The Lightbulb Moment - Page 4

The world is a big place. Thankfully, no matter where you go, there’s a good chance that you’ll run into some pretty talented people. Every now and then, these gifted individuals muster up the courage to put their money where their mouth is; they take a leap of faith and invest in their own abilities, skills, and marketable traits. Rather...

I remember the day that I got my first bass. Months of daydreaming culminated in a trip to Medley Music, a local music store just outside of Philadelphia. I knew that place well. It was a few blocks down the street from an ice cream parlor, a movie theater, restaurants, and various businesses. A frequent Friday afternoon destination, there were...

We live in a pretty hectic world. In addition to our day-to-day worries, such as battling traffic and remembering to buy toilet paper, we can’t seem to escape from the never-ending news cycle. Lately, politics seem to have taken over; there is ongoing discussion of constitutional amendments, how to deal with big business and the global economy, and how the...

For most musicians, walking into a professional recording studio is like setting foot in Disneyland. There are so many colors, so many shiny microphones, so many synthesizers! You want to touch everything, including those knobs on the console that are so perfectly aligned. The faint scent of aged wood, treated walls, and ghostly vibrations transport you to a world of...

Being a bass player is awesome. Not only do you get to hang in the back and groove, but you get to skate by on all of that “theory” stuff that guitar players have to deal with. You know… like chords and whatnot. We only have to play one note at a time! That’s like… way easier. I wouldn’t want...

Here I am, once again, on the bandstand with a bass in hand. Two sets down, one to go. It’s a free for all… no official set list and a handful of requests. A guy with a twenty in his hand walks up to the stage and says, “Do ya’ll know ‘Whipping Post’?” The guitar player immediately looks at me...

I’d like to take a moment to reminisce. It’s the summer before freshmen year of high school and time to join the ranks of “pep” band. My school was more of an academic institution than an athletic one and while we certainly had plenty of competitive aptitude, the science club and debate teams took home the gold. Nevertheless, football season...

Walking through the NAMM show is like transporting yourself to the largest Guitar Center in the universe on Black Friday. The instruments on the walls don’t quietly beckon to you — they are in a constant state of demonstration. The showroom floor seems to extend for miles, making you feel disoriented in a sea of bright colors, shiny metals, whatta-tat-tats...

I love pasta. Spaghetti, Bucatini, Ziti, Rigatoni. There are dozens of different types, each originating from different regions of Italy or morphing after be adopted by other cultures and taken across seas. Some are made to look like pumpkins or little ears, some are long cuts, some are bite size, some contain filling, and some are made with different flavors....

It’s the year 2015. Hours are spent each day scrolling though videos on Facebook, clicking links to YouTube, or listening to preset Pandora, Spotify, and Amazon stations. We experience music on television commercials or reality TV shows, with hashtags and at symbols telling us where to go if we happen to like the song that is fed to us. It...

It’s finally jacket weather. The leaves are falling, the sun is setting earlier every day, and the pumpkin spice latte has returned. Halloween is just around the corner, which means that my friends will search for the creepiest haunted houses and hayrides, only to force me to join them on an adventure that will make me extremely uncomfortable. I have...

“Um, hey guys… excuse me… guys?!… Can you turn it down a little?” I glance behind me at the drummer and our eyes meet with the same surprised expression. He can’t be serious, right? We’re not playing rock and roll here… the drummer has yet to play with sticks instead of brushes, the keyboard player is running through a small...