UPDATED We are excited to announce the launch of our new shinemusicrental.com website. What did we do? A complete rebrand, fresh new web-design and whole lot of new functionality to make renting instruments easier.
The aim with the new website was to streamline the process of renting instruments. We focused on improving user experience which included better product listing, better overall design, smoother e-commerce process and a lot more content. We also looked at how we could be better at providing pre-sale and post-sale support to our clients.
For those of you who don’t know about our rental services we offer instrument rental services to event companies, wedding organisers, parents renting instruments for school children, professionals playing in concerts and individuals that are in Barcelona for holidays. From Digital Pianos, Acoustic Guitars to Speakers you name it we have it.
Although this was a major upgrade our work continues. There are several areas that we want to improve further and are currently working toward that so stay tuned.
Study holidays have long been popular in Barcelona, where many people visit the city for longer periods of time on student visas. Barcelona boasts some of the top business schools, a respected Erasmus program and plenty of choices for studying Spanish. Study abroad is both a daunting and exciting prospect for young people, and often a right of passage.
Immersive study is a valuable way to learn and a good way to get to know the history, culture and people of Catalunya and Spain.
Shine school of music offers both extracurricular music lessons in Barcelona to students already in the city looking to expand their knowledge base and students wanting to do intensive courses on flamenco or classical Spanish guitar. Our guitar courses can be taught in Spanish, Catalan or English offering an alternative approach to learning the language. And we offer a host of other instrument courses from piano lessons to singing.
Barcelona is well suited as city for students. It’s generally safe with a large international community. The city is small enough to navigate easily and there are plenty of affordable accommodation options for students from home stays to shared apartments. Students can become involved in the vibrant meetup groups, and there are plenty of free, cheap and fun activities that won’t break the bank. Yoga in the park, jam sessions, exercise on the beach, the list goes on. Besides this, Barcelona has an action packed cultural calendar with festivals and fiestas planned throughout the year.
At shine music school we accept students of any age and welcome the chance to share our love and knowledge of music with the discerning learner. Why not study music in Barcelona with us. We offer tailored courses for individual study as well as group music lessons.
Study Music Barcelona
Classes At Shine Music School Barcelonawith A5 Preset
Even if you’ve never picked up an instrument before, getting started on the ukulele is fun, easy and, if you want, inexpensive. Once you’re acquainted, don’t think you have to stick to playing typical uke songs, though.
What Makes a Good Ukulele Song?
There’s no rulebook that says only certain songs can be played on a ukulele. In general, what makes a good ukulele song is a distinct and consistent rhythm maintained throughout the song. That being said, anything can sound good on the uke – it’s how you play it that counts.
This brings us to the first song we suggest for beginning ukulele players.
#1 SOMEWHERE OVER THE RAINBOW/WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD
Israel “IZ” Kamakawiwo’ole’s beautiful melody brings out the joyfulness in the ukulele. Movies like Meet Joe Black, 50 First Dates and Finding Forrester, and popular TV shows like Scrubs and So You Think You Can Dance have helped draw attention to this song in the past. Today, it’s a must-know for ukulele players.
#2 I’M YOURS
This mellow favourite by Jason Mraz has just 4 chords—C, G, Am and F. Get familiar with this chord progression early on in your ukulele endeavour because you will use it to play tons of songs in the future.
Shine School of Music teachers Gaspar Muller (ukulele) and Sebastian Pan (acoustic guitar, vocals) play a mash-up of our top 2 songs.
#3 HEY SOUL SISTER
This Train single is another example of how pop music has been drawing attention to the ukulele over the past few years.
#4 STAND BY ME
Ben E. King changed the world with “Stand By Me”, which the Library of Congress inducted into the National Recording Registry in early 2015. It has a very distinct rhythm, and to make the song recognisable you really need to imitate that as closely as you can.
Remember when learning a new song, take it one step at a time. Break down a song by chords, strum and vocals. Don’t try to do everything at once.
If you want to get a bit more creative with your uke, the second part of our list has some songs you might not have thought to play.
#5 NO WOMAN NO CRY
Bob Marley & The Wailers’ reggae song is a super easy solo for the uke that will prompt a favourable reaction from any audience.
#6 HOUSE OF THE RISING SUN
The Animals’ take on “House of the Rising Sun” was arguably the first folk-rock tune, as if they took the ancient ditty from some obscure folk-inspired corner of the United States and connected it to a live wire.
#7 RIPTIDE
Written by Australian singer-songwriter Vance Joy, this song has all the metaphors and pop culture references to partner with the latest ukulele fashion.
#8 SOMETHING
“Something” was written by George Harrison and released on the Beatles’ 1969 album Abbey Road. The song drew high praise from the other band members, with Lennon declaring it the best song on Abbey Road and McCartney considering it the best song Harrison had ever written.
#9 SPEAK SOFTLY, LOVE
The main theme music for The Godfather, with its intensity and distinction, is not your average ukulele song. Playing it will certainly set you apart from the crowd and earn you some street cred, if nothing else.
#10 IS THIS LOVE
When Bob Marley & the Wailers’ roots reggae album Kaya came out in 1978, several reviewers said they had gone soft. But the songs on the album simply reflect how Marley was feeling at the time, which was great, and the summery, carefree feel specific to “Is This Love” works well with the uke’s similar sound.
#11 AMÉLIE
“Amélie” is the soundtrack to the 2001 French film Amélie, set in Paris, about a young woman aspiring to help and improve the lives of those around her. Just like you, as a ukulele player, can add merriment to the lives of those listening around you.
#12 YOU ALWAYS HURT THE ONES YOU LOVE
Even the heartthrob Ryan Gosling, whose smouldering gaze and perfect torso have recently inspired a plethora of playful memes on social media sites, has taken up the ukulele. In Blue Valentine (2010), Gosling gives an impromptu performance of “You Always Hurt the Ones You Love”, while his onscreen counterpart Michelle Williams dances. This lovely old tune is very well suited for the uke.
The most important thing is to start playing. Now! So pick one of our cool ukulele song suggestions or find one of your own, and serenade us.
For information on what type of ukulele best suits you and your style, as well as where to buy a uke in Barcelona, click here.
Matt Kaplan finds a host of useful Guitar Apps to help you learn and play. Read on to discover the best free Guitar and Music apps for your mobile phone!
Guitarists!
Today I had a great time searching for a few must have apps that are completely free in the iOS App Store and Google Play for Android devices. I would like to introduce to you all to: Yousician, Chromatic Guitar Tuner by Gismart, and Flamenco Móvil. Each of these apps would certainly be a great addition to your music app library!
Yousician
Yousician is a fantastic app that teaches you how to play the guitar through a series of games and challenges. Imagine a “Guitar Hero” format with a much more productive side. As much as I enjoyed the games trying to get the highest scores on the challenges, as a guitar educator I really appreciated the breakdown of techniques and crystal clear demonstration videos. I think this is a great way to mix up your practice sessions and spend some extra free time learning the guitar in an extremely creative way. This app definitely serves beginners a little bit more than advanced players, but it is developed for every level of progress (the challenges can be extremely difficult).
I love that when you open the app you are guided through the interface with a step-by-step guided tutorial that asks you personalized questions to access where you can begin within the app. Once you arrive at the level that Yousician thinks that you belong, you can begin working through the progressive challenges.
The games themselves are simple but they do take a few tries to get used to; especially when it comes to the timing of everything. The challenge itself involves watching guitar TAB fly by in real time while trying to play the correct notes at the correct time. I would suggest making sure that you are seated comfortably with the phone or tablet placed at a comfortable level so you do not strain your neck. It can sometimes get difficult to keep your eye on the screen the entire time while you’re playing the exercise (especially if you are not used to sight-reading).
To pass between the various challenges and advance your level of playing, you have to watch instruction demonstrations (mini guitar lessons!). This is an aspect of the app that I really enjoy because it separates the game aspect from the actual facility required to play the instrument.
Want to keep using Yousician but perhaps you are stuck on a difficult challenge? Yousician offers a song library for you to try out and play along with offering a few familiar songs. You can also stop by the challenge mode to find a few daily and weekly challenges. One of the exciting things about this app is that once you join, you will be part of a community of learners where you can interact amongst each other and share your progress!
With this app it is important to keep in mind a few things for its use if you decide to download it. As I have been playing with it for a while I would highly advise that you be in a quiet location to not have any interference with the guitar-to-device communication. The sound recognition within the app is very sensitive for the game, which can of course be a double-edged sword. For that same reason I would suggest wearing headphones if you have the option. If you don’t have any handy, it’s not a big deal but you would not be able to turn the volume up on your phone all the way without it interfering with the mic. Lastly, as this is a free app, you can only play a limited time a day. If you choose to purchase the premium version you are invited to play as long as you like with added features!
This app is a must have tool for any guitarist. Free through the iOS App Store and Google Play, this app has completely surprised me with the amount that it can do. It is definitely essential for guitarists but, as it has a very accurate chromatic tuning feature, it can also be used to tune your bass guitar, ukulele, and much more.
On the home screen we find the main tuner that is collaborated to the six strings of the guitar. Beginners will find this useful if they are used to tuning up with their teachers’ in- tune guitar. The interface is easy to navigate and advanced musicians will appreciate the accuracy of the chromatic tuner option (top right corner) and the tuning fork component. The tuning fork can even be calibrated to whatever frequency you’d like.
One key feature to this app that other tuning apps do not have is that you can experiment with a great amount of preset tuning modes. On the main screen of the app we are presented with a standard tuning scheme that is clearly indicated right above the app fretboard. Hit the standard tuning option button and you are transported to a menu of many more tuning options. Want to tune your guitar down and jam to your favorite Jimi Hendrix song? Hit the Eb mode and retune to the preset strings with ease. There are many more options to choose from between guitar and ukulele so you can use the opportunity to play around in unfamiliar tunings and see what you can come up with!
One word of advice for players that are not used to playing in drop or open tunings: retuning an entire guitar or just a string or two takes a little bit of time. That is to say, the strings will quickly be knocked out of what they are used to from the standard tuning and the guitar will seem completely out of tune. I would tune the guitar to your desired tuning, play around with it for a bit, and keep tuning up. After about a half hour or so (depending on how much you play it of course) your guitar should remain in the new tuning without jumping out of tune too much!
Flamenco Móvil is an amazing app for the flamenco guitarist and aficionado. This is not necessarily an app aimed to develop your skills as a guitar player; rather, it is an app that completely brings you into the holistic world of flamenco music. As most lovers of the art of flamenco know, it is much more than simply learning a few toques and falsetas. To understand the complexity and depth of the art, it is essential that one knows as much as possible about the history, players, and different types of styles within the art. That’s where Flamenco Móvil comes in.
As you can see from the menu options above, you can spend a lot of time with Flamenco Móvil learning a ton about many different topics. In the Actualidad option, there are many news articles about flamenco happenings going on and a handful of interviews with flamenco artists (I personally enjoyed the multi-part interview with Manolo Sanlúcar). The cultura section is an amazing resource you have to check out. In that section you can read, watch, and hear about the history of the art and visit the Flamenco Móvil dictionary. My personal favorite tab of the cultura section is the Estilos sections where you can find everything you’d want to know about each individual toque. Not only is there an explanation but sometimes you can even find audio and video examples as well.
The last thing worth mentioning about this app is the local services offered. Using the Club option (if you give Flamenco Móvil permission to know your location), you can do a real time search of venues known to Flamenco Movíl that present concerts and shows. This is great for musicians that love to travel! However, just to note: the Agenda option is set up to show you concert options within a specific time and location. However, I have no had any success in getting any results which to me is just a minor setback to an incredibly useful app.
For a number of months, the Shine school of Music in Barcelona at Estudio Shine has been offering students the opportunity to play as part of a group. These musical combos have been headed up by our teacher Gian Carlo Scevola, an accomplished musician with many years of experience playing in bands and combos. Gian Carlos’ band The Kennficks performs regularly in Barcelona, and Gian Carlo has been instrumental in offering his guidance and support to students who wish to create their own bands.
Performing together, especially with a variety of instruments, imparts a valuable learning experience to the student. Not only are the group combos fun, but the music created has added dimension, allowing students to work together on different instruments and learn from each other.
Gian Carlo has worked with our other teachers to provide a dynamic platform in which our students can benefit greatly from a shared experience of music.
Most recently the school showcased a number of performances by the various combos at Estudio Shine at the annual school concert. Students sang and played a variety of musical pieces with very successful results. Guitar, piano, saxophone, and clarinet captivated the audience and we hope to continue creating more groups with interested students.
Please contact the school or Gian Carlo, if you are interested in performing in part of one of Estudio Shine’s combo groups.
Check back to our Youtube later, as we keep posting videos from the concert.
