Famous musicians from Barcelona

Posted on June 20th, 2020 by Milos Sajin
Barcelona is well known for being a hot spot for musicians, from all walks of life. Maybe it’s the beach and mountains, maybe it’s the unusually warm weather or the carefree attitude that its people exude, but whatever it is, Barcelona has a unique energy that inspires and nurtures artistic expression. Flamenco chords rising from random street corners, hustling reggae musicians singing with a raspy voice in the metro, Latin American Orchestras searching for their own sound. The city has always been bursting with a creative energy that has gifted us with many extraordinary artists. In fact many of our own teachers form parts of Bands or perform solo in Barcelona! 
Let’s have a look at some of Barcelona’s famous exports:

One of such talents is Joan Manuel Serrat. Born to an anarchist father in the popular barrio of Poble Sec, Serrat became the voice of a generation, singing in Catalan when it was frowned upon if not openly prohibited, and singing about the daily life in Catalunya after the civil war. Infused with the sensibilities of the “coplas” and traditional music of his early childhood, his sound captures the essence of Mediterranean nostalgia, and built a  cultural bridge between latin american and catalan music in the XX century.

Coming out of the rock scene from the early nineties, Pau Dones and his band Jarabe de Palo, redefined what was to be expected from spanish rockers. Their intensely popular song “la flaca” propelled them to international stardom, breaking records across all the spanish speaking world. Not to be defined by their early success, they have kept pushing the envelope and constantly surprising their audiences with their creativity.

Too punk for rock, to rocker for punk, José María Sanz Beltrán, better known for his stage name, Loquillo, has had a tumultuous career. Alongside his band Los Trogloditas, and recently by himself, he has earned his place in the rock pantheon of Barcelona´s greats. Navigating easily between popular genres, he has eluded being pigeonholed by his style and continues to be one of the cities favorite prodigal sons.

Barcelona has always been characterized for being a melting pot of identities. The city lends itself for cultural cross-pollination. It’s no surprise then, that a group like Ojos de Brujo found its footing in the streets of el Raval. A genre-bending experiment in musical creativity, these talented musicians have fused their influences in a large pallette of sounds that they have come to define as jipjop flamenkillo, a tongue twister of a name but a clear and focused execution of modern fusion styles.

Walk around the streets of the gothic quarter on a Friday evening and you will soon understand why this city is loved by the creative types. Maybe it’s the fact that the city defined itself in a opposition to the XX century dictatorship in the country, or the amount of talented immigrants who like to call Barcelona their home, whatever it is, the musical effervescence felt around every corner has surely inspired many souls, and lures the artist with its energy.

Do you wanna be part of the music revolution? Learn more at the Shine Music School, we offer combo and band lessons! And don’t forget to browse our Teacher pages, where we have featured videos of many of our teachers performing!

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Your Musical Travel Companion

Posted on June 20th, 2020 by Milos Sajin

As summer vacation is fast approaching, and international and national restrictions lift, holidays are looming, and even perhaps a little bit of travel if you can! Perhaps you have already planned your first trip! You can start dreaming again of sand between your toes on a beach in Ibiza, or the Canary Islands. Perhaps even a secret cove in Mallorca. Close your eyes and think of the mountain hike you can go on in the Pyranees.  The birds singing in the trees, the sound of a softly trickling stream. Suddenly you realize something is missing. What could possibly make this moment even more magical? Yes! Music! What if you had an ukulele or guitalele right next to you?

Traveling with an instrument is difficult!

Most guitar players that travel are worried about their precious guitar getting damaged on the plane. Imagine turbulence as you descend over the Pyrenees bumps and scratches your favourite guitar! And you didn’t insure it! Even worse, you are forced to stow it in the luggage bay, or pay for an extra seat to accommodate your instrument. Then the baggage handlers loose your luggage, including your guitar! A nightmare for musicians! This is why finding other options than traveling with your guitar can be a smart idea.

Here are some benefits of choosing an ukelele or guitalele as your travel instrument of choice:

1# Size and weight: The ukulele and guitalele are small enough for taking inside the airplane and are easy to transport, making them the perfect instruments for travel. Extremely lightweight and easy to transport, they fit perfectly in the overhead luggage compartment in an airplane. Small and easy to carry, but offering a similar sound to the original guitar.

2# To socialize: Because of their small size and weight, both instruments become a great way to make friends and meet people. The great thing about them is you can take them everywhere! You can easily play the ukulele or guitalele on Barceloneta beach, perform on Barcelona streets or jam in the most popular pubs and bars around town. The joyful sound of both instruments easily attracts peoples attention and you will often find yourself surrounded by smiley faces. People love singing along to today’s favourites played on a cheerful little instrument.

3# Price: You can get any of these two instruments at a very reasonable price and not worry if they get damaged. While traveling it’s easy for your instrument to get damaged by the sun, bumps or too much use. So better not take your expensive guitar on the road! You can easily rent or buy an ukelele or guitalele and not worry so much if something happens to your little buddy.

So why not give it a try?

Our teacher Sebastian Pan regularly plays his electric guitalele, you can get a lesson with him if you like!

If you in Barcelona and want to try an ukelele or guitalele, please contact shinemusicrental.com for more details.

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So you wanna play Bass?

Posted on June 20th, 2020 by Milos Sajin

“When I heard BB King’s ‘Sweet Sixteen, I knew I wanted to play bass because that was the thing that made that record: the bass player.” Donal Dunn

I remember speaking with David, one of Shine’s best teachers about the bass guitar. He said proudly that the bass guitar is for real music lovers, for those who don’t want leadership or to stand out from the rest of the group, but become the body of the group, bringing all of the other instruments together. “This is why bass guitar players have to be really passionate about it, because they become both body and soul of any band”, he said.

Very often people ask themselves what’s the real difference between a guitar and a bass. If you are an absolute newbie to music you may not even understand the basic differences between guitar and bass. The two instruments are more similar than you probably realise. The electric guitar is a six-stringed instrument, and standard tuning is: EADGBE. That means the lowest string is tuned to the note E, the next to the note A, the next to D and so on. But knowing the notes isn’t really important right now, as much as understanding how the guitar and bass are related.

The standard bass guitar has only four strings, and is a slightly larger instrument. The tuning of a bass guitar is the same as the lowest four strings of a regular guitar, except one whole octave down in pitch. Therefore, the strings of bass guitar are tuned EADG, just like the lowest four strings on a regular guitar. In many ways, the bass is exactly the same as the guitar, except with two fewer strings and lower tuning. The same scales, chords and music theory you might learn on one carries over to the other. The two instruments are directly related. This is important, because many players think they have to choose one or the other when first starting out. Understanding that there is a direct correlation between the two might make your choice seem a bit less stressful. What you learn on guitar will apply to bass and vice versa. You can make the switch at any time. It might be fun to try!

Keep in mind, there are all kinds of different tunings used on both instruments, and all kinds of variations of each instrument. There are 7- and 8-string guitars, and 5- and 6-string basses. Don’t let any of that worry you. Once you understand the basics of one instrument, the rest is easy to figure out.

One thing many young musicians wonder is why a rock band even needs a bassist. They’re just in the background, and many bands are so drum and guitar-heavy on their albums that you can’t even hear the bass. This is especially true now that so many guitarists are detuning down to the frequencies once occupied only by the bassist. In truth, while average bass players may be content with taking a backseat, a good bassist knows that his or her job is to carry the band. They provide the backbone that holds up the other instruments. In genres like jazz and blues, this means settling into a groove and working with the drummer. In metal and hard rock, it means supplying the meat of the guitar riff, that part of the sound that puts the audience through the back wall.

Good bassists are indeed very valuable, so if bass is the path you decide on, then wear your choice proudly!

Ok, let’s be honest. It’s actually pretty easy to play bass. You only have to play one note at a time, you can just stand in the back and chill, and if you make a mistake, you just call it a “passing tone.” But the insider trick to know is that if you play in-time and play the right notes most of the time, you are keeping the song moving melodically and rhythmically. You, my friend, are the most important part of the song. The bass player is the perfect mediator in the band. He (or she) keeps the other players in line and holds everything in place. Without the bass player, everything would fall apart and be a big mess.

I’ve heard many musicians say that one of the hardest things to do is to find a good bass player. So if you’re a good bass player, you’ll get work. You don’t even need to be great. You just need to play the right notes in time.

Electric bass guitar, when played acoustically, is probably the quietest instrument that exists. A bass player can plug in headphones and mixer and sound like he’s playing in a stadium in his ears, but to the people around him, pretty much nothing is happening.

Can you think of a quieter instrument? Right. Bass is it. Great for practicing at home and not bothering the neighbours

Also, a bass player will always be a great friend. A bass player is patient. A bass player loves what he does, and knows that the most important job is to ensure that people feel something. That they dance. That they lose themselves in the groove.

If you decide to give it a try, you can contact Shine Music School for face to face lessons or online lessons.

You can also come down to The Music Room in Barcelona and rent a bass for a couple of months to see how it goes or visit our instrument rental page.

You might want to listen to some of the best bass players of all times and see what they sound like : Flea, John Entwistle, Cliff Burton and Victor Wooten.

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5 tips for practicing music

Posted on June 20th, 2020 by Milos Sajin

1. Use a metronome.

It’s all about timing.  If music is the art of alternating sound and silence, the precision with which you can understand and subdivide time is crucial to the groove. Practicing with the metronome at slow speeds will improve sense of timing and practicing at higher tempos will help you achieve accuracy and precision. Don’t forget to incorporate metronome exercises in your practicing schedule and you’re guaranteed to hear the results!

2. Play with other people.

Art does not exist in a vacuum. Even if you are a solo singer songwriter that hates sharing the stage with anyone else but his guitar, you can benefit from playing with other people. Music is an interactive skill that requires deep sensibility and quick reflexes, but more importantly, it’s about learning to listen.  Getting together with other musicians and learning to communicate with them through music will undoubtedly help you to gain a deeper understanding of yourself as a musician

3. Transcribe songs by ear.

Music is first and foremost, a listening art.  Although there are thousands of resources to help you learn new songs, nothing beats sitting next to the cd player for hours on end, and picking apart your favourites songs note by note. Transcribe a song by ear every week and you will quickly develop an ability to recognise and find notes on your instrument. Your bandmates and ears with thank you.

4. Learn other styles of music.

They say nothing interesting happens inside of our comfort zone. That is definitely true for music.  After a while playing your music style of choice you will start to develop a matching vocabulary as you become more comfortable with it. This is all good and well, but sometimes it’s easy to keep repeating the same ideas over and over again. That’s when a journey across different genres of music can refresh your musical outlook and give you new ideas and concepts to apply in your music. Sometimes, forcing yourself to play things you usually dismiss can open up new avenues and take  your creative spirit to places you never imagined before.

5. Practice 30 minutes daily (better than cramming 6 hours one day a week)

They say that  practice makes perfect. But mix it up, don’t always do the same drills. Scales are a good warmup, but can get boring if you are doing the same things over and over. Set goals and work through them. Break up your music pieces into smaller chunks and play them on repeat until they are 100 % perfect. Be mindful in your practice, don’t daydream. Practice in a room free from distractions! Practicing often for shorter periods of time works well! Recording your practice also helps.

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Social Distance Jamming

Posted on June 3rd, 2020 by Milos Sajin

It’s as if our metamorphosis is almost complete. Stretching our arms and breaking free of our tiny cocoons. The sun is shining and we are able to visit the parks and beaches for exercise. Getting out of our houses or apartments is liberating. It changes our moods and uplifts our spirits, just like music can change our mood, so can a change in our environment. We find ourselves hatching out into a new world. This means we need to look for new and interesting ways to interact.

So why not take your music practice with you?! Smaller instruments are ideal, a guitar or ukulele, a guitalele or bongo drum, so that you can carry them easily. If you sing you only need take along your voice for an acoustic jamming session outside! Find a quiet spot in a park and practice your guitar outside!

With the 10 person gathering allowance in Barcelona, it’s the perfect time to form a band, or put on a tiny rooftop or terrace performance.
So check the weather forecast, and plan your musical party! Invite friends who don’t have instruments and get them to sing along in an outdoor karaoke session.
We don’t advise you singing along indoors, so while we wait until we can enjoy the outdoor parks and beaches with friends and do some Social Distance Jamming, why not host your own Online Musical Party. Plenty of our teachers have been playing and performing with friends together online. Hosting a zoom party online is not too difficult!

You can have fun decorating your room to create that party ambience and then stream it online. Create your own online invitation. There are various platforms in which you can interact and make music together online. Or perhaps you just would like to do a live DJ stream and chat with your guests. Whichever way you choose, music and interacting with music can connect us in many ways! With just a little Googling you can find plenty of online parties to join. Many djs and performers have transitioned online. Why not join in with some friends via a watch party, or create your own! Here are some tips!

Which Platform Should I Use?

How to Host a Virtual Party

1. Send virtual invite

Virtual invites can be as formal or as simple as you’d like. You can send out a quick group text or if you’re feeling fancy, whip up a virtual party invite and send it out over e-mail. Use free templates for a fun image on the Canva app.

2. Plan together beforehand

No one wants to show up to a party unprepared. Just because it’s online, doesn’t mean it’s boring. Make it a reason to dress up! You can even make a party theme!

3. Designate responsibilities

Get people involved. Often the excitement of preparing for an event can be half of the fun. If you’re having a theme party, designate any tasks and responsibilities out to your friends and family. For example, if you’re hosting a virtual musical night, be sure that everyone has an instrument, even if they have to make one!

4. Let’s party!

Dress up, set up your camera (you can make your own phone stand) and get your party snacks and drinks ready. It’s time to have some fun!

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