I've just started learning the mandolin and came across this great Chris Thile video on crossing over from guitar to mandolin. I think Chris is exactly right about the challenges guitarists face when making the shift from guitar to mandolin. The string spacing is definitely a challenge, but I'm finding the biggest obstacle is the tuning. Going from standard tuning on the guitar to the mandolin's fifths based tuning is a real brain/finger tester! Still I'm absolutely loving playing the mandolin and I'm …

Here's a shot of me with my new mandolin!  It's an Eastman MD515 and it sounds absolutely fantastic!

I'm going to be playing at the TEDxOakville Launch Party on Tuesday, June 22! This should be a fantastic event and I'm thrilled to be working with New Media artist Faisal Anwar. You can check out some of Faisal's work here.

The TEDxOakville theme is: "Can an individual in Oakville really make a difference and change the world?" If you'd like to learn more about TEDxOakville, please visit this page.

To learn more about TEDx, click here.

Thanks and bye for now,
Jamie

If you have a moment, please check out the brand new video for " Water "! This is the first of two videos my brother, Randy, has created for my latest release, Side B . I hope to have the second video up sometime next week. For those of you interested in the creative/tech side of things, Randy created the "Water" video completely in Motion and edited it in Final Cut. Yes, that means it was more than a little bit of work. As a side note, the molecule at the beginning and end of the …

My union (Local 1000) is auctioning off a "Pete Seeger-Style" Vega Longneck Banjo (made available by the generosity of the Deering Banjo Company). This banjo was played and signed by Pete himself! The proceeds of the auction will benefit our Emergency Relief Fund and our Organizing efforts to bring the benefits of our union to other musicians. Check out this video of Pete Seeger playing and signing the banjo! If you'd like to place a bid for the banjo, please visit this link . Thanks and best …

I'm happy to announce the release of my new album, Side B ! As the title suggests, Side B shows a different side to my music making -- the focus on this record is electronic and orchestral textures. I've had a long time love of electronic-based music (I started out on my brother's Jupiter 4 back in the late '70s) and ended up studying electro-acoustic/computer music in school. To date, all of my albums have been guitar-based -- the electronic and orchestral elements were generally in support of my …

Thanks to Namba Gear for making me a featured artist on their website!

Sony Music to drop promo CDs I actually thought this would have happened a long time ago.  I understand that some people in the industry (reviewers, radio stations, etc.) still want a physical product, but CDs make little or no sense in 2010. There is far less environmental impact from digital downloads and digital files are far easier to manage from a delivery standpoint. They're also easier to use. Finding a particular track amongst ten thousand songs in an iTunes-like system is a breeze. Finding …

Absolutely terrific interview with Jim Selby (CEO) of Naxos of America Inc.

Two of his answers regarding sales and profit I found very interesting:

Regarding sales.... "The physical (distribution) portion would be probably 70 percent (of sales). In profit, it would be around 10 percent. Ninety percent of the profit is generated by the non-physical."

And regarding digital sales... "Our sales for digital downloads and streams for Naxos the label are well over 50 percent. Most of the industry is around 25 percent. We have our own distributor labels that are well over 35 percent."

I never would have guessed that a Classical label would have this high a percentage of digital sales and profit. Definitely interesting...

 

I have a keeper!  I just picked up an SR Technology JAM 150 Plus and it’s exactly what I was looking for: An amp that is more than an amp.  I play a fairly wide range of sounds -- everything from nylon string guitar to electric to guitar synth -- so I need an amp that can handle a huge frequency range and lots of dynamics.  The JAM 150 Plus does that with ease.   SR Technology has made the JAM 150 Plus incredibly simple to operate.  You basically have six input …