Create a Star Wars Birthday Party

Little boys always love a Star War birthday party. Running around and fighting with their lightsabers is all they need to enjoy themselves but you can also devise games and decorate your party to make it really special.

With some tin foil and card you can create a whole galaxy for their imaginations to run wild in and you could create a party your little boys friends will never forget.

Take a look at these ideas

Party Essentials

If you are throwing a party there are a few essentials you always need like plates, cups, goody bags, napkins, invitations and balloons. You can of course pick these up from most supermarkets but if you want to make your Star War party one to remember why not use themed essentials.

You can pick up all your Star War essentials plus streamers, ribbons, table clothes and cutlery all in the Star War theme

Dressing Up

There are loads of star war birthday party costumes your little boy or girl could dress up in from Darth Vader to, Princess Leia, Anakin and Yoda. Dressing up is one of the most fun parts of a Star War Party. You could ask everyone to dress as someone different because there are so many good characters.

Games

Good verses Evil

You could devise a competition for your Star War birthday party between good and evil comprising questions and activities.

Split your guests into two groups (those dressed as goodies and those dressed as baddies). You can have several rounds to this competition as follows:

Question Round

You ask questions and the first team to shout out the correct answer gets a point. You could ask star wars trivia or space questions like what is the nearest planet to the sun? to keep the game in theme with your party

Group Round

This is a little like a treasure hunt. First of all cut out ten pictures of Star Wars characters (goodies not baddies) and stick them onto circles of card. These can be different sizes but should be no smaller than the circumference of a mug. Place these around your garden or house in view but not in obvious places.

Explain to your guests that ten members of the Alliance (Star Wars Goodies) have gone missing. The goodies need to find them before they are captured by the baddies. The two groups must go out and find as many of the missing as they can and they get one point for each one they bring back.

Fight to the Death

This round is the same as musical bumps but you explain that it is a fight, good against evil and the last man standing gets 10 points for his or her team.

Your guests dance around and when the music stops they must sit down as quickly as they can. The last person to sit down is out of the game. The winner gets ten points and their team wins the competition.

Laura Anne Grey is a Party planner from the UK designing and creating childrens parties. You can find more birthday resources and articles as well as free printable birthday supplies at http://www.barneys-printable-birthday-cards.com

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Could You Live The Life Of A DJ

So you love music and you want to be a DJ. Well before
taking the plunge there are some things you need to
know about how to become a DJ.

Since there is no such thing as a DJ school to teach
you the steps one of the first things you need to know
is that you need to be original and if possible new in
your talent and technique. Talk to other DJ's if you can
and find out how they broke into the business and get
some tips from them. See if they will take you on as an
apprentice so that you can learn.

A person that aspires to be a disk jockey needs to have
a lot a charisma because other than the music a really
good DJ that has appeal is what draws the crowds. So
develop a character personality that attracts crowds.
You need to know when to tune it down as well so that
you do not overpower and lose that attention.

As a DJ you have to be knowledgeable in all genre of
music, just knowing a few hit songs here and there won't
cut it. So you need to make sure to brush up on your musical
intellect by learning about all types of music. The way to
learn the music it is to listen to it...even if it is not
what you personally enjoy, a DJ has to know and have a
lot of music.

Now, you need to realize that being knowledgeable in all
music doesn't mean that you will play all music. You
will need to develop your own style as well. You need
to work on a certain niche of music lovers and be able
to entertain with the right music, whether it be rock, rap,
soul or house music.

You need to have good quality music, so if you are downloading
it from the Internet, make sure that you are using legal sites
to get it from so that you are getting the best quality.

Plan on either renting or possibly borrowing the equipment that
you will need until you are comfortable with being a DJ. The
last thing you want to do is spend a lot of money on expensive
equipment and then find you don't enjoy it as much as you thought you would.
Then ask some friends if you can DJ a party of two for them
for free so you can get your feet wet and see how the crowd
reacts.

An important key you need to remember is that you should
base the music you play on the crowd that you are entertaining.
In other words, don't play rap for a group of elderly
people and don't place bluegrass for a bunch of rockers or rappers.

Learning how to DJ can be a lot hard work as well as fun.
So get out there and make your way in the world of music
and don't forget to have fun while you're at it.

Top DJs don't just play the music they become the dance floor, when they move the crowd moves few other professions in the world can make you feel that buzz...do you want it... get the help you need at http://www.startdjing.com

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Information About Music Online

Using the internet to find music you like to listen to and build your music collection in any style of music is an easy and affordable way to add to your music library as you can easily burn your own CD's or download mp3's to your iPod or other music player. It is also a great way to find out about current and new artists, new album and single releases, get free lyrics and find free music downloads. The popular free iTunes software and music library allows you to create your own music library, find TV shows, podcasts and get free music downloads and for only $0.99 a song download you cannot really go wrong. Plus there are a lot of websites online where you can find free music videos and mp3 downloads like YouTube, MySpace, Rawkus, CDBaby, Soundclick and so many others.

What does this mean for the future of music? With the everyday consumer buying on average 2 new music albums a month this could have an effect on the music industry but most shops like Virgin, HMV and other well known music retail shops also have online websites which offer even more discounts and sometimes a music community so the music lovers using the internet can only boost music sales.

The internet is also a good place for independent artists without a major record label to upload and promote their music. There are a lot of independent music websites where you can create your own profile, update fans with your news and even sell your own music. The royalty companies like ASCAP, PRS, Harry Fox and BMI also have internet music licenses you can get so that you receive royalties and commissions for all music plays on internet radio stations, and for any music downloads and mp3 or CD sales.

You can even make your own music by buying and downloading music production and creation software you find online to your PC or laptop and if you have a good sound card and microphone you can make and record your own music and beats very easily. In fact, you can find hundreds of free loops and backing tracks you can download and even license for commercial use making it easy for the music producer and songwriter to make their own music.

And if you want to learn about music, study an instrument or get advice on the music industry you can do a search on the internet and find so much free and useful information in articles and on music websites and blogs.

Does this take away the traditional way of making and playing music for the musician? Some think so but you can look at it like this; the internet has opened up the whole globe to us and you can make good music contacts from all over the world and build your own worldwide fan base just by promoting your music online. Music you may never have even heard of has become easily available and the whole music scene and industry has benefited and grown because of internet and satellite communications.

You can see then that using the internet connects music lovers around the world and Cyber Technology has made it easier for the songwriter and musician to create and record their own music. Plus it opens doors for the independent music artist and also increases exposure for major record label artists so that they can build their fan base and sell more of their music.

For more information on finding music online, making your own beats, downloading free music videos, getting free lyrics, buying instruments and production software and generally about the cyber music world visit my blog Cybertunes.

Did you know you can use this article on your blogs and sites for free? Just visit the article web page and copy and paste, there's usually an HTML and text version of all my articles.

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The Growth of Hand Drums

A hand drum is a kind of drum that is played primarily with hands other than using any sticks, mallet, hammer or any type of beater. Frame drum, a shallow, cylindrical shell with a drumhead attached to one of the open ends, is one of the early forms of this kind of drums. Tabla, mridangam etc. are the Indian forms of hand drums.

The types of drums vary from place to place. Like in the Middle and near east Tar, tambourine, daf, dayereh, ghaval, tonbak etc. are found. In Africa the most common form of hand drum is djembe, single headed, large drum, which is goblet in shape. Its other African types are ashiko that is similar to djembe that comes in the shape of truncated cone. While Bougarabou drums are made with cow skin heads.

In Latin America, congas and bongos are part and parcel of every kind of Latin American music. Especially Caribbean and South American regions use congas and bongas both in folklore like punta, rumba and popular music like salsa, latin jazz and others. The conga is a tall, narrow, single headed Cuban drum that is commonly played in Congo. The person who plays a conga is called a congureo. Congas are played in five basic types of strokes namely open tone, muffled tone, bass tone, slap and touch. Bongo drums or bongos are two small drums attached to each other. They produce high pitched sounds and are played holding between the knees with the larger drum on the side. They are played by striking the drumheads with the fingers and palms.

In Far East and India tabla, mridangam are an integral part of music. Not to mention ghatams and kanjiras equally accompany the mridangam in Classical karnatatic music. The term tabla is originated from an Arabic word which means drum. The majority of the tabla performers were Muslims, whose habitat was either near or at the center of Mughal cultural centers like Delhi, Lucknow, Allahabad, Hyderbad and Lahore. Initially vocalists and instrumentalists accompanied tabla players. But gradually they developed a tradition of solo performances.

In Europe the Irish Bodhran sometimes is played with the bare hand. A goat skin head is attached to one side, though now a days new materials like synthetic heads or kangaroo skin, are sometimes used. The other side is open ended, so that the hands could be placed in the drumhead in perfect manner to control the pitch and timber. If we peep in history, we will find that the bodhran was used during the Irish rebellion of 1603 as a war drum or battle drum. The drum is usually played in a seated position, held vertically on the players' thigh and is supported by the upper body and arm.

The hang is the modern kind of hand drum that is played with fingers. The hang is played resting on a player's lap or sometimes on a stand. It was the result of many years of research and study of the wide variety of instruments across the world like gongs, gamelan, ghatam, drums, bells etc.

The world of hand drums is really very rhythmic and melodious. With the passage of time the evolution of hand drum seems to bring a sweet note on the technology driven life.

Victor Epand is an expert consultant for guitars, drums, and synthesizers. You can find the best marketplace for guitars, drums, and synthesizers at these 3 sites: guitars, bass guitar gears, drums, hand drum, and synthesizers, keyboards.

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The Grammy Awards-No Phonys Please

The Grammy Awards have been an American music institution for nearly half a century. But what is a "Grammy" anyway?

"Grammy" is short for "Gramophone" and the actual Grammy Awards given out each year are modeled after this prototypical record player.

Notice I didn't call it a prototypical "phonograph." The phonograph and the gramophone, while similar, were different designs. Adding to the confusion, in between the two was a device called the "graphophone."

Thomas A. Edison, the famous American inventor, invented the phonograph (which from the Greek literally means "sound writer") in 1877. But his invention didn't play "records" as most of us think of them. Edison's device played cylinders.

(The graphophone also used cylinders but they were engraved rather than embossed, as specified by Edison's patent.)

It was Emile Berliner's Gramophone, patented ten years later, that played discs, or "records" as they came to be known, and still are to this day, spawning the modern music recording industry.

Perhaps it is for this reason that the founders of the most prestigious American music award chose to name their ultimate prize, the "Grammy."

(I am speculating that the "Phony" would not have been a good choice, except in the case of Milli Vanilli*, and that the "Graphy" may be reserved for National Geographic nature recordings!)

The Grammy Awards are given by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. which was formed in 1957.

"In the beginning The Recording Academy owed its survival to members who donated long hours to the emerging professional association. A labor of love, the young Academy may not have prevailed had it not been for the dedication of its charter members...The GRAMMYs are the only peer-presented award to honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position." Grammy.com

The first Grammy Awards were held in 1959 in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton. The big winners that year were Domenico Modugno for "Nel Blue Dipinto di Blu (Volare)" which took home Record of the Year and Song of the Year and Henry Mancini for The Music from Peter Gunn which won Album of the Year.

Ella Fitzgerald won for Best Jazz Performance, Individual and The Kingston Trio won for "Tom Dooley" in the Best Country & Western Performance category. (Hmmmm...we thought they were Folk. Oh well, guess they added a category here and there...uh yuh, about a hundred.)

The 49th Grammy Awards will be held on February 11th, 2007 and will air live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles on CBS.

*"Milli Vanilli was a pop and dance music ensemble formed by Frank Farian in Germany in 1988 and fronted by Fab Morvan (b. May 14, 1966) and Rob Pilatus (June 8, 1965 April 2, 1998). The group's debut album achieved high sales internationally and garnered them a Grammy award for Best New Artist in 1990. However, their success turned to infamy when the award was revoked after it was revealed that the purported singers did not actually sing on the record." Wikipedia

DA Jack Hayford is the editor of the popular music reference website, Events-in-Music.com, which features a special section on #1 Songs. Mr. Hayford is also the Program Director and co-founder of DurangoSong.com, the online home of the ten-plus-year old Durango Songwriters Expo, a premier annual educational and inspirational event for aspiring songwriters.

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3 Tips To Help You Improve Your Vocal Stamina

Angela loves to sing, even though she doesn't have the voice talent that most people believe they should have in order to be a good singer.

With that kind of determination, she took some singing lessons to improve her vocal stamina. In time, she was able to develop her singing prowess and was able to build a career of her own.

Many people seem to believe that it is not possible to gain talent through singing and that all the talented singers in the world were born with it. The good news is that anyone can become a good singer as long as they put in the time and effort to do so. All anyone has to do is learn the right techniques in order to improve their vocal stamina.

Even famous singers take on lessons to improve their vocal stamina. They need to do this from time to time to strengthen their vocal cords and increase their range as much as four points on average.

Talent is not everything when it comes to singing. Singing also is based on physical exertion. When you sing, the air is forced out from the diaphragm and the vocal cords are what determine the pitch of the voice.

You should remember that a powerful voice requires the physical exertion that is calls for. This is achieved through steps that help you improve your vocal stamina.

Here are a few steps to help get you on your way to building more vocal stamina and to become the singer that you have always wanted to be:

1. At first you must perform the correct warm ups. Just like you would do if you were exercising it is important that you first start with warming up before you rehearse. Doing this will help your vocal cords stabilize its potential for reaching the higher notes that you desire.

Some warm up exercises may include things like humming, cord adducting or singing on pitch. After this doing these warm ups your voice should be ready for more "far-reaching" vocalizing.

2. Next you need to develop a good technique. If you have not noticed, every great singer has their own way of delivering a pitch. It is essential to develop one of your own in order to guarantee good singing performance.

3. Last you need to improve the control you have over your Larynx. Doing this will help you improve the tone you have when you are singing. You will be able to manage the location of the Larynx while you are delivering your notes.

All of these thing mainly focus on the physical exertion put out by the vocal cords. It is essential to improve your vocal stamina and be able to sing that note at a higher level.

Kevin Sinclair is the publisher and editor of MusicianHome.com, a site that provides information and articles for musicians at all stages of their development.

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