The problem with too many options is that it’s hard to make an ultimate pick. If you’re planning to buy an MP3player, you’re surely faced with this dilemma. Try walking into a store and see if you aren’t dazzled with the choices before you. You know you want an MP3 player, but you don’t know what specific type you’re looking for.

You better get started somewhere, though, and the best place to begin is identifying your wants and needs. Are you looking for a durable and portable storage for all of your music files, or do you just want to have something to entertain you with your latest favorite hits while you’re working out in the gym or driving in your car? If you’re after storage, go for hard drive digital audio players. They may be physically large in size and rather bulky to carry around, but that’s just the tradeoff for the massive disk space they offer. If you’re just after quick entertainment, flash drive digital audio players are the best choice for you. They offer a much smaller memory, but they’re compact and light, making them easy to carry around anywhere.

What format do your current music files come in? If most of the songs you have are copied from CDs, transferring them to most types of MP3 players will not be a problem. However, if the songs are downloaded from the internet, they may come in a variety of formats. Make sure that the MP3 player you buy is compatible with the formats of those songs. Remember, nothing is more frustrating than buying something you can’t use!

How long do you plan to use your MP3 player at a given time? Can you see yourself letting it play for hours? On full charge, battery life can range from 10 to 50 hours, depending on the player. Even the rates of charging differ from one player to another–some charge pretty fast in comparison with the others. Determine how often you plan to use your MP3 player, and from there you can make a choice that best suits your needs.

Lastly, what extra features do you want your MP3 player to have? Sure, you’re buying one so you can play your music, but additional features are great to have as well. You can get an MP3 player with FM tuner, video/voice recorder, flash disk, or even a camera. After all, if you can get more bang for your buck, then why not go for it?

George Wood is a successful webmaster of many popular sites including purses and blog site. If you want to read more about music players, click over to George music players site.

There are many musical instruments to choose should you decide you?d like to play one. If you like listening to classical music, then you should perhaps take up an instrument like the flute or clarinet. But if you like rock-and-roll music, there is no other instrument like a drum set to set the pace and pull a band together. Pretty soon you’ll need to buy your own drum set, but don’t make a rash decision by buying the first set you see. There are some things to keep in mind first.

If you?re a novice to the world of drumming, you don?t need a drum set to get started. You can start to learn to play drums with a t a practice pad, drumsticks, and some foot tapping. The first important lesson to learn about drum playing is how to keep a beat and how to use drumsticks. In no time at all, you?ll be ready to move on to your very first drum set.

Before you purchase a drum set, keep in mind that you are not a professional yet. A professional set can cost thousands of dollars, but is not really necessary for a beginner. Brand-name starter drum sets can be found for under $500, and some non-brand drum sets for half that.

Practice makes perfect and after awhile, you can start thinking about forming a band or joining one. Bands always have a drummer, guitar and bass player. Who knows, if your group practices long enough ? you may earn a living playing drums.

Drum Sets provides detailed information on Drum Sets, Cheap Drum Sets, Electronic Drum Sets, Used Drum Sets and more. Drum Sets is affiliated with Steel Drums.

It is often the case that individuals just learning to play the guitar want to sound like a professional when they really need to focus on guitar playing/practicing tips for newbies. Guitar playing/practicing tips for newbies may sound like fundamental information that is not fun, but that all depends on how serious you are about learning to play the guitar. The best advice for you at this stage of your learning is to take it slow and learn as much as you possibly can. This short tutorial, which features guitar playing/practicing tips for newbies will present you with the basics for honing your skills. By following the steps below you will be playing like a pro in no time at all.

Step 1: Warm Up Your Hands and Fingers

Your hands will get a good workout when you play and practice the guitar. Just as a typist whose hands perform repetitive motion for a significant number of hours can develop carpel tunnel syndrome, so can you too injure the delicate tendons in your hand. You can experience very painful cramps and in extreme cases could lead to loss of ability to play the guitar at all. You should spend at least 5 minutes warming up your fingers and hands before you perform either of these activities. One of the most important guitar playing/practicing tips for newbies is to take a break if you play or practice for longer than an hour. The following exercises are ideal for warming up your hands and fingers:

* Use each hand to gently massage the other one; concentrate on the base of the area located at the base of the thumb
* Place your hands against one another, pressing your fingertips together
* Stretch your fingers out as far as you can and then curl them inward; repeat twice

Step 2: Practice Chromatic Scale

While playing either major or minor chords is a traditional method that guitarists use when they start practicing, this feature of guitar playing/practicing tips for newbies would be remiss if it did not recommend that students of the guitar practice the chromatic as often as they can. The chromatic scale is among the guitar playing/practicing tips for newbies because you play all 12 notes on the guitar in half steps. This scale is contrary to a whole note scale, which consists of playing the notes in whole steps.

Step 3: Get Down to Playing

You have looked forward to another opportunity to play your guitar and here you are. If you haven’t prepared for your practice session by choosing your lesson beforehand, the guitar playing/practicing tips for newbies for this step include suggestions for what you could practice/play during your session.

* Learn a new chord
* Choose to learn one section of a new song
* Practice picking, strumming, plucking, or all three

Step 4: Cooling Down

The cooling down phase is a time to bring your session to a close. Instead of abruptly stopping and putting your guitar away, this is the time to sort of reward yourself by leaving the session on a positive note. Whether you are practicing or playing the guitar, you are probably challenging your skills. In the cool down you ease out of the challenging phase.

The following are the best guitar practicing/playing tips for newbies for cooling down:

* Play a short, familiar piece that is comfortable for you
* Don’t focus on playing your finale piece with perfection; just play it
* Closing your eyes while you play the finale can help to calm you if the practice session was difficult or frustrating

For more more information about guitar practicing please visit http://www.guitar-directory.net

In an era that has glorified Britney Spears and Jessica Simpson, the lovely artist Pink (which is actually spelled P!nk) rose up in our face, and reminded us how incredibly sexy a powerful and intelligent woman can be. There?s no shortage of attitude here. You may know her as a party girl, but several Pink posters also reveal a thoughtful sensitivity. For instance, many of the Pink posters and photos for Missundaztood are sweet and enticing at the same time. Pink is a great artist, and her most recent release, I?m Not Dead, suggests that she really understands the visual and musical interests of her audience.

Pink exploded on the rock scene in 2000, and has kicked ass ever since. Beginning as an R&B artist with a debut album called Can?t Take Me Home, La Face Records marketed Pink as a punk pop act that forced the young artist to dye her hair pink. Pink posters from this brief era are collectables like a rookie baseball card would be for a prominent player, but Pink?s career would soon diverge from this punk look and LaFace Records. With the release of Missundaztood, Pink?s music rocketed to the top of the charts in the U.S. and Europe. Music tracks Get the Party Started, Don?t Let Me Get Me and Just Like a Pill launched a massive demand for her posters that has only increased over time. While Pink?s third album Try This was only a modest success in the US, and her most recent release I?m Not Dead will not likely break any of her sales records, it is wonderful to see Pink sporting her trademark rebellious attitude for her cover art and new posters.

Foremost, Pink is a character performer. Like most of her music, her public persona is designed to be rebellious and sexy, and rumors that her love affair and marriage to motorcycle racer Carey Hart have softened the style of her art have been completely dispelled. The Pink Posters and screaming cover art for her 2006 release should also bury any lingering suspicions that Pink has softened her tone. While she has fun with this character, don?t believe for a minute that she will let her wild looks define her. This woman is intelligent, strong and beautiful, and she is definitely not afraid to walk along the razor?s edge of controversy. One of her best Pink Posters was shot in support of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and a New York club that banned people wearing fur from entering their establishment. As Pink tears off a t-shirt with Cruelty written on it, the poster said, ?The only wildlife at Centro-Fly is human. No Fur Coats Allowed.?

P!nk?s open and very real demonstration of passion leaves no doubt that she believes in what she says. Having mastered the rhymes and rhythms of pop music, Pink is also using her stage to make critical social commentary. In an open letter to George W. Bush, a track called Dear Mr. President on her most recent release takes the failing President to task for his hollow words of empathy and policies that have led to deaths and impoverishment of thousands. You won?t see that kind political savvy from Christina Aguilera. Another track called Stupid Girls openly criticizes women that act brainless and superficial. One line of the song asks ?With their itsy bitsy doggies and their teeny-weeny tees, where, oh where, have the smart people gone??

While P!nk is, and always will be, a rocker, this is the kind of rock music that parents should ask their kids to download. Her image has matured (a little), but the thoughtfulness behind her message and posters have grown tremendously. Though, her music doesn?t take life too seriously, or nag us about our social responsibility. Pink now approaches her music and public like a lovable big sister. It takes us to parties, gives us a great life example, and tries to keep us out of trouble. You can?t beat that in this day and age.

In addition to being a fan and a collector of Pink posters and music, Rock is the editor and publisher of Rock Poster Review ? it?s all about the sex, money, fame, egos, fashion, art, photography, business, image and music of rock-n-roll. For more poster reviews, news and rumors about your favorite artists, please visit http://www.rockposterreview.com

The real communicating artists seek unique expression. They are not interested anymore in sounding like their heroes, they are searching constantly, developing and refining their own unique voice.

There are musicians who are more than comfortable remaining anonymous. You know, happy to hide behind their guitars or keyboards and be sidemen to the stars of today or tomorrow. Then there are those that have grandiose aspirations of stardom, adoration and limelight. And then there are those who have a driving desire and need to say something original artistically, to express themselves and to communicate that expression to an audience, be it a small niche market or wider demographic.

Those falling into the first category can make a living, albeit fairly modest as a general rule. Those falling into the second category often live in a little bit of a dream world and, depending on their tenacity and ‘smart’ skills, usually end up disappointed because the focus is set on the destination rather than the journey. The third category usually reap the rewards of the second category gaining all the success and limelight, but as a result of focusing on their art rather than the shallow and flighty end of the musician’s world. These are usually the most fascinating people too, because they generally have a little mystery about them and because they actually possess what most entertainers really want; sincere and dedicated talent!

But there are also those that are in the early stages of artistic development who are still learning their craft, and open to influences. Possibly they will become great artists in the future, possibly not. It will be a question of choices and consequences, and doors opened and opportunities taken advantage of – or not. Life certainly will take you places.

But for those that do have aspirations of artistry and expression, then I firmly believe you must have qualities that others do not have. As an artist I believe one must stand out from the heard in order to be heard. It is so easy to make a record these days. One no longer needs to have the luxury of a recording contract in order to stand on a pedestal and say I am an artist – buy my record! With home studios costing one 16th of the price they did ten years ago and with software programs that do it all, you can churn out albums by the dozen if you put your mind to it. And many do.

However, just because you can, why would you? – is my question. Just for fun? OK, valid I suppose. But Isn’t it better to spend that time and energy searching relentlessly for something unique and different? God knows record companies are releasing enough crap by the hour, even signed artists are now under the impression they have got something to offer. Maybe they have, but for the most part I don’t think so (as public reaction and their soundscans will attest!)

Perhaps I am being extremely unfair, but I think too many artists do not realize that they have a responsibility to say something profoundly unique, certainly if they expect any kind of career longevity. We live in a world where musicians spend their lives emulating their heroes; singers spend their lives emulating Aretha Franklin, Janis Joplin, Stevie Wonder, Frank Sinatra and so on. Rock guitarists spend their lives emulating Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Paige, Jeff Beck and Eddie Van Halen. Jazz guitarists are proud emulators of Pat Metheny, John Scofield and Wes Montgomery. Saxophone players worship Charlie Parker, John Coltrane and Michael Brecker. And so on…

Before I go on I have to say that emulating heroes is absolutely imperative in your formative years as musicians. You simply MUST listen to the greats, past and present. One has to have a strong grounding and musical knowledge and one simply cannot get there without listening. However, way too many ‘artists’ cannot get passed this stage. They need to have peer approval, have to know that other respected musicians around them recognize them and applaud their abilities. Often all this takes place subconsciously.

This ‘peer approval’ is a stage of development that is also important. Every musician goes through it at some point. It is absolutely natural, but I firmly believe that to become a great artist, you have to move beyond that stage and look inward. I always liken it those wedding band singers, who despite having an honorable and justifiable (and in some cases envious) career, they are all too often the ‘performing monkeys’. They are often fine vocalists but at the end of the day they are seeking approval and applause and not communicating or expressing anything artistic. They certainly know how to entertain but do they know how to intrigue? It’s a huge gap. Nothing remotely subtle about it as far as I am concerned.

The real communicating artists seek unique expression. They are not interested anymore in sounding like their heroes. They have moved past that, now searching constantly, developing and refining their own unique voice. Look at any of the true giants of yesterday and today. Yes you can hear their references, but they also have their own strong identity. At some point during their development something bigger than them took over. The chances are they knew it at the time and took advantage of it and made an extra effort to really hone that uniqueness.

Finding that unique inner voice might not be as easy for some. I think it starts by recognizing your technical weaknesses. It is often those weaknesses that ultimately end up becoming your artistic strengths. Let’s face it, if you were able to play the guitar technically perfect, at all speeds, meticulously so every note that came out was totally clean and audible, would this be ultimately interesting to an audience? Yes it might be very clever and impressive, but for how long could you listen to an album where every phrase felt like you were having your teeth drilled!!?

Wes Montgomery played with his thumb because he kept dropping his pick, ultimately enabling him to become the greatest and most influential jazz guitarist of all time. BB King has about three licks in his entire blues repertoire. Does anyone NOT know BB King when they hear him? Thelonius Monk refused to conform to traditional piano techniques and musical ideas. He simply HAD to play music the way he heard it in his head. He made such a bold musical statement during his time that he is emulated the world over and revered by the greatest musicians living today.

Technical shortcomings can be the very essence of your unique artistry. Now, should those shortcomings get in the way of what you need to say musically then those weaknesses might need to be turned around so they don’t restrict what you hear in your head.

Remember, the true artist simply communicates from within. All other extraneous thoughts, influences and distractions need to fall by the wayside. The minute a lick or a phrase that your hero played or sung (and made famous) ends up on your record – watch out! You might be in trouble. Absolutely steal from your heroes, but just remember that real artistry is about what YOU have to say, not what your heroes have already said before, and have possibly said better.

Push yourself to the max and search for that truly unique quality within. After all, that next great talent we are all so desperately waiting for might just be you!

Chris Standring is a contemporary jazz recording artist who performs throughout the USA and Europe regularly. He has enjoyed much radio airplay with several albums, opening up a busy touring schedule. His music appears on many compilation CDs also. For more info on Chris’ popular home study jazz guitar course go to http://www.PlayJazzGuitar.com

Visit him on the web at http://www.chrisstandring.com

You are neither too young nor too old to play piano and compose. If you think otherwise, get that fairy tale out of your head.

A few geniuses began at age 3 and burned out in middle age. Gustave Mahler, a modern symphonic artist and Jazz Guitarist legend Wes Montgomery didn’t start serious composing until they were well in their 30′s. Verdi was still going strong at 87. Some of the great pop, jazz, and rock music of our time has been written by musicians who consider the age of 25 as over the hill.

Conclusion: forget about age.

What about music theory? Does it have anything to do with playing the piano and composing a piece of music?

Sounds come first. Theory books and systems tag along behind, explaining in words what you’ve already experienced by ear.

Composing is a hot creative act. Studying theory is a cool analytical act.

Theory explains what is going on in a piece of music. It shows us the machinery that makes the music tick. Training in theory helps sharpen our understanding, and helps the player and composer organize his or her musical materials.

Absorb theory for what it has to offer. But watch out for the trap of rules. In the early stages of playing piano and writing music, rules can be helpful disciplines to help focus our thinking. But given too much importance, rules become handcuffs; break them if you know what you’re doing.

Use your good ears to break through the endless blanket of sound that surrounds our lives.

Direct you hearing. Sharpen your perception. Isolate sounds. Listen, and make yourself aware of your sound-world.

A painting, a statue, and a building have a certain kind of life. All of their parts exist at the same time. But music is like a movie or a stage play: it unrolls slowly, bit by bit. A movie begins, continues, and ends before your eyes. Music does the same for your ears. Your piano playing and compositions live and breathe.

Guidelines for Playing Piano By Ear to Write Music

Begin your sketches with a simple, basic idea: a sound you like, a group of pitches, an interesting harmony, and attractive rhythm pattern, an idea for lyrics, and so on.

Next step: think out a number of possibilities for developing, expanding, exploiting, and contrasting your basic idea.

For example:

1. A group of pitches can be played forward, backward, upsidedown, or with its order rearranged.

2. You can keep the overall shape of a pitch group (the way it moves up and down), but change it by opening up or tightening the distance (interval) from one note to the next.

3. The same pitch group can be varied by changing its speed, meter, or rhythm… or by changing its color through changes of instrumental register (high vs. low).

4. A rhythmic idea, no matter how simple, can be stretched, tightened up, fragmented, or transformed into a repeated figure

5. A rhythmic idea can be applied to differnet pitch groups, or used to give movement to your favorite chord progression.

6. A harmony can be intensified by adding color tones (7th, 9th, added 6th, suspended tones, etc.); or softened by subtracting chord tones; or given a refreshed sound by the way you voice the harmony on the piano.

Try to keep a relaxed attitude toward you study of piano, and an open mind about new ideas that almost always turn up while you’re experiementing with your sketches.

Above all, don’t lock yourself into one way of thinking. After a certain point, a piece may have its own ideas about the way it should deveop; don’t try to force it into a cookie mold!

Let it grow and breathe.

Copyright 2005 RAW Productions

Ron Worthy is a Music Educator, Songwriter and Performer. To learn more Trick of the Trade, go to: http://www.mrronsmusic.com and http://www.playpianotonight.com

One of the most popular guitars today and one of the best is the Fender Stratocaster. It has been around for years and has established a well known reputation for having an original sound and been great to play. Many top guitarists of the past and present played Strats – Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughn, John Mayer, Buddy Guy, the list goes on and on. All of these artists have that beautiful tonal sound of a Strat but when you hear each one, you can tell the difference between them, and that’s the beautiful thing. The Fender Strat gives you such originality while having that beautiful tonal sound no other guitar has.

The secret to that great sound that the Strats have is in the single coil pickups, the wood of the guitar and the way the body of the guitar is put together (2 sections). The combination of these 3 things put together is one of a kind, that guitarist have come to love right from the beginning of the Strats birth.

Although Strats are centered around a standard setup. There are lots of additional models that slightly differ and in-turn slightly change the sound of the guitar. This is great because it offers guitarists the chance to find that desirable sound that they have always wanted. To go one step further a lot of big name guitarist that play Strats get fender to make them a custom model just for them on specifications that they want so they can come up with the ultimate and perfect sound for them. These guitars are also available to the public to buy and are deemed signature models. If you desire a sound from one of these top quality guitarist than you can have it by buying a signature model which emulates the exact sound that artist has.

If you are thinking of buying a Strat I highly recommend to you that you go and try out as many different models that you can. Most people buy the standard USA Strat but this may not be for you, you may want something slightly different with a few different changes to the standard. Another thing I wish to point out is that when you try out a Strat, it is important play it through a quality amp, i.e. a fender twin amp. This is because if you try out guitars (great ones and poor ones) though a cheap and poor amp than the guitar will sound bad and disgusting. The rule when buying a guitar or any musical instrument is to try out many different types of that instrument as possible, this is the only way to properly find out what guitar suits you best.

Jakob Culver is a professional working musician and founder of the website http://www.musiciansequipment.com.

To find out more information on this topic visit our information page.

?2005 Millennium Online Marteting Pty Ltd

Not to over simplify Rock N? Roll but a huge variety of music is based on two patterns: The blues vamp and the power chord. Blues vamps and power chords are just names for rhythmic patterns and chords. Today were looking at the power chords.

What is a Power Chord? Power chords are movable chords, meaning we can move their position up or down the neck, to create different power chords. It?s the same shape just starting in a different position. The power chord contains two notes, the root note, and a note called the fifth. Power chords are known as fifth chords (written C5 or E5, etc). Power chord are not a Major or Minor in tonal quality. The sample below is a power chord in TAB Format.

E————-
B————-
G————-
D————-
A—-3——–
E—-1——–

The first fret on the Low E is an F so this is and F5 Power Chord. In this case you want to play only the two notes on the Low E and A strong.

E————-
B————-
G————-
D————-
A—-7——–
E—-5——–

The fifth fret on the Low E is an A so this is and A5 Power Chord. In this case you want to play only the two notes on the Low E and A strong. Notice this is exactly the same shape as the F5 just move up one step or two frets.

In both of these examples we are looking at power chords with the root note (the one that names the chord) on the Low E or sixth string. The same chord shape can be played with the root note on the A or 5th string.

E————-
B————-
G————-
D—-9——–
A—-7——–
E————-

The 7th fret on the A string is an E so this is and E5 Power Chord. In this case you want to play only the two notes on the A and D string, and mute the note on the Low E with the tip of your finger pressing down on the 7th fret of the A string.

The following Power chords are the same chord but played in different positions on the fret board. Confused?

E————-
B————-
G————-
D—-9——–
A—-7——–
E————-

E————-
B————-
G————-
D————-
A—-2——–
E————-

Don?t be. Play around with these cool little chords. Add some distortion to your amp and play the notes with all down strokes while alternating string mutes. This is the basic techniques used in most hard rock, metal and grunge styles of Rock N? Roll.

Bill McRea is the publisher of Guitar Warehouse the best place to Buy Guitar and learn Guitar Playing Techniques. Visit our site for over 60 free guitar lessons and our Free eBook on playing guitar.

Piano lessons have so many benefits for children, such as improved math skills, improved reading skills, and improved overall educational progress. Parents don?t want their children to miss out on this fun, educational experience. The fact is, however, the earlier your child begins piano lessons the more they will benefit. Many parents wait until their children are 9, or 10, or 14 years old to finally enroll their child in piano lessons. Why? The excuse most often stated by parents for this delay is, ?I?m not quite sure my child is ready for piano lessons.? Here?s what parents need to understand about waiting to give their children piano lessons.

Music is a language. Young children are programmed to absorb languages. So waiting to give your child piano lessons doesn?t really make sense. Here?s what you can do, however, to make sure your young child is ready for piano lessons. Just as parents can teach their young children pre-skills for learning to read at home they can also teach their young children foundational music language pre-skills at home. But to do this well, parents need the right materials to guide them in a step-by-step process so learning goes smoothly for their child. Today there is no reason why this should be dificult.

In the past music educators have tended to view themselves and their profession as an elite group with special talent others should be so lucky to have. Music materials were often couched in unnecesarily technical language that made learning inaccessible to the ?lay person.? With the advent of the internet this is no longer true. In fact, piano teachers who still operate under this dogmatic perspective are shooting themselves in the foot, while other piano teachers are sharing what they know with the world, so that everyone benefits from the gift of music.

If you’re a parents of a young child don?t hesitate to enroll them in piano lessons. But first prepare them for piano success at home. This way you won?t have to worry about whether or not your child is ready for piano, because you’ll know that they are. You may even decide to take piano lessons yourself.

For great home piano activities parents can use to help children ages 5 to 11 develop their musical talent, visit Piano Adventure Bears Music Education Resources You?ll find a treasure box filled with piano resources to create an exciting musical adventure for your child – right in your own home! Visit their website and subscribe to their f?ree internet newsletter so you can download f?ree piano sheet music and mp3s of original piano compositions.

These exciting stories, games, piano lessons, and inspirational gifts feature the Piano Adventure Bears, Mrs. Treble Beary and her new piano student, Albeart Littlebud. Young students follow along with Albeart to learn what piano lessons are all about in a fun way that kids readily understand appreciate. Click here to visit PianoAdventureBears.com For a wealth of information about piano lessons, visit tallypiano.com

Do you remember your mother singing to you? Usually there is a mother or mother figure from our childhoods that sang to us, lulled us with song, and often taught us many of life’s important lessons through song. Not surprisingly, these songs become more and more important to us as we get older.

I am constantly encouraging new mothers and even pregnant mothers to sing to their child. The emotional bond that is created is so very important and, as an adult, can bring comfort, solace and joy when heard as adult. One of the powerful stories related to me by a patient was of a woman, paralyzed by an accident, who was waiting in her wheelchair to be picked up for a doctor’s appointment. Before her ride could get there, a sudden ice storm blew in to town and falling trees blocked the street where the woman lived. Not only that, but the power went out and while the woman was patiently waiting, her apartment began to get colder and colder. In attempt to set her thermostat up, the lady fell from her wheelchair onto the floor and could not get up. The woman lay there, helpless on the floor,and began to cry softly. Suddenly the idea came to her to hum the song that was the first one she ever remembered her mother singing to her; the song was a very familiar one to many of us… Jesus Loves Me. She would hum the song for awhile and then she would sing it for awhile.

She claimed later that it not only helped the time pass, but it also made her feel physically warmer and safe. When she was rescued many hours later, everyone was amazed at what good condition she was in, since she had laid on the floor for probably 4-5 hours!

The songs we learn in early childhood from mother or another significant adult figure, are powerful. I can remember as a preschooler lying in the bed at night and listening to my mother play The Teddy Bear’s Picnic. Going to bed listening to her play was a wonderful feeling and made me want to learn to play too. You don’t have to be a good musician or even have a great voice to sing to your children and grandchildren, but what a gift it is! As I approach my grandmother years, my childhood memories of songs my parents sang to me and with me grow fonder and fonder.

Are you singing to your kids?

Do you listen to music with them, even just in the car?

The bond that music creates between people is powerful and can empower both of you to love better, stronger and longer. Pick up the phone and sing You are my Sunshine or Let me call you sweetheart or most anything that will make your child (or your parent!) feel loved on this special day.

Dr. Alice Cash is an internationally known speaker, author, media expert and performer. With the field of music as medicine she currently is specializing in mother-baby bonding, music for surgery, music with addictions, and music with Alzheimers and dementia. Please go to her website for more information and to book Dr. Cash.