Tips and reviews for musicians from Stan Stewart (aka muz4now)
Just because you can write a catchy or beautiful song doesn’t always mean you will automatically be the best arranger, too. Or maybe orchestration just doesn’t interest you. Some wonderful composers and songwriters have reached out to me because they find arranging to be such a challenge. Since I enjoy creating fills, instrumental bridges, and […]
I made mistakes in my album release process. This is a post in a series of blogs to help you avoid those mistakes. This one is about maintaining your inspiration and health while getting ready to drop your new tunes. People often ask me either “What inspires you to write music/songs?” or “How do the
After you’ve checked the balance in your own bank account and the checkbook of your band mates, family and friends, you may find that you still need funds for your upcoming album. You’ve already budgeted for your album release based on the previous post in this series. Once you determine how much you can contribute to
The first mistake in the album release process I want to help you avoid is not having enough money to finish. I promised my album to my fans by a certain date. But I started several steps in the process too late to complete them. The first thing to budget is time. If you don’t
Your Album Release When you listen to music, do you ever ponder how much went into making the recording and getting you to listen to it? At first glance, the process may seem simple. But an album release is anything but simple. Most of what I’ll say in this series of blog posts could also
WHY YOU SHOULD SUPPORT LOCAL ARTISTS Local artists are vital to any community, however small it may be. Artists bring cultural diversity and fresh points of view to the table. They provide affordable entertainment at events, add value by attracting people to gathering spots, and give the community a reason to get together and enjoy
The sound of the acoustic piano is so evocative. It is a percussion instrument, so perhaps it harkens us back to the hand-drumming that pounded deep in our bodies from ancient times. Or perhaps the brilliant harmonics engage with a soulful part of ourselves beyond our understanding. Or maybe we heard that lovely sound and
Review: “Rinascita” solo piano album by Paolo Cognetti Read More »
Musicians can arrange a song in so many beautiful ways. I’ve included videos of three versions of Carole King and Gerry Goffin’s “Goin’ Back” to illustrate this point. Thinking Back In 2001, I released my first album, Disappointment and Delight. It was a collection of instrumental improvisations that I had layered with additional instruments for several years. Eventually,
Goin’ Back – On the trickiness of reviewing one’s own art Read More »
There are many ways to support artists. In this series of posts, I’ve recommended buying art and a number of ways to like, share, and review the work of artists. Plus, as I’ve already said, there are a lot of ways to back artists that I won’t be able to cover in three short blog
In this second post on how we can support artists (and their art), I’ll suggest some additional avenues. However, there is no way that I can cover all the possibilities in three blog posts, so please leave your suggestions in the comments! And check back since there is one more post (the one that got
