Digital Pill – working musicians talk about their lives

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When I was in India a couple of times last year, I caught up with my old friend from Melbourne – Simon Hewitt. In October, I recorded an EP for him in Ganeshpuri. Here are a couple of the audio takes that ended up on the release that I managed to video as well.
Leo

Read more about the release here: http://tinyurl.com/7c8k4fz
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I’ve been busy working on this new show Heads in the Cloud for the last month. Its a little outside the Digital Pill box but I’ve posted it here for anyone who might be entertained by Episode 1. Now that we have it up and running I’ll have more time to devote to Digital Pill posts. Hope you have a look and enjoy it

It has its own website
Heads in the Cloud

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Dean explains how to slide effortlessly into the altissimo register of the sax in one long continuously ascending note.
Click > HERE < to download a pdf of the lesson

Listen to Dean’s music here

The Pearly Shells

Zydeco Jump

The Vanguards

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Paul Williamson explains the uses of bebop scales in jazz improvisation. In this video, Paul’s first post for Digital Pill, he describes the construction of bebop scales, jazz articulation, the use of a metronome and how bebop scales place the chord tones firmly ON the beat to create an “inside” sound in improvisation. The video together with the pdf download explain the uses of bebop scales over major, dominant and minor scales.

Click the links below to download a pdf of each of the lessons
Lesson 1
Lesson 2
Lesson 3
Lesson 4
Lesson 5
Lesson 6

Listen to Paul’s music here

Paul playing with Way out West on myspace

Way Out West – Old Grooves for New Streets available from iTunes

and from CDbaby

And last but not least check out this footage of Paul I shot at the gig

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Dave Evans explains the uses of the accordion bellows shake. In this video, Dave describes the uses of the double and triple bellows shake in jazz, zydeco and cabaret music. He includes detailed instructions about how to perform the shake as well as techniques for adding accents to play with the rhythmic aspects of accordion.

Listen to Dave’s music here

Dave playing with the Band Who Knew Too Much on myspace

The Band Who Knew Too Much CDs available here

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Mark Hannaford piano, Sam Anning double bass and Allan Browne drums playing
‘Darn that dream’ at Bennetts Lane jazz Club

Check out their latest CD
Shreveport Stomp

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Fran Swinn’s composition – Inform – for Jazz quartet and acrobat, featuring Eugene Ball – trumpet, Fran Swinn – guitar, Tamara Murphy – double bass, Ben Hendry – drums and Rockie Stone – acrobatics/aerials. Inform is a collection of short pieces written with the rhythm and form of the various circus apparatus in mind and performed with a focus on interaction and improvisation, thus creating an ensemble of five. This clip is of the final chair stack with drummer Ben Hendry assisting. Sound recording by Myles Mumford. Video by Leo Dale.

Fran Swinn trio album available here
Fran Swinn on myspace

Rockie Stone’s website
Tamara Murphy’s website

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Lamine Sonko singing about the Senegalese traditional wrestling game. The names in the song are the big wrestling champions in Senegal. Pape Moussa Sonko (Lamine’s brother) is mentioned in the song, he is a wrestler and also a very famous dancer.

Visit Lamine’s website
laminesonko.com

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Fiona Roake made the trip across the Tasman from New Zealand to Australia in the mid 90s to study theatre. In this song she combines her lifelong love of music and spoken word to capture the feeling of losing your motherland when you call a new place home.

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