Well, after 3 and a half months of intense working and building, we are finished with our brand new music studio! The new Aria studios building boasts two, large teaching studios, one with a grand piano and the other with a state of the art Roland keyboard. Outside the teaching rooms there is a spacious waiting area with plenty of room for family or friends to wait during lessons. 
Our vision behind this building was to create a beautiful, professional studio that would allow us to handle the growth of the studio. 
Of course with a project like this there are always more details to get hammered out, but the bulk of the work is done and just in time for the beginning of school!
 

Music for everyone is committed to giving the gift of music to those who can't afford it. So we are asking for your help! 
This flower basket fundraiser is the perfect way to start your Spring with some beautiful flower baskets that will help to raise funds to give lessons to those who would not otherwise be able to get them. 

Aria Studios has partnered with 4 T's Greenhouses to offer this special discounted price for a limited time. So if you were planning on buying your flower baskets for the spring, get them here and you will be helping a child get music lessons!

Price for each Basket: $25

To order your flower baskets you can call: 503.380.3020
Or email [email protected]

 "Music is a gift that everyone should be able to enjoy!" - David Martin

Music is one of those things we take for granted. Some of us could say we took music lessons as a kid and at some point we probably quit or moved on to something else. No one can really measure the impact music has on our life intellectually, physically, and even spiritually. It has the power to communicate volumes without words and emotionally inspire us to do great things in our lives, things we might not have otherwise done. I think we can agree though, that because we receive all of these things from music, it is indeed a privilege. And it is because of this privilege that we should never take it for granted. 

These days times are tough for many families. Finances are tight and the first thing that tends to get cut from the budget is extra curricular activities. Even though it shouldn’t, music unfortunately falls into this category. We are seeing children who love their music lessons have to give them up simply because of finances. This is heartbreaking. 

Music For Everyone is a program that we believe will help many children take music lessons who otherwise wouldn’t have had the privilege. Through the generous support from local businesses and individuals, the Music For Everyone scholarship program will make a difference in the lives of children in our community. If you would like to help by donating to sponsor a child’s music lessons, click here. Any amount will make a difference - All of the money raised goes to help children have a music education!

“The Talent Code”, by Daniel Coyle is quite an interesting and enchanting book. It speaks to the importance of practice, that in order to turn information into a habit or a skill, we need to practice doing it many thousands of times.

According to Coyle, here’s how it works:  

To carry out an action or even to think a thought, the brain has to send instructions along the nerves.  It’s actually a biological fact that every time we fire a nerve circuit, it becomes coated with a thin layer of fat called myelin.  With each new layer of myelin, the circuit gradually becomes superbly fast and highly efficient. There is absolutely no getting around this biological process! So committing to a daily practice will actually help you learn more easily. 

As a music educator, I have found that the sooner families do this for their children, the more easily they learn which only helps them greatly in the long run. 

That’s why we’ve decided to start a new program at Aria Studios called the 100 Day Challenge.

It’s a very simple program: Just practice every single day for 100 consecutive days, keeping a record of each practice session so you don’t miss a day. 

Now, what constitutes a practice? 

Suzuki said, “Only practice on the days you eat”.

Well, of course there will be some days when fitting your practice in may feel challenging. But – if you’re up for the 100 Day Challenge, you must practice 100 days in a row, no exceptions. 

(and you really don’t want to miss a day, because if you do, you have to go back to the very beginning and start all over again!)

One suggestion for the harder days is to think small. Play through a song you have already learned and think specifically about musicality and phrasing. Or take one comment or suggestion your teacher gave you at your lesson and just work on that specifically. 

Another thing you can do is to listen to lots of your favorite types of music, to become inspired. It’s a great way to get yourself to practice, and although this does not replace practicing it will help you get motivated. 

If you go on vacation, no worries, you can still take the challenge. You just have to do a little research before you go! Most hotels have a lobby where they have a piano or keyboard. There may be a church nearby that would allow you to practice. If you have a keyboard you can take it with you.

The point here is that the 100 Day Challenge is a commitment. Learning your instrument comes with work. If you simply take away the option of whether or not to practice every day, that work, and the learning, becomes MUCH easier!

And parents - Once your child has made it to the 20 or 25 day mark without missing a day, you will find that you’ll no longer have to remind them to practice. You might even find that they look forward to their practice time!

One thing we know for certain is that this challenge WILL create a habit of practice. Your child WILL develop musically about 5 times faster than the average music student, and on top of all this they WILL enjoy practicing because they will be improving. They will feel a true sense of accomplishment.

So -- are you ready to start the 100 Day Challenge?  CLICK HERE to begin!

Aria Studios is going to be expanding by building a brand new studio to accommodate our explosive growth every year, and to give the teachers and students a state-of-the-art teaching environment. 

This has been a project in the works for some time now, and we are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel! 

The new studio will have two separate teaching studios and a waiting area that will allow parents with small children to not have to wait in their car during lessons. The studios will be soundproofed to allow for multiple lessons going on at the same time. The size of each studio room will be significantly larger than the current studio giving the teachers more room for creativity while teaching. One of the studio rooms will be much larger than the other to accommodate class lessons (which will be coming in the fall), as well as mini performances, etc. 

This is a much needed upgrade and we eagerly anticipate this next phase of our development. The construction is scheduled to begin sometime in late June and will be completed in time for the Fall school schedule!

By David Martin

As a composer, I have had the privilege of working with
many different kinds of instruments, the Piano, all types of stringed instruments, Flute, Clarinet, Harp, Marimba and a few others. But of all the instruments I have written for the instrument that has occupied most of my time and interest has been the voice. I find myself very drawn to and inspired by choral music. Maybe it’s the idea that the sound comes from within and requires such an emotional commitment from the musician.

Because of my background, much of the music I write is stylistically classical with a lot of harmonic texture and some dissonance. As a boy I was immersed in classical music. I listened to it constantly and it became a source of comfort and peace for me. My father was a Music History Professor and has always been a huge inspiration in my life. It was from his influence that I started taking piano lessons. I was ten years old when I started formal lessons but I was playing by ear, coming up with my own melodies even earlier. Composition was always something I enjoyed as a student mainly because I always wanted to be better than just the notes on the page. I looked at music as an exploration of expression, a journey of musical discovery. I was privileged to have teachers that encouraged me in improvisation and ultimately composition.

In the Spring of 2011, I endeavored to record a CD with a small choral ensemble that I had
assembled and worked with for a few years prior. We called ourselves the Martin Harmonic
Choir. It was a fun group for me because the primary purpose of the group was to practice and
perform music that I had written. We gave performances all around Portland throughout the
ensuing years. The CD, Out of the Depths, was a conglomerate of songs that I had written
spanning over a decade. Each one was uniquely selected for the theme of the album.

Below are short descriptions of some of the songs included on the CD:

Sweet. Probably the most popular song on this CD, this is one of three songs that are not
sung by the whole choir. Kristen Kirkland, a long time friend, sings this song with an incredible
tenderness that gives this piece the essence of its name, Sweet. The idea for this came from a
poem by Christopher Smart called, A Song to David. Wonderfully descriptive poetry which on
the surface is hard to understand, but carries deep spiritual meaning.

The Lord is my Shepherd. Taken from the famous passage in the Bible from the book of
Psalms, chapter 23. This was written for 6-part a cappella choir. I wanted this song to be rich in harmony and full of sound clusters, that if you close your eyes would take you to another world
full of color and sound that’s rich for the senses. It ends on the word forever... which is repeated
over and over as if never-ending. I came up with the concept when I was introduced to Eric
Whitacre’s music. I was impressed with how sound could be so dissonant and yet so beautifully
effective. This song was an exploration of new sound.

Jonah. Taken from the famous story in the Bible from the book of Jonah chapter 2. It is written
for 6-part choir with piano accompaniment. Jonah is an allegorical story set to music, laying out
the story of Jonah’s amazing journey through the belly of a whale and pointing to a future Savior.
I came up with the idea for this song when I was in collage (about 12 years before it was actually
finished, which for me is pretty common). I’ve always enjoyed the idea of setting music to a story.

Martin Harmonic Choir: Out of the Depths was recorded at Nettleingham Audio www.nettleinghamaudio.com, located in Vancouver, WA. It is available for sale on www.iTunes.com and www.Amazon.com.

Here are some fun musical facts for today. Have you ever heard any of these before?

1. How many? J.S. Bach was married twice in his lifetime, between his two wives he had 20 children. Many of his children became composers.

2. Farewell. Joseph Hayden was begging the king to let his musicians have a break to visit their families. The king told him that there were many future parties for them to entertain. So, Hayden replied with a symphony named the "Farewell Symphony". When the piece was performed and as each movement progressed, a musician would pack up and leave until the end when there were none left to play. The embarrassed king only saw the musicians after their vacation.

3. The 5th Symphony. Ludwig Van Beethoven is probably best known for his famous 5th symphony with its opening 4 notes, "dun dun dun DAH!". What may be lesser known is the fact that this repeated rhythm is actually the letter "V" in Morse code. You see at the time, Beethoven's country, Germany, was at war. Beethoven wanted to communicate victory!

4. Times have changed. The lute was as popular in the pre-Baroque periods (1400-1500's) as the piano is today in classical music.

5. The Curse. It is said that every great composer never wrote more than 9 symphonies. When they tried to begin their tenth, they died before it was completed. According to Arnold Shoenberg, this superstition began with Mahler, who, after writing his 8th symphony, wrote another piece, then he wrote his 9th symphony and thought he had beaten the curse, but died with his 10th symphony incomplete. In an essay about Mahler, Schoenberg wrote: "It seems that the Ninth is a limit. He who wants to go beyond it must pass away. It seems as if something might be imparted to us in the Tenth which we ought not yet to know, for which we are not ready. Those who have written a Ninth stood too close to the hereafter."

6. It's too long! When Beethoven premiered his 3rd symphony it was unlike anything people had heard before, it was the beginning of the grand symphony with more drama and passion. It was also twice as long as anything he had ever written. It was reported that one weary listener commented during the work, "I'd give another Kreutzer if they would stop!"

7. Nostalgia.  In this etude Chopin is rumored to have proclaimed, “In all my life I have never again been able to find such a beautiful melody.” It is also reported that while Chopin was playing this for a student, he suddenly began weeping and cried “Oh, my homeland!” This etude is one of the best expressions of Chopin’s nationalism and the love he felt for his Poland. 

Ever wanted to study the guitar? Start a band? Or maybe you just want to be able to strum chords around the campfire, 
Craig Benelli, guitar teacher at Aria Studios has been an absolute hit with all the students. Ages range from under 10 years old to over 60, Craig has been an incredible addition to the studio!

Meet Craig:

With over 20 years experience, Craig Benelli brings a vast amount of talent, versatility and joy to his method of teaching guitar. His former students include Matt Morrison (star of FOX’s hit TV show Glee), Jared Scharff (current guitar player for the Saturday Night Live Band), and Ben Taylor (son of singer/songwriter, James Taylor). Craig began working as a guitar player in NY as a sideman for many bands and songwriters including Steve Tannen (The Weepies) and former Sony Epic recording group, October Project. During that time, he also performed in the pit band for many theater productions and, in 2004, was afforded the opportunity to perform with the National Touring Company of the Broadway Musical, RENT. Craig now lives in the Portland area and is currently teaching, writing, and recording music with his wife, Laura Berman, as the inspirational musical duo, 4 Stories High. http://www.4storieshigh.com 

To redeem this deal, you must contact us BEFORE the end of December! 
hmmm....Christmas gift???