Always give your best. I came across this video (below) by Srikumar Rao about being Happy. This concept is simple, we are born happy. But everything around us has taught us to be unhappy. You have to find what excites you, what drives you, and what make you passionate.

This video is everything I talk about with people. I remember seeing a video by Nalts and he said something like this: “When choosing to be happy, you have to be in control of it yourself, because if you find your happiness by what other people think, then you’re leaving that lever for them. And you have to be in control of that lever”. This mindset changed my perception of life, and my confidence.

Happiness to me is bringing back the orchestra, raising money for music education, taking risks, and continuing to do For Orchestra. It’s an idea I thought about every day. Music Lessons were never my forte. I wasn’t happy, and so I did something about it. You can’t concentrate on the outcome of things, because that’s out of your control. You can only concentrate on doing your best every day.

My very intelligent and hardworking friend Shira Lazar, once asked what’s a good thing to think about with the new year now that we’re entering a new decade. I had said that instead of looking back at the past year of what you’ve accomplished, perhaps you should think about the future.

After those words left me, I began to think of how powerful that is. Because nothing is more exciting then the future. And that should make us all happy.

No related posts.

“You know you can’t keep letting it get you down”

The lyrics in this piece are amazing. A good arrangement isn’t only about the music you hear, it’s about the lyrics you feel. So this week is OK GO, and I’m thrilled with how it turned out:

Preview!     Buy It!

[Songs Archive]

OK GO is also known for their treadmill music video, but they actually first came on to the scene in 2002 out of Chicago.

I love the lyrics in this piece. Ironically, today was a horrible day, and I kept remembering the lyrics “when tomorrow comes.” Life is about struggle, and learning as you grow. Perhaps one of the most important things you can learn is to relax, and to wonder “in 10 years, will you remember today’s negativity.”

I wanted this arrangement to perfectly mimic the video, which was so wonderfully done. In fact, I would have loved to have been part of it, looked like an awesome experience.

My arrangement started with the xylaphone, which was in the original recording, which then built to the full orchestra performing the first chorus. I bring in violin pizzicato to create the continual sense of “tension and release”, and utilize the orchestra chimes to play the vibraphone part that Damien Kulash plays for the chorus. For the final chorus I made sure to have the violins play the xlaphone part from the original recording, which gives it the triumphant feel I was looking for. Quite fitting, because the OK GO video, in itself, is a true achievement!

Check out OK Go’s new album “Of the Blue Colour of the Sky” here

Awesome job by James Frost, Syyn Labs, OK Go and Mindshare. Produced by Shirley Moyers. Can’t wait until the next creation!

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“Take me on / I’ll be gone in a day or two”

Regarded as one of the most memorable music videos ever, ‘Take on Me’ didn’t just introduce us to new video techniques, but is also one of the most memorable songs of all time. I couldn’t wait to arrange this amazing piece for orchestra, and so here it is:

Preview!     Buy It!

[Songs Archive]

This song by Aha is one of only a handful of others I couldn’t wait to do. The video is absolutely gorgeous, and “Take On Me” has lyrics that inspire.

I kept thinking about the words “I’ll be gone in a day or two”, and how this composition, to me, is about wanting something, and going after it. To go through life, it’s important to remember the words “one day we’ll all be dead” – because it’s that mindset that makes you want something, and go after it. Dreams are meant to be chased, and lived. We all have our own purpose in life, and they are things that we should ‘take on’ and fight for them

The thought that things are worth having and chasing after makes sense when you consider that we may all be gone in a day or two. Its the only thing that is constant. The more things change the more they stay the same, because one thing is for certain – that if it scares you, then do it. Because we’re not here forever, and if you’re passionate about something, then it’s worth fighting for.

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A few years ago, I made the promise of always “going with the flow” and continually trying new things. It was something my friend Justin had preached to me one night, and I thank him for it. As a musician, I always gravitated towards the more eccentric things anyway. I felt like we all should. The other day was Purim, which is a much celebrated Jewish day, and when I was invited to check it out, I couldn’t wait.

I saw a bunch of stuff, lots of cowboy hats, and even a girl wearing the Twister board game as her costume. The people were awesome, I was with a cool group of friends, the venue was very relaxed, and the music was completely different:

Littlefield in NYC was hosting a good Purim party, and I was excited to attend my first one. The music was awesome, but I was surprised that it wasn’t purely a Hasidic Jewish band performing. In the picture above you can see there were Ratchets, Djembe, and a horn without any valves. Not sure what the name of that would be. Oh and there was also a Contrabass Tuba player.

At one point in the night, the entire 14 member band came into the crowd and performed their instruments as everyone danced around them. Then they made us get low against the floor, and slowly rose us to our feet. It was similar to the Danza Fiesta event I attended earlier last month. It was abig group performance. No one really “watched the band” – it was more like they were “performing” with them

And one of my Facebook followers told me about “Chag Purim Sameach” which is the equivalent to saying “Happy Holidays” – very cool!

So what’s this have to do with the orchestra? Well, nothing directly, but I liked experiencing new music, new people, and new events. We all should. For Orchestra started from an idea of trying something new, and I think there’s a lesson in there somewhere.

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“I hope it’s gonna make you notice / Someone like me”

I first heard about Kings of Leon about a year ago, but it wasn’t until recently that my friend Katie introduced me to them more in depth. I heard this composition, the lyrics, the drum beat, and was hooked. So I’m thrilled to have arranged it this week:

Preview!     Buy It!

[Songs Archive]

We’re all looking for something. We’re looking for our friends, people who understand us, a career we’re crazy about, and somebody to love us back. Sometimes it can feel like a lonely world, and we’ve all been there. We could use somebody to help us along the way, listen to us, hold our hand, and be a part of who we are and our lives.

Life is a learning process. It is something that brings us joy, understanding, desperation, growth, passion, and thought. I feel these lyrics capture our cries to be wanted. This piece speaks volumes, and each musician has a key role that I love in this piece:

1.) Keeping the drums out in the first verse. It builds tension, and allows the piece to grow rather than hitting it’s climactic moment too soon.

2.) The bass line in the second verse. It s perfect syncopated passage that compliments the drum pattern. Breaking away from simple ‘whole notes’ created a sense of movement, and freshness.

3.) The lyrics “Someone like you and all you know and how you speak” leading into the second half of the first verse. It hints at the lyric that enters the chorus, and creates uniformity throughout the piece.

4.) The guitar part underneath the last chorus.

This carefully crafted composition allowed the flutes to introduce the verse perfectly while the trumpets performed the chorus. Last week when I arranged the Foo Fighters, I was told I didn’t bring out Dave Grohl’s drums enough – so I was happy to bring them out more here.

Congrats to KOL on their role at the 2010 Grammy Awards. I hope I was able to capture the beauty of this piece within the orchestra.

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I came across this Avatar-izer that seemed kind of interesting. Basically, you upload a picture and it makes you look like one of the people from Pandora. I couldn’t stop laughing at this because my eyes looks a little wacky, and my nose a little off, but like my friend Damien Basile would say “it’s a perfect use of branding because it takes the consumer and places them in the product”. I totally agree.

Big ups to Oddcast, David Chaitt, and McDonald’s for a cool product. Avatar was seriously one of the better movies I’ve seen in quite some time.

So how does my Avatar look?!

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As an orchestrator who has always been interested in technology and trying new things, I’m actually very excited for the Apple iPad. But why? It’s not an instrument, or a standard computer. Exactly… it’s actually so much more.

The orchestra assembles over 100 musicians – violinists, flutes, oboes, trumpets, percussion, and more. And they all need music, they all need to be on the same ‘page’. Although expensive, orchestras should use the iPad on music stands, and order the music through a store like Sibelius Scorch. Imagine, a 120 person ensemble all living in the cloud.

Living in the cloud would allow audiences to interact in real time, set lists to be arranged on the spot, and group collaboration that Beethoven and Tchaikovsky would have only dreamed about.

Apple is set to launch the iPad next month, and everyone is on stand by for the preorder.

According to their Keynote it’s big stand is for books and for internet publishing. But the iPad can also, and should also be a new orchestra instrument. In a world where DJ’s and Techno artists have collaborated with the classic ensemble, I’m excited to see how this will become a part. Like any genre or business, innovation should be welcomed.

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I’m currently selling my music here at ForOrchestra, but yesterday I was stuck with the age old question between two distributors for my iTunes, Rhapsody, Amazon release coming next month: Tunecore or CD Baby?

I asked everyone on Twitter and FacebookFacebook, and the majority of the answers said to go with Tunecore.

The biggest difference between the two is that Tunecore has an upfront fee and CD Baby simply take a 9% cut of each sale.

So apparently if I plan on selling more than 300 downloads then Tunecore is the way to go, because it offsets the upfront costs, and the rest is 100% profit.

The problem is that I already have my CD Baby account from 2006 – and so I would like to not have to start ANOTHER account. I’m thinking about using Tunecore for my digital distribution, and CD Baby for my physical copies.

I’m leaning strongly towards Tunecore. What do you think?

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It’s New York Fashion Week and the other day I received word about the Guide to the Best Dressed Orchestra Conductors as re-posted by W Magazine. I’m guessing they weren’t judging by their concert wear – because it seems all conductors generally wear the same black tuxedos.

Rounding out the Top 5 are:

1.) Maestro Daniel Harding
2.) Maestro Esa-Pekka Salonen
3.) Maestro John Axelrod
4.) Maestro Nicola Luisotti
5.) Maestro Fabio Luisi

Maestro Daniel Harding is Opera Chic's Best Dressed

I’d be interested to know how they came up with the list, and perhaps who the runners up were. Nontheless, it’s nice to see a pop culture spotlight on conductors! I know first hand how difficult it is directing a group of musicians with my body while still trying to dress and look hip.

Thanks to Opera Chic for a great post. It’s a cool blog that I wasn’t familiar with, and wish they posted daily, but now I’m adding it to my blogroll! And Congrats to the Fashionistos!

And to follow New York Fashion Week on Twitter click here

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The other day I mentioned I was taking a week off to update and clean out my entire contacts list. My friends mentioned to me that it didn’t need to be done, but I had a bad experience a few weeks ago when I left someone’s business card in my studio, and so I had no way of getting in touch with them one night we had plans to connect. Some contacts were on cards, some in Gmail, some written on paper – and I realized I was a mess. It only takes one bad experience to change me.

So I overhauled my entire contact directory, a huge week-long task, and it’s already paid off.

It reminded me of when something similar happened about 2 years ago: I had a client that needed a music file of mine ASAP. But there was one problem – after hours of searching I couldn’t find it. It made me look bad, destroyed my entire day of work, and cost me the gig. But I realized it was my fault – I brought it upon myself. I was unorganized, and my files weren’t named properly and maintained. How was my business to grow? It was a wake up call.

So I took off an entire month and gutted all my hard drives, destroyed the duplicates, renamed every file, organized them into folders, gave them tags, and more.

The task was monstrous – over 400 gigabytes worth of data – everything from my music library, to my studio work, photos, videos, YouTube updates, projects, website database, and the list kept on growing. I lost a month of business, but from that day on I’ve been extremely productive, organized, and dependable.

It’s never easy to take a step backward and put everything on hold, especially when I promised myself I would blog daily, video podcast daily, release songs weekly, and work hard to grow the orchestral library. Same goes for my weekly music show. But you have to know that “slow and steady wins the race” and that “short term profits create long term losses”.

Taking a step backwards is perhaps the most forward thinking thing you can do. We often think that pushing forward and ‘waiting until later’ is the quickest way to a goal. We want 6 minute abs, and speak Spanish in 1 week – but that doesn’t sustain, and isn’t a longterm model that builds a strong foundation.

I remember when Twitter had severe downtime issues in early 2008 because of their Ruby’s infrastructure. They were surpassing a community of over 5 million users – and had to move backwards in order to make their architecture stable. As a result, when the site wasn’t down, it was closed off for maintenance. After months of tweaking things got better, and today the service is fast, dependable, and boasts a community of over 75 million users. Even Twitpic shares a similar story.

Sometimes you have to take a loss before you can make a gain. And although it seems to pay off in the long run, just don’t be afraid to do it – it always pays off in the long haul. And remember to always think longterm – because sometimes the only way to take two steps forward, is to take one step back.

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