Nils Rurack

It was sad to see Farrah Fawcett lose her long and strenuous battle against cancer yesterday. I was shocked later in the day when I heard of the death of Michael Jackson. My first reaction was disbelief. Surely, he wasn't done yet. He just booked 50 shows in London. They were all sold out and the king of pop was going to do what he does best, perform his music. When I realized that the news story was real I felt sad. Sad about the loss of a true and great artist that has influenced music and all of us in so many ways. There are few people who had such a huge impact on music as we know it today. Michael wrote and published such ground-breaking songs in the 80s that changed the musical landscape forever. His greatest hits are timeless and I cannot say that about many artists from the past 30 years. My thoughts are with both Michael's and Farrah's families. Every death is a tremendous loss. Unfortunately, in recent times Michael was more in the spotlight for his alleged behavi...

Yesterday I received a comment from Dave Grossman on my metronome blog and I wanted to thank Dave for reading my blog, contemplating the contents and taking the time to comment. One of my goals is to have a discussion with readers and appreciate the input. I wanted to clarify a few points regarding the metronome issue. Many musicians and music educators believe in metronomes and the value thereof. I don't have a problem with that. My personal issue is that people put too much emphasis on the use of metronomes. I find it interesting that the supporters of metronomes in musical education constantly ask for proof that metronomes aren't effective in learning and developing an inner time source. Personally, I believe that no one will be able to prove the effectiveness of metronomes in a positive or negative way unless scientific studies are conducted. Since this question is really not of the greatest importance there will never be funding available to conduct such a study. In the me...

When people hear that I play guitar quite a few times they asked me for lessons. I usually respond that I don't give lessons. This does not mean that I won't be posting instructional videos for everyone's pleasure and entertainment at some point. I might just do that. There are a number of reasons why I don't sit down and teach. It is very hard to keep a steady income going with a private practice and positions at music schools are rare and not very well paid. Also, a network of contacts is necessary but by moving from country to country and continent to continent it is hard to establish one. I have created an online network with people from all over the world but that hardly counts for my immediate environment. My main interest is music and most students are looking for quick lessons on the instrument. This sounds snobbish and arrogant but it is not. Just like there are kindergarten teachers and college professors there are people that like to teach others the first st...

You can say many things about YouTube. It's a tool, it's a nuisance, it's old, it's new, it's fun, it's annoying and the list goes on and on. What attracts my attention is the vast supply of music related videos. These can be music videos, concerts or other presentations. While others are posting or looking for new hilarious videos or the latest events on video I dive in to look for footage from bands, recent and especially past. It is a goldmine. I am seriously surprised by what footage is out there. Videos from concerts in an age where there were only few video cameras around, and the ones available were expensive, huge and heavy. I've been wishing for years I could see a Tubes show from the 70s and I already gave up hope that they would ever release a DVD from their "What do you want from live" tour just for old times sake and sentimentalists like me. Thanks to YouTube I didn't have to look much further and found a wealth clips. I thoroughly...

It's funny when I talk to people and tell them that I am a musician and play guitar everyone and their cousin plays guitar or can find another instrument they used to play in high school or band. I understand that by abiding by the laws of conversation this comes from the deeper sense of trying to find a common ground. Everybody should have played or tried an instrument at some point in their life. Music helps children develop skills and forms an outlet of energy and feelings for everyone. If you've read prior posts you are already familiar with my findings that adults play instruments for many different reasons ranging from recreation to business. I often wonder why people stop playing instruments and making music. Most often I hear the lack of time as a reason or the interest in other hobbies. Although I believe that there are so many things in this world that are interesting and we generally only scratch the surface of what we try, I also believe in balance. Picking up an in...

Two weeks after the finale of season 8 of American Idol I cannot resist offering up my thoughts on the season one last time. The truth is that Idol plays quite a significant role in today's entertainment industry. It doesn't only touch the music industry or television but also the internet and especially the blogosphere. While the music industry is changing rapidly, Idol has become one of the few opportunities for discovery of talent. Backed by this huge financial machine 19 entertainment can actually do what record companies used to do, invest in little known talent. Some make it and some don't but the losses of the flops are still more than re-gained by the sales of the stars. Did you notice how many actual stars perform during the results shows? I thought this last year already; apparently Idol is the place to be. Some artists are there because the show can afford them and their presence brings in more viewers. Others are likely very inclined to show up to boost their po...

You might have read the story about Wal-Mart refusing to sell Green Day's latest CD 21st Century Breakdown if they don't release a clean version without "objectionable content". Wow, that is a big pill to swallow. I can't even begin to tell you what a diversity of feelings that evoked in me from anger to frustration. I applaud Green Day for sticking to their guns and taking a pass on Wal-Mart. My wife and I used to make fun of Green Day in the heyday of pop-punk. Whenever a song would play on the radio or TV we would say: "sounds like Green Day to me". Although I am still not a fan of their music I have to give them kudos for not being afraid to speak out about current issues. My concerns in this matter come from the interpretive nature of the topic. A retail store can sell whatever they want to sell. An artist can create art freely unless they violate other's rights. There is art, especially in music, which is not suitable for all audiences. I agree...