Facebook has taken its first real steps into the music business

Facebook is finally getting into the music business.
                                             

Mark Zuckerberg isn’t selling songs or music streaming subscriptions. But his company has signed a deal with Universal Music, the world’s largest music label, that the two companies have been working on for some time.

For users, the deal means that if they upload a homemade video clip to Facebook or Instagram that has a part of a Universal song in the background, the clip can stay up without generating a takedown notice. That has obvious benefits for Facebook, as well (but to spell it out — Facebook wants to do anything it can to encourage people to make and share content on its services).

And for Universal, the deal means that the company now has a significant new revenue source — neither side is commenting on financials for now, but industry sources assume Facebook wrote the music a label a very large check as an advance, and that Universal can make more over the course of the multiyear deal.

Crucially, the deal does not give Facebook the right to create its own version of Vevo, the music video service owned by the music labels that generates most of its views on YouTube. On the other hand, now that Universal has its first licensing deal with Facebook, it opens up the door for other stuff down the road.

Perhaps most important for Universal is that it now has a credible bargaining chip when it talks to Google’s YouTube.

For years, the labels and YouTube have been in a symbiotic-but-strained relationship: The labels’ product generates lots of views for YouTube, which says it pays the labels plenty of money in return. But the labels have consistently complained that YouTube doesn’t pay them nearly enough.

Now Universal (and eventually the other big labels) can more credibly tell YouTube that they will take their product off the world’s biggest video platform and move it to the worlds’ biggest social network.

Not a coincidence: The press release announcing the deal quotes Tamara Hrivnak, the Facebook business exec who negotiated the deal with Universal. Up until last year, she was in charge of negotiating similar deals for YouTube.

Lots more music where that came from

There's been a parade of British piano virtuosos this fall at the Union College Concert Series, starting with Benjamin Grosvenor at the beginning of November, and followed by Paul Lewis in the middle of the month. The run culminates with the Welsh-born Llŷr Williams, who will be making his local debut on Sunday, Dec. 3.
Williams' program is a kind of sampler of his obsessions. The first half features Debussy (Suite Bergamasque) and Beethoven (Sonata No. 53, "Waldstein"). After intermission, it's vocal music via Liszt with a set of his Schubert song transcriptions followed by a lengthy take on Bellini's opera "Norma."
                                                     

Three years ago Signum Records issued "Wagner Without Words," a two-disc set of Williams performing at the keyboard music from every major Wagner opera, plus other odds and ends by the composer. Most of the opera transcriptions come from Liszt. For the sake of completeness, Williams' audio producer Judith Sherman persuaded him to include his own original take on "Parsifal." Scheduled for release next year is a 12-CD box set of the complete Beethoven Sonatas. After that comes a Schubert collection, which is still in the recording phase but will probably amount to six or seven CDs.
Asked how he manages such a quantity of music, Williams replies, "I don't know any secret to memorizing a vast amount of literature. I just work at it as a normal person would go at a job, with seven to eight hours a day practicing as a regular routine."

"The music is in the fingers and in the head, a combination of the two," he explains. "Everybody relies on the muscle memory, but it mustn't take over. You always need the brain working out where it's going next and what's important."
Sometimes all systems fail, even for virtuosos at the top of their game.
"Memory slips happen all the time, but it depends on how bad they are," continues Williams. "The fugue in Beethoven's Opus 110 is a nightmare. If that goes wrong, there's no way to find your way out. It's a good idea to take music for that, to just have one piece of paper on the piano for security. That's the most extreme example."
There are a couple of monuments of the repertoire -- Ives' "Concord" Sonata and Beethoven's "Hammerklavier" Sonata — where the beauty and pleasures of the music took their time in revealing themselves to Williams.

John Paul Young reveales his biggest music crush

“LOVE is in the Air” with 70s pop star John Paul Young (JPY) revealing his ultimate music crush as he prepares to hit the road again.
                                       

And it is not some scantily-clad, twerking R&B pop princess, that honour belongs to former Easybeats members Harry Vanda and George Young, the hit-making machines at the forefront of the British invasion of the Aussie music charts in the mid-’60s through to the ’80s new wave movement. George Young died this week, aged 70.

Vanda and Young, who met in 1964 at Villawood Migrant Hostel, formed The Easybeats with Dick Diamonde, Snowy Fleet and Stevie Wright.

From rehearsing in the hostel laundry to moving to London and collaborating with early Kinks producer Shel Talmy on “She’s so Fine” the Easybeats enjoyed a meteoric rise and by 1966 they were the biggest band in Australia.

The Easybeats, who are the subject of a new two-part ABC TV mini-series that tells the story of the five young newly-arrived immigrants who took Australian rock’n’roll to the world that is due to air later this year, disbanded in 1969 but this was just the start for Vanda and Young.

They returned to Sydney in 1974, and gave Wright, the former Easybeat’s lead singer, an instant hit with “Evie”.

For JPY they produced hits like “Yesterday’s Hero”, “Standing in the Rain”, “I Hate the Music” and “Love Is in the Air”.

They are also the production team behind the first six albums of AC/DC, that featured Young’s younger brothers Angus and Malcolm, with hits like “High Voltage” and “It’s A Long Way To The Top".

He was also wondering how a kid from Glasgow, who landed in Australia with his parents when he was 11, could be so lucky.

Chamber music festival offers a fine selection

Sticking to the usual format of three simultaneous programs changing on the hour across the day, this year's chamber music festival seemed to offer its enthusiastic patrons some more concentrated options than in previous years.
                                               

Not that all the events had a single focus; you could find quite a few with varied content like soprano Sara Macliver's​ program of songs by four composers, or Anna Goldsworthy's tour from Bach, through Schubert and Prokofiev, to the Rigoletto Paraphrase by Liszt.

In the Abbotsford Chapel, the Arcadia Winds gave a stellar account of Barber's amiable, polished Summer Music and handled Nielsen's Wind Quintet with sterling security – not least from the unflappable horn of Rachel Shaw. The building's vivid resonance helped the music travel effectively, but much the same could be said of all the festival venues.

Cellist Caleb Wong, one of the festival's Young Performers, infused the long Mural Hall with Bach's E flat Suite, complete with all repeats; and then Kodaly's prolix Suite, which emerged as impassioned, urging almost to becoming strident.

By contrast, in the spacious Rosina Auditorium pianist Stefan Cassomenos​ faced down the multiple problems presented by Beethoven's Seventh Symphony in Liszt's full-blooded transcription: virtuosity riddled with smashing chords, a no-holds-barred exhibition of relentless drive.

Taylor Swift to release new music on Friday

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) - The wait is almost over: Taylor Swift is expected to release new music on Friday, according to multiple sources.
                                                 

The superstar is set to debut the first single from her upcoming sixth album, although she could surprise everyone and drop the entire album itself.

Swift is also rumored to be debuting the music video for said single at this Sunday's MTV Video Music Awards, hosted by her former friend Katy Perry .

After wiping clean her Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and Tumblr accounts, in addition to her website, Swift sent fans into a frenzy by posting two cryptic videos of a snake moving its tail Monday on her social media platforms.

Given that the wait for new music since "1989" has been longer than usual, speculation that Swift would be dropping news soon ran rampant.

Further adding fuel to the fire: The day of the purge -- Friday, Aug. 18 -- was the three-year anniversary of the announcement of her album "1989" and the launch of its first single, "Shake It Off."

Swift released "1989" in October 2014, which marked an official move into pop music for the singer. The album was a massive success, going six-times platinum per the Recording Industry Association of America, and along with "Shake It Off," contained six other singles: "Blank Space," "Bad Blood," "Style," "Wildest Dreams," "Out of the Woods," and "New Romantics."

Starting with her 2006 self-titled debut and leading up to "1989," Swift had released an album every two years. She's kept a relatively low profile in the past few months especially, posting on social media only sporadically and making few public appearances.

She most recently emerged victorious in a Denver trial after a DJ, who was accused of groping her during a meet-and-greet, unsuccessfully sued her for the loss of his job.

Aquaman’s Jason Momoa gives country music star Troy Cassar-Daley a tune up

A BROMANCE was born in Brisbane when Aussie music great Troy Cassar-Daley and Aquaman star Jason Momoa met at the recent State of Origin series decider.

Cassar-Daley says he and Momoa, a keen guitarist, bonded over their shared love of music at the footy.
                                                   

“He got me on to Alan Lomax. He held his phone up to my ear to listen to these historical songs collected in the field. They’re old recordings Alan Lomax had done in these southern prisons that are part of the archive of American music.”

Cassar-Daley is on the Coast to perform at tonight’s Broadbeach Country Music Festival launch at The Star before he plays two shows at the free festival — a Things I Carry Around album and hits set in Surf Parade on Friday and a Tex Dubbo (his alter ego, named in honour of a country superstar/bird impersonator character from The Paul Hogan Show) classic covers gig in the Kurrawa Park big top on Saturday arvo.

And yes, you might even spot Momoa in the crowd.

Cassar-Daley, his great mate Kasey Chambers and US group America lead the bill for this year’s fifth annual country shindig, which features more than 110 free performances across 12 stages in the streets, parks and venues of Broadbeach from Friday to Sunday.

The festival will also mark a reunion of sorts for Cassar-Daley, who opened for America when they toured Australia in 1998.

Cassar-Daley said he was looking forward to seeing the group perform again this weekend.

“I’m excited to see them again because after that particular support thing we did with them, we ended up playing about five of their songs in our set — we were so overcome with how brilliant they were.

African-American Music Appreciation Month

To commemorate African-American Music Appreciation Month this June, California Senator Kamala Harris released a Spotify playlist with songs spanning genres and generations, from TLC’s “Waterfalls” to Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On.”
                                                 

In a nod to the integral role African-American musicians play in the country’s rich musical legacy, we’ve decided to highlight our own “playlist” of articles, pieces that feature icons like Michael Jackson and Tupac Shakur, along with forgotten – but no less important – voices, from Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield to the Rev. T.T. Rose.

Segregating sound

By the early 20th century, Americans were clamoring for the albums of black artists. The music industry was eager to oblige, but cordoned them off into a distinct genre: “race music.”

The first black pop star is born

Before Aretha Franklin, before Ella Fitzgerald, there was Elizabeth Taylor Greenfield. A self-taught opera singer born in 1820, Greenfield had to overcome the belief that blacks couldn’t actually sing.

Michael Jackson breaks the mold

Only later would black artists be able to move freely across musical genres. Perhaps no artist stitched together a more diverse range of styles and influences than Michael Jackson, the King of Pop.

The triumph and tragedy of Tupac

In the 1980s, hip-hop – then a budding musical genre – found itself gravitating toward black nationalist messages. It was during this time that Tupac Shakur, the son of a Black Panther, came of age.

Why Ariana Grande's music is so important

On Monday night, Ariana Grande fans — AKA "Arianators" — excitedly gathered for a shared purpose; to watch her perform the songs they love. But, the awful events which transpired that night meant that some of those fans didn't make it home.
                                   

Grande fans are now mourning the loss to their fanbase; a community whose shared love of her music spans several generations. And, that curious ability to transcend generations stems from her own evolution from an innocent teenage Nickelodeon star to a grown-up pop star who appeals to adults and children alike.

I didn't grow up watching Victorious, but rather grew to love Grande's songs about sex and relationships. Her most recent album Dangerous Woman was my anthem as I sat teary-eyed on the London Underground in the aftermath of a breakup. But, her songs are more than just songs about sex and love. As I strut along to the beat of "Be Alright" and "Everyday", I feel strong and empowered. And, yes, pop songs really do make you feel those things.

Grande's fans are keen for her to not be dismissed as yet another sexy pop star singing about her bedroom antics. 26-year-old super-fan Elisabeth Joffe says that the reason people underestimate Grande is because "people undermine women who look like young girls" and she says people think that Grande "plays up the sexy baby thing". But, though she be little — 5 foot 3 inches, to be precise — she is fiercely inclusive, says Joffe.

For other super-fans, Grande represents strength. "Ariana's music is more than just someone singing over a musical beat. Ariana's music is strength, love, empowerment," says 17-year-old fan Stephanie. "She has songs like "One last time" and "Thinking of you" which now hold such a strong meaning to our fanbase since the Manchester tragedy."

Classical music concert extends the hand of friendship

AN UPCOMING concert in Caloundra will use beautiful classical music as the instrument to help raise funds to support refugees living in Queensland.
                                         

The Refraction Quartet will perform sublime music, including piano quartets by Beethoven and Brahms, at a concert organised by the Sunshine Coast's Buddies Refugee Support Group.

After dropping “Chanel” and “Biking,” Frank Ocean unleashes two version of “Lens,” a new song premiered through blonded Radio. The first is a solo edition, while the second is a Travis Scott-assisted remix.

Over a soothing beat, an Auto-Tuned Frank harmonizes about Mariah Carey, Rally’s, and freeways, before touching on his partner’s timeless qualities.

Buddies raises awareness and money to support refugees living in Queensland - many of whom fled Syria and Iraq where conflict is still raging.

The Refraction Quartet's pianist Stewart Kelly, violinist Nigel Bardsley, cellist Dominic Fitzgerald and violist Iris Doo exemplify the spirit of chamber music playing as a conversation in this contrasting selection of exquisite works.

The Beethoven that begins the concert (his Piano Quartet No. 3 in C major) is a youthful work written when he was just 15. It is clearly from the pen of a young genius, overflowing with passion, energy and enthusiasm.

Where Beethoven is youthful and unburdened, the Brahms (Piano Quartet No. 3 in C minor Op. 60) is a mature work weighed down by tragedy.

Country sheds to come alive with music

With a timber frame and floor and tin walls and roof the shiny new addition became a hive of activity in the 1950s, filled with shearers and wool classers.

But generations on and Paul, now 62, and son David, 33, at the helm, it's almost a livestock-free property after the family's diversification into tulip growing.
"We've been growing tulips for 30 years and pretty much moved completely out of sheep a decade ago, so these days the shed is mainly just used to store stuff," Paul told AAP.
It's a common tale across rural Australia, with unused sheds dotting numerous landscapes, well past their heyday.
In these sheds, now most appealing to spiders and rodents, Melbourne-based musician and producer Andrew Viney saw potential during a visit to his home town of Burnie.
And so the Acoustic Life of Sheds was born.
Held over the last two weekends in March, the event aims to bring to life agricultural ruins, turning them into performance venues as part of a progressive concert.
As part of the project, musicians spend a couple of days getting to know the property owners and visit the sheds before composing pieces for a 20-minute performance to be played eight times across both weekends.
The free event asks visitors to follow a map linking five sheds and hear productions from 10 composers.
"It's a chance for the audience to be at each location for about 45 minutes, including the performance, and then they jump back in their cars and head to the next shed," Viney said.
The genres vary, from chamber opera, to jazz, swing and country.
At the Roberts-Thomson shed, Lucky Oceans will perform his blend of pedal and lap steel guitars.
Farmer Paul quite likes the music on offer and champions the event, co-ordinated by arts and social-justice outfit, Big hART.
"The digitalised economic framework we live in these days can be isolating and to be able to participate in the arts scene is effectively about building a sense of community and broadening peoples' ideas."

Damien Leith follows Roy Orbison's music path

AFTER a sold-out run of Roy - A Tribute To Roy Orbison to metropolitan centres in 2016, singer-songwriter Damien Leith will bring the music of his idol to Lennox Head as part of a regional The Hall of Fame Tour.

Damien Leith said the tour commemorates 30 years since Roy Orbison was inducted into the Rock'n'Roll and Songwriters' Hall of Fame.

Damian Leith recalled his first memories of listening to Roy Orbison.

"When I was a teenager and I was just starting to get into singing, at that point I Drove All Night was being played on the radio, and I used to hear it all the time and that was my first taste of his music," he said.

In 2006, in the middle of his Australian Idol experience, Leith sang Orbison's Crying, which took him from the Top 4 to winning the talent quest TV show that year.

"I believe that singing Crying was a turning point for me, it reached a big audience and had an effect in the rest of my career."

Damien Leith recorded his fourth studio album in the US, Roy: A Tribute to Roy Orbison (2011), released on April 2011.

The album was released to coincide with what would have been Orbison's 75th birthday.

The album peaked at number 2, and spent 25 non-consecutive weeks on the ARIA Top 50 Albums Chart and gained platinum certification.

Leith said his album was produced by Barbara Orbison, Roy's widow. Mrs Orbison died on December 2011, aged 61.

Melson co-wrote some of Orbison's biggest hits, such as Crying, Lana and Only the Lonely.

"From my relationship with him, probably more than with Barbara, I learned so much about Orbison," Leith said.

Shadow House Party at the Courtyard Studio presents theatre, music and dance

Shadow House Party. Various artists. Restricted to audiences 18 and older. The Courtyard Studio, Canberra Theatre Centre. January 17 (preview) to 21 at 7pm.

If you like your theatre experiences varied, how's this for an evening's entertainment? Take a punk-rock reworking of Hamlet and add the musings of a bathtub philosopher together with a performance art piece reminding us that behind our masks, we are just animals. Throw in an after-show dance party and a bar – together with a complimentary pre-show drink – and Shadow House Party, coming soon to the Courtyard Studio, sounds like something a little out of the ordinary.

It unites three Canberra companies, KREWD, Shadow House PITS and Acoustic Theatre Troupe, in their first collaboration as a trio.

Acoustic Theatre Troupe's artistic director Lucy Matthews says she was talking to KREWD's founder Bambi Valentine last year about a new show she wanted to perform in January. Valentine suggested teaming up with her and Joe Woodward's Shadow House PITS for a theatre festival and it grew from there, with many cast members crossing over between Matthews and Valentine's productions.

KREWD's works – on its own or in co-productions – look at the beautiful and the grotesque in humanity and how they are often interchangeable and A KREWD Incarnate is no exception. As the audience members enter the pre-show, the cast are posed as "sexy animal installations – looking at humanity, we're really just animals", Valentine says.

Audience members can collect a complimentary drink and interact with the posed animal installations until 7.30pm when Valentine says "the installations take on new energy" and things become more extreme in the show, in which they regress to an animal-like state.