Contact: Virginia Thompson
8316 6th St. N.
St. Petersburg, FL 33702
(727) 576-0166
email: thom.music@verizon.net

Saint Petersburg, Fl. – June 30, 2009

“The Best Summer Music Camp in Town ”

Thompson’s Music Studio will host the “A Major Summer Music Camp” at Pro Star Recording Studio in St. Pete., the week of July 13th and also at Arts on 9th July 20th in Ybor City for children ages six through teens.

It’s time to pull out your fiddle, keyboard, and guitar from underneath the bed and fulfill those dreams of musical desire. Beginners through intermediate students, age six through teens, will also learn basic music theory and have a toe tapping, finger snapping, hand clapping fun experience that makes learning music exciting and easy.

This week-long camp will end with an all inspired fun experience recording their own CD in a professional recording studio. There will be a grand finale recital and graduation party. Parents, family, and friends, are invited. This is a great way for children to learn music and make some new friends.

Please call Mrs. Thompson for early registration and discounted pricing at 727.576.0166. The cost for this camp is $175.00 with a $25.00 discount for early registration.

Registration for Pro Star Recording Studio in St. Pete is July 11 from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. The camp starts July 13th – 18th and is located at 3220 28th St. N., St. Pete., FL 33713 or call 727.526.0446

Registration for Arts on 9th in Ybor is July 18th 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. The Camp starts July 20th – 25th located at 1513 E. 9th Tampa, FL 33605 or call 813.436.8002

Overall, the symposium was a great success. Saturday opened with “Poets of Popular Song, The Lyrics and Lyric Writers of the Great American Songbook”. Featuring the piano work of Paul Wilborn and the 105 year old Rosa Rio. After their performance, many of the attendees broke for the lunch while the rest of us sat at our tables and handed out free swag and met with people.

As the day raged on, the crowd continued to morph. After noon, the rock kids all awoke and made an appearance, many to show off their demos and many more to attend seminars including “Marketing, Touring and Band Management” and “Alternative Media Promotion” with BrandTampa’s own Queen of Social Media Julia Gorzka. Classes on getting the most out of studio time, shooting a music video and a “meet the press” session provided even more value to those who came looking for help getting their music careers off the ground.

There was a good showing by all the key players at the vendor tables including Bay Area Beat, WMNF, Creative Loafing and Reax.

Here are some random photos from the event:

I went on Thursday night, met up with the piano men and got a front row seat while I was waiting for them to start. The place was pretty dead at 10PM, but people began trickling in as the set started. It’s important to note that this isn’t your granddad’s piano bar. The songs they play are all pop hits from the last forty years, and they draw on the crowd for suggestions.

Some of the songs are obvious choices, originally written for piano such as Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and Jim Croce’s “Bad Bad Leroy Brown”. Others, such as their piano rock renditions of Sir Mix-A-Lot’s “Baby Got Back” and Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face” were stunningly powerful and funny renditions. Since this is an 18+ venue, the language took a turn for the blue during some of the songs, often parodying the lyrics of the pop song. Want a funny example? “I want to poke her face, pa-pa-poke her face.. with my weiner.”

You can thank Ty Chaney for that little ditty. His showmanship is nothing short of Vegas quality and his attention to detail and honest interactions make him the kind of performer that I wish I could see every night. His accompanying piano man, Dan Slyker, is all the wingman that a piano playing entertainer could ask for. When he’s not on the ivories, he would hop behind the drums to fill out songs as needed.

The fun of Howl at the Moon is being an engaged audience member. You’ll find yourself singing along at full volume. You’ll have a pile of song suggestions scrawled out and passed up to the piano men, who will gladly take tips to play your tune. You’ll most likely be surprised at exactly how much fun this all is.

I’m waiting for the two piano players to contact me for an interview, because I think their story needs to be heard. Anyone who can start out “White Rabbit” loud and get progressively louder only to follow with the most insane version of “Welcome to the Jungle” is worthy of both my praise and my attention.

Come Celebrate Black Music Month

Motown Maurice and Wide aWoke Wednesdays Supports Black Music June 17

Please join me on Wednesday, June 17 at the USF Alumni Center Traditions Hall as I, Motown Maurice, as I pay tribute to the extraordinary talents, achievements, and creativity of African American singers, musicians, composers, performers who have enriched our lives and culture. In further celebration, join me and some of Tampa’s most talented performers participate in our special Wide aWoke Wednesday’s show as we celebrate Black Music Month and the 2^nd anniversary of our show. 

Music is, perhaps, the most powerful tools I use to get me through life’s sometimes unstoppable journey. This is why I stress the importance of paying my respect to those pioneers responsible for creating Black Music. Black Music, in my opinion, has been a significant contributor and immensely strong influence on American music. 

The original African Americans were ritually enslaved and reluctantly transported across the Atlantic to horrific lives of involuntary servitude. For over 300 years Black Americans could not participate in government or any other contributory community activities but they were quick to adapt their native culture to the dominant Christian doctrine as well as church music.

Church-going slaves who converted to Christianity of the 17th and 18th centuries would repeat-often in call-and-response fashion, the hymns and psalms sung by the service leader. This organized and inspiring religious practice spurred the “Negro spiritual,” often called a “jubilee.” Among the most beloved spirituals were “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” and “Roll Jordan Roll.”

By the beginning of the 20th century, the remnants of post civil war African-American music evolved into new a form of music known as ragtime, a popular genre that later inspired the formation of jazz music.

By 1930, elements of the blues and old Negro spirituals were crystallizing into gospel music. Gospel had a direct impact on more secular forms of Black Music such as rhythm and blues (R & B) and soul.  For generations, Black Music has communicated across racial boundaries and expressed both joy and sorrow. When facing the scathing cruelties of slavery and injustice, African Americans lifted spirituals to the heavens, bringing comfort to troubled souls yearning for spiritual salvation. Black Music is an important element of our survival. It’s a lifeline- it’s the air we breathe and an indomitable source of our spiritual strength.

As a result, I invite you to join us on June 17 and, together, we’ll  show respect to all the musicians past and present who have paved the way for us. Hope to see you there!

Motown Maurice

Wide aWoke Wednesdays

Peter Wells of TuneCore, leading digital media distributors, will be the keynote speaker of the second annual HOMEMADE MUSIC SYMPOSIUM. Mr. Wells will speak at 1:00 PM, Saturday, June 13, at the Performing Arts Theater located on the Hillsborough Community College-Ybor City Campus. The program is free and open to the public. Mr. Wells will discuss the changing dynamics of the recording industry and the new world of electronic distribution that is radically changing the paradigm of the music business.

 Few in the industry understand the opportunities and pitfalls that await independent artists like TuneCore. In the past two years they have delivered over 750,000 songs and generated over 32 million dollars in music sales for its customers, who include GRAMMY winners Ziggy Marley and Ricky Scaggs, big-name artists like Aretha Franklin, Beck, David Byrne, Jay-Z, Paul Westerberg, Nine Inch Nails, Joan Jett, Secondhand Serenade, Kenny Rogers, Keith Richards, Burning Spear, Public Enemy, and thousands of unsigned artists.

            The second annual symposium is offered free of charge to all Tampa Bay area musicians and the general public. The numerous seminars and workshops are focused on the business of music making and will provide area musicians assistance on how to nurture and develop careers in the modern commercial environment. Woven through the two-day schedule are a number of special live performances and showcases.

            On Saturday June 13, the symposium will take place from 10:00 AM to 7:00 PM at the HCC-Performing Arts Building-Ybor City Campus, located at the corner of Palm Avenue and 14th Street.  The Master schedule for all events from June 10-14 is provided at the end of this release.

            The symposium is organized by The Artists and Writers Group in partnership with Hillsborough Community College-Ybor City Campus. Bay Area Artists and Musicians Organization (BAAMO) and Ybor City Development Corporation are also partners. Other sponsors include Creative Loafing, REAX Magazine, New World Brewery and Grown Man Brand.

 For more information on TuneCore, please contact Miya Hannan (mhannan@shorefire.com) or Nick Loss-Eaton (nlosseaton@shorefire.com) at Shore Fire Media, 718.522.7171

            For general inquiries please contact T. Hampton Dohrman 813.784.2972 thdohrman@gmail.com or David Audet daudet@hccfl.edu, Hillsborough Community College-Ybor City Campus, 2112 N. 15th Street, Tampa, Florida 33605.