An annoyance at sporting contests world wide, the Vuvuzela has leaped into the spotlight since the start of the World Cup in South Africa. Allegedly confined to the key of B flat, it is as loud as a 747 @ takeoff. Is it musical? You be the judge. Here is a new concerto written for the sonic scourge.

Check out the Vuvuzela Trio on our video section of the home page. Even trained horn players can’t master this beast!

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Joining the ranks of some of the UK’s most illustrious citizens past and present, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra’s longtime  music director, Nicholas McGegan was made an Officer of the British Empire on this year’s Queen’s Birthday Hounors List.  I asked PBO’s PR guy, Sasha Hnatkovich if this meant we get to call him “Sir” Nic.  Sasha said no, he is now officially Nicholas McGegan, OBE- but stay tuned!

Congrats Nic!

An orchestra of laptops?  Why not?  At Stanford, Professor Ge Wang runs the CCRMA, Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics. Is this the wave of the future?  Computers are precise, can produce just about any sound and they don’t get tired like, say, a trumpeter.  Add people to the mix and you add emotion, intention, and expressiveness.  Wang says, “You pull these elements together and then see where the intersection is”.  Click here to listen to Slork which is an acronym for Stanford Laptop Orchestra.