Elegant Symphony Simplicity is the Ultimate Sophistication...

Today's New artist (details) is Thandiswa Mazwai, hailing from Johannesburg, South Africa. I first found out about Thandiswa over at BBC Music. It was one of those scenarios where the album art (from her second studio album Ibokwe) caught my eye and I couldn't resist the urge to see what awaited on the other side.

Thandiswa's music is refreshing and therapeutic. Her vocals are phenomenal, and the musical arrangement soothes the soul. Her style is kind of a Funk/Pop with native African symmetry. The Zulu sound is delightful. I have no idea what she is singing about, but her vocal range is beautiful and makes it all worth while. I read somewhere that "it is not about understanding music, it is the emotional response", so just accept it for what it is.

I haven't been afforded the opportunity to listen to the enitre album, outside of samples. Some of her music is featured on websites such as YouTube and Myspace, so I have been able to get a feel for what she is about. Based on what I have heard, Thandiswa has my stamp of approval.

No new artist today. I do have an artist lined up, I just have not been in the mood to do a write up. I also did some upgrades to the Blog. Instead of a new artist, I give you this lighthearted tune by Jason Mraz, his band and the Grooveline Horns. I wonder if there are any hot spots in my local area with live music like this on a regular? Guess I'll have to look into it. Hopefully tomorrow I'll have that new artist but until then, enjoy. Don't get caught in a YouTube loop like I did watching these!

I started Playing my Alto Saxophone again this past Sunday (Feb 28) after about a year. As I was playing I found that I was doing pretty good for having absolutely zero practice hours logged in quite some time.

After about an hour of playing, I found myself sucking air and losing the ability to hit those high notes with authority and correctness of tone. My mouth just wasn't as strong as it was when I was playing regularly, which is only natural. The next morning my mouth was sore and for about half of the day there was general discomfort.

Here we are two days later, and I feel as though I am very close to my old form. Granted I'm probably not as good as when I won two first place medals (top right of the picture) back in the day, but hey that was over 10 years ago. I plan on getting back there, and hopefully beyond that skill set.

Is there anything that you were good at but gave up due to life? Do you plan on factoring it back into your life at some point?

As we usher in the month of March, so to do we a new artist (details). Today's featured artist is Alice Smith, hailing from New York. No, she's actually not international but she does have a unique style that deviates from popular music in America. I first heard her song "Woodstock" on Pandora Radio for my BlackBerry Tour in September 2009, but only recently decided to look her up.

Alice Smith's Album entitled For Lovers, Dreamers & Me is different to say the least. As I was listening to it, I got the impression that it lacked fluidity. The tracks just do not mesh well. Her vocals are great and the musical arrangement is done well but it sounded like it was a hodgepodge of Jazz, Rock and Country, which in turn lead me to believe that it lacked direction. After gathering further information on her, it appears that this is what she had in mind as she relates to all afore mentioned genres (I even found an article that confirmed what I was thinking, although it listed more genres than I did).

While I think this album will take some getting used to for me, their are some tracks that did appeal to me from the first rundown. Said tracks include "Woodstock", "Fake is the New Real" and "Dream". Overall I believe this to be a "when in the mood" album rather than regular listening.