Hawaiian Music Conference

To all you Hawaii-based musicians, the Hawaiian Music Conference is happening January 27, 2007 on Maui. This is a great opportunity to hear from industry greats like songwriters Keli`i Tau`a, Keali`i Reichel, Kawaikapuokalani Hewett and Pu`ueo Pata, industry legend and keynote speaker Kenneth Makuakane, recording engineers Gaylord Holomalia, Dave Russell and Jake Rohrer the Barefoot Natives, marketing gurus Aunty Maria, Keola Donaghy and Karey Oura, music attorneys Bill Meyer and myself and a Grammy update from Alan Yamamoto. See you there!

http://www.hiedb.org/Conference.htm

Performing Rights Organizations

If you’re a songwriter and your songs are being played on the radio or internet, there may be income waiting for you.

Performing Rights Organizations (PROs) collect royalty payments on behalf of publishers and songwriters for public performances of their songs. Here’s how PROs work.

If you’re a songwriter, you have the exclusive right to publicly perform your song under Section 106 of the Copyright Act. However, it’s virtually impossible to know when your songs are being played and by whom. PROs were set up to remedy this problem. Songwriters (and publishers) sign up with a PRO, giving the PRO authority to collect public performance royalties on behalf of the songwriter. It turn, the PROs have licenses all across the country (and even beyond) with radio stations, internet radio providers, shopping malls, restaurants and anyone else who plays music in their establishment. The PROs collect money on behalf of the songwriter, take a small fee, and distribute the money to the songwriter.

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Ray Sowders – Beautiful Music

Ray Sowders is an O`ahu based slack key musician with a sweet and lilting guitar style and a rich baritone voice. His recent album, Ho`omalie just won a first place “Just Plain Folks” Music Award among 2400 album entries. Check out his music. You’ll be glad you did. www.raysowders.com

Mechanical Licenses for Song “Covers”

When a band or musician records and releases a “cover” of someone else’s published song, that band/musician generally falls under the the “Compulsory License” provisions in Section 115 of the Copyright Act. This is often referred to as a mechanical license. The mechanical license requires that the band/musician must pay the copyright owner of the song for each copy of the song that is distributed (e.g. CDs, digital downloads). The current rate is 9.1 cents per song, for each song under 5 minutes long.

Here are the steps for acquiring a mechanical license:

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Ukulele At Its Best

“Step 2: Ukuleles in Paradise 2″ is an album that deserves recognition for ukulele accomplishment. Herb Ohta, Jr. and Daniel Ho create a musical soundscape that I can listen to over and over. The palette of sounds on this album is completely beautiful. There’s nothing fancy on this album, and I love it. But, the simplicity is deceiving. The level of composition, arranging, timing and musicianship is as good as it gets. These guys remind me of classical guitarists on ukuleles.

Herb’s website:
http://www.herbohtajr.com/eng/e_top.html

Daniel’s Website:
www.danielho.com

Step 2: Ukuleles in Paradise 2 available at:
www.mele.com

Slack Key, Ukulele, and a Shaker: Album 2

I’ve begun work on my second album, which is due out in early 2007. The new album features ukulele, guitar, bass (and a shaker. . .) so far. Hopefully, I’ll be adding some trumpet and a steel guitar with the help of some friends. The expanded instrumentation is very exciting, especially since the first album was exclusively guitar.

The recording process has been challenging at times. I’m recording in my New York apartment, which comes complete with car horns, slamming doors, people talking in the hallways, refrigerator noise and every other possible city sound. But, I’m reminded that it’s the music that counts, and the creative process has been very fun thus far.

I’ve recorded a few slack key songs, some ukulele music, and some guitar-centered pieces. I hope this project adds some joy to people’s lives.

Slack Key Guitar Gear

The search is over. For 12 years I’ve been looking for a stompbox that keeps the natural tone of the acoustic guitar, offers great EQ (equalization), delay and reverb. There is such a stompbox, and it’s the Yamaha MagicStomp Acoustic. Mark Nelson, a fine Hawaiian slack key guitar player, first introduced me to the MagicStomp. Then, Herb Ohta, Jr. and Daniel Ho, top flight ukulele players, both attested to its greatness. I had to try one.

Pros:
-The mic modeling is excellent, and improves the pickup (often piezo) sound of an acoustic guitar
-The parametric EQ is great, and provides very deep and clear bass
-The delays and reverbs are transparent

Cons:
-The MagicStomp is very difficult to program, which probably explains its lack of popularity. You can edit patches on a software program, but the software only works on PC’s or older Macs.

Conclusion:
If you’re willing to spend a significant amount of time learning how to use the MagicStomp, it’s the best stompbox for acoustic guitar on the market. Street price for a MagicStomp Acoustic is about $150.

http://www.magicstomp.com/acoustic/

SoundExchange

To all you slack key (ki ho`alu), independent, fingerstyle, Hawaiian, singer-songwriter folks:

ASCAP and BMI have traditionally collected public performance royalties on behalf of publishing companies and songwriters. With the emergence of a relatively new copyright revenue stream from digital music service providers (e.g. Sirius and XM), an additional performing rights organization called SoundExchange was born. However, unlike ASCAP and BMI, SoundExchange still remains relatively unnoticed.

Here’s the short story, if you are a featured performer or sound recording owner of a recording that has been bouncing around the airwaves, there may be royalty money waiting for you at SoundExchange. Here’s a link to the list of artists who are owed royalties:

http://63.236.111.137/jsp/unpaidArtistList.jsp

SoundExchange’s website:
www.soundexchange.com

Slack Key Guitar Virtuoso

If you haven’t heard him yet, please check out Jeff Peterson, an incredible slack key guitar player in Hawaii. Jeff’s guitar facility ranges from jazz to classical, but his slack key sensibility is simply astounding. And on top of that, he’s a really nice guy. Jeff just released a new album called “The Artistry of Jeff Peterson.” Check him out at www.jeffpetersonguitar.com

The Cheapest Way to Improve Your Guitar Sound

For the past twelve years, I used Dunlop Tortex picks (1.14 mm, the thickest they make). These picks are cheap and durable. The tortex material produces a mellow, thick tone that isn’t too bright. Heavy picks are essential to getting a big, fat clear tone.

Then I discovered Tortis. (www.redbeartrading.com) These picks emulate the chemical composition of real tortoise shell, and they sound amazing. Real tortoise shell picks have long been tool of choice for flatpicking bluegrass guitar and mandolin players, but the material is rare and new tortoise is illegal. Tortis picks on the other hand, have the same qualities of tortoise, but without the hassle. They’re made by a true picksmith, Dave Skowron, and come in all kinds of shapes and colors. If you’re used to $.25 picks, the $20 price tag will shock you, but they’re worth every penny. After viewing the endorsements by all kinds of hot flatpickers, I decided to try one, and now I can’t use anything else. The improvement in the clarity of the guitar, depth of the bass and speed of the attack is instantly apparent.

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