Music History and Music Theory questions? Ask Mike!

Whither Glasto? The sad truth that Glasto failed miserably to sell out in minutes this year was underlined this weekend by the full page adverts for the festival that appeared in all the broadsheets. Same old hippy feel to the ad design - and when you look closely at the detailed lineup, all the usual suspects are there. It’s not Jay Z that is keeping folks away. … more about Where next for Glastonbury Festival?

Strike up a jig or reel in preparation to dance “The Dashing White Sergeant” and the fiddle is never far away. For centuries, in country towns and villages across the British Isles, dance tunes and fiddle skills were passed from father to son. There was always a local band to call upon at harvest time. … more about The great ceilidh revival

One evening in the early 1930’s in the dressing room of The Claridge on the Champs-Elysees, virtuoso gypsy guitarist Django Reinhardt was warming up on his guitar as he always did before a performance, when violinist Stephane Grappelli casually started to improvise around his chords. … more about Swing jazz, the Paris Hot Club way

Music for me is a love affair. The love of my life? An instrument that emanated from the near East, was perfected in Renaissance Italy and has proliferated across Europe and the rest of the world since then, such that it is part of the warp and weft of most styles of musical expression from the humble to the grand. … more about Fiddle player meets classical violinist

Has Glastonbury Festival sold out? It’s an arguable point. One thing is for sure, in terms of tickets, it certainly hasn’t sold out this year, but in terms of ethos - well, there’s no two ways about it, it’s not the same chaotic, quirky, off-the-wall emporium of the Hippy surreal that it once was. … more about Has Glastonbury Festival sold out?

Improve communication, release stress and create a positive attitude in within the workforce by introducing music-making into the workplace. Music workshops provide an novel and innovative method of improving corporate performance. … more about Music builds team spirit in the workplace

In days of yore, the mean fiddler could leap impromptu upon a nine-gallon beer cask in the back room of a country hostelry and whip the crowd into a frenzy with his wild playing. Not so in the UK today. First he must sit down with a long risk-assessment form, then he must complete a detailed license form. … more about The silencing of the mean fiddler

There is a power of communication in a live musical performance that the mp3 download (whether it is free or not) cannot capture. Thomas Hardy, one of the great 19th century English novelists, sums up the essence of the live performance process in his short story - Fiddler of the Reels. It is the ability to “play the fiddle so as to draw your soul out of your body like a spider’s thread … until you felt as limp as withywind “. … more about The mean fiddler does it live!

Seems wonderful, doesn’t it? Music of all varieties and cultures freely available to download via the internet. From a high-quality interpretation of a Mozart string quartet to early performances by The Beatles at The Cavern Club in Liverpool, it’s all there. … more about Free mp3 downloads: good or bad?