forgettable country singer. vocal=5 look=6.
5. Stevie Wright - nervously terrible. vocal=3 look=4.
6. Anoop Desai - likeable but wrong song. not his best. vocal=6 look=8.
7. Casey Carlson - have a nice modeling career. vocal=4 look=4.
8. Michael Sarva - ok but poor performance. vocal=6 look=5.
9. Ann Marie - ok as a hotel singer. vocal=7 look=8.
10. Stephen Fowler - wrong song. pitchy. corny. vocal=6 look=7.
11. Tatiana Del Toro - almost quite good but lacks style. vocal=7 look=5.
12. Danny Gokie - caused tears & tingles. sounded pro. vocal=8.5 look=7.


Predictions:
3rd place..........Anoop Desai
2nd place..........Alexis Grace!
1st place..........Danny Gokie!

Saturday, October 25, 2008

Repertoire

My piano playing repertoire includes, but is not limited to: Agua De Beber . Air On A G String . All The Things You Are . And So It Goes . As Time Goes By . Autumn Leaves . Back In The USSR . Because . Bennie & The Jets . Black Orpheus . Blue Moon . Blue Trane . Bluebird . Bossa Antigua . Bourree In E Minor . Bye Bye Blues . Carmen Tango . Cast Your Fate To The Wind . Cheers Theme . Chicken Reel . Christmas Is Coming . Christmas Time Is Here . Close To You . Come Back To Me . Come Together . Crystal Silence . Cultural Exchange . Daisy . Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairies . Days Of Wine & Roses . Deacon Blues . Don't Get Around Much Anymore . Don't Know Why . The Duke . Edelweiss . Eight Days A Week . The Entertainer . Every Breath You Take . Feel Like Makin Love . A Foggy Day . Friends . Gentle Rain . Georgia On My Mind . The Girl From Ipanema . Girl Talk . Goodbye Yellow Brick Road . Goodnight My Someone . Got To Get You Into My Life . The Great Pumpkin Waltz . Greensleeves . Here There Everywhere . Here's That Rainy Day . He's Misstra Know It All . Honesty . How High The Moon . How Insensitive . How To Handle A Woman . I Can See For Miles . I Shot The Sheriff . I Want To Work . I'm Beginning To See The Light . In A Mellow Tone . In The Mood . Isn't She Lovely . It's A Wonderful World . I've Found A New Baby . Jammin . Jesu Bambino . Jesus Christ Superstar . Jordu . Junk . Killing Me Softly . Let It Rain . Linus & Lucy . Look To The Sky . Love Is Blue . Love Is Here To Stay . Love Me Tender . Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel) . Makin' Whoopee . Maple Leaf Rag . Masked Marvel Music . Material Girl . Maybe I'm Amazed . Mazurka In C Major . Meditation . Mima . Miss New Orleans . Mission Impossible Theme . Misty . Moment's Notice . Moon River . Never Alone . New World Symphony Theme . Night & Day . Norwegian Wood . O Morro Nao Tem Vez . Ode To Joy . Oh Dear What Can The Matter Be . Once I Loved . One Note Samba . Over The Rainbow . Peppermint Patty . Piano Man . Pink Panther . Quiet Nights Of Quiet Stars . Rainbow Connection . Ralph & Monty . Red Sails In The Sunset . Rocky Raccoon . Satin Doll . Sentimental Journey . The Shadow Of Your Smile . She's Always A Woman . Skating . So Long Frank Lloyd Wright . So Nice . Solace . Someone To Watch Over Me . Somewhere My Love . Sun King . Sunshine Superman . Take Five . Tales Of The Vienna Woods . Tears In Heaven . This Guy's In Love With You . Tomorrow . Tonight . Triste . Try To Remember . Unchained Melody . Up A Lazy River . Valley Of The Dolls . Watermelon Man . Wave . We Are The Champions . When I'm Sixty Four . When Sunny Gets Blue . With A Lil' Help From My Friends . Yesterday . You Are My Sunshine . Your Song . You're Still The One
Click on the above title of this posting ("Repertoire") to go to MilesPiano.com!