Great American Songwriters: Brian Wilson

The great American songwriter who gave us "Good Vibrations" and other feel-good hits has always been inspired by his Southern California roots. Brian Wilson, best known for being the leader and chief songwriter for The Beach Boys, grew up minutes from our HillTop Records offices in Hollywood. He was born in 1942 and he spent his childhood in Hawthorne, a town near the beach and central Los Angeles. And supposedly, he showed an interest in music at an exceptionally young age: His father, Murry Wilson, said that prior to young Brian's first birthday, the baby could repeat the melody from "When the Caissons Go Rolling Along" after his father had only sung a few verses. "He was very clever and quick," Murry said. "I just fell in love with him." Years later, the rest of the world did as well.

When he was only two years old, Brian Wilson heard "Rhapsody in Blue" by George Gershwin. The song had a great emotional impact on him, and was one of the first things that prompted him to write his own music. However, Wilson also experienced what many would consider to be a setback at a young age: He was discovered to have extremely diminished hearing in his right ear (the cause of which was never officially determined.) Despite this, Wilson embraced his musical abilities in a number of ways. He took lessons on a "toy accordion" and was singing solos in church by the age of seven. A natural leader, Brian taught some of his schoolmates to sing along with him. He also taught his two brothers how to harmonize, and they would do so late into the night when they were supposed to be asleep. Brian learned to play the piano soon thereafter, and he used a keyboard to recreate blended sounds that he heard in popular music. On his sixteenth birthday, he received a Wollensak tape recorder--and immediately began recording his own group vocals. It was obvious that Brian Wilson was meant to work in the music industry.

Wilson's first real singing group was called "Carl and the Passions;" the name was invented to entice Brian's youngest brother, Carl Wilson, who did not want to join the group. The Passions also consisted of Mike Love, who was the Wilsons' cousin and one of Brian's first singing partners. The group performed at the boys' high school, and their abilities made an impression on one classmate in particular: Al Jardine, a fellow musician who later joined the three Wilson brothers and Mike Love to form The Beach Boys. The group was, however, initially named The Pendletones--and their first single was "Surfin'", written by Brian and Mike Love. Over Labor Day weekend 1961, the Wilsons' parents went to Mexico City for a couple of days. The enterprising Brian (then only 19) took the emergency cash his parents had left behind and used it to rent an amp, a microphone, and a stand-up bass. The boys still needed some money to cover musical expenses; however, once Al's mother heard the group perform, she was happy to help them out. The next adult to be won over by The Pendletones' sound was Murry, who was at first angry when he found out what his money had been used for. When he heard the boys perform, however, he was so impressed that he promptly proclaimed himself the group's manager. The first label to sign them was Candix, who released "Surfin'"; the single became a top local hit in Los Angeles, and it reached Number 75 on the national charts. Years later, Dennis (the middle Wilson brother) described the first time Brian heard their song on the radio: "Nothing will ever top the expression on Brian's face, ever ... THAT was the all-time moment."

Immediately after that first success, Candix Records changed the Pendletones' name to The Beach Boys--without the band's knowledge or permission. The new name did seem to work for them, and The Beach Boys performed their first major live show at The Ritchie Valens Memorial Dance on New Year's Eve, 1961, following a set by Ike and Tina Turner. Just three days before the show, Brian's father (and the band's manager) had bought him an electric bass and amplifier--and Brian learned to play the instrument in that short period of time. Shortly thereafter, Brian and Mike wrote "Surfin' Safari." They went on to record that and an early version of "Surfer Girl," which Brian had actually written the previous year; it was, in fact, his first all-original melody. In 1963, it was finally re-recorded and released--and it became a Top 10 hit.

Brian eventually forged a songwriting partnership with Gary Usher, who helped him write "409" and others. Around the same time, Al Jardine left the band and the Wilsons' recruited Carl and Dennis' friend (13-year-old David Marks, who played the electric guitar) to take his place. The songs that the re-vamped Beach Boys recorded were good enough to attract the attention of Capitol Records. Their demos, "Surfin' Safari" and "409" were released--and they became a double-sided national hit. After signing with Capitol Records, Brian Wilson wrote or co-wrote a series of hit singles: "Surfin' USA", "Shut Down", "Little Deuce Coupe", "Be True to Your School", "In My Room", "Fun, Fun, Fun", "I Get Around", "Dance, Dance, Dance", "Help Me Rhonda", "California Girls", "Good Vibrations"--these were not just popular songs, but veritable anthems of the California surf culture that Brian and the rest of The Beach Boys personified. The band had officially reached the ranks of the world-famous, and they were one of the biggest acts of that time.

Adapted from Chuck Berry and emblematic of the early 60's American rock culture, the Surfin' USA album had reached the Number 2 spot on the national sales charts by the summer of 1963. It was a huge success for everyone involved and especially so for Brian, who was credited as a producer on the album. He began working with other artists during that time: The Honeys, Sharon Marie, The Survivors, and Jan and Dean (with whom Brian co-wrote "Surf City," which was the first surfing song to reach the pinnacle of the sales charts.) Once he tired of surfing songs, he wrote car-themed tunes; this is evident in The Beach Boys' fourth album, Little Deuce Coupe (1963.) Whatever the theme, though, Brian Wilson managed to maintain a consistency: He was famous for his unique use of vocal harmonies, his trademark style of lyrics, and his incessant studio perfection. He described that last trait in a 1999 interview: "I would have the musicians keep playing over and over again till the sound made sense. I worked overtime on that; I worked hours to get it right. If the sound didn't make any sense, then I wouldn't know what to do — I'd be lost! It's instinct that tells me. I have an instinct for music, or a feeling about it, and I'll have my feelings guide my hands."

Brian eventually stopped performing with the group in an effort to concentrate solely on songwriting and studio production. In late 1965, he was inspired by The Beatles' album Rubber Soul (for a time, John Lennon and Paul McCartney were Wilson's biggest rivals; both bands have cited the other as a major influence) to work on new material. This new material became Pet Sounds, which is to this day considered one of the greatest albums of all time. Although The Beach Boys recorded the album's songs and lyricist Tony Asher helped Wilson write some of them, Pet Sounds is oftentimes thought of as Wilson's first solo effort. In fact, the band didn't even like the songs at first. As Brian explained it: "They thought it was too far-out to do, you know?... But then when it was all done, they liked it. They started liking it."

Wilson then collaborated with Van Dyke Parks on "Heroes and Villains", "Surf's Up", "Wonderful", Vegetables" and "Mrs. O Leary's Cow"--songs that were meant to be part of the 1966 album Smile. However, Wilson's ongoing battle with his own mental health led to the postponing--and eventual cancellation--of that release. Brian Wilson did complete Smile, but not until 2004. By 1985, he was no longer a member of The Beach Boys. Several years after his departure from the band, he released his first solo album, Brian Wilson (1988.) The latter half of his lengthy career also features the soundtrack to Don Was' 1995 documentary I Just Wasn't Made for These Times, the '95 album Orange Crate Art (a collaboration between Wilson and Van Dyke Parks) and 1996's Stars and Stripes Vol. 1. Brian also recorded an album with his two daughters, Carnie and Wendy of Wilson Phillips, called The Wilsons (1997.) He sang backup on Belinda Carlisle's "California" in 1996, released the solo album Imagination in '98, and produced Gettin' in Over My Head in 2004. That last album included collaborations with Elton John, Eric Clapton, Wilson's late brother Carl, and his former rival, Paul McCartney. When Smile was finally resurrected, it led to Wilson earning his only Grammy to date--the 2005 award for Best Rock Instrumental, for "Mrs. O'Leary's Cow (Fire)".

What makes Brian Wilson's story so fascinating is the fact that, despite monumental setbacks, it is still going strong. The public loves a comeback, and that is exactly what he is giving us. In 2008, Wilson released two albums: That Lucky Old Sun and A World of Peace Must Come (a collaboration between him and Stephen Kalinich.) He then signed a two-record deal with Disney, and agreed to complete two piano pieces left unfinished by his first idol: George Gershwin. In 2010, Brian Wilson Reimagines Gershwin was released--and it reached the Number 1 spot on the Billboard Jazz Chart. His second Disney album was In The Key Of Disney, released just days ago. Amid these recent successes and rumors of a Beach Boys reunion tour and album, Brian Wilson continues to inspire songwriters--here at HillTop Records and around the world.

What's Happening In Music In: Baltimore

One of Baltimore's biggest claims to fame is the fact that it was where Francis Scott Key wrote the lyrics for the Star Spangled Banner. To this day, it remains a place of great history--and of great music. Those whose tastes include Western classical and jazz will be especially pleased with the local music scene. However, this major Maryland city has something for everyone. Moreover, it's close proximity to the United States capitol allows Baltimore to offer even more options to its citizens and visitors. For these and other reasons, the historical city is the next stop on HillTop Records' tour of great American music scenes.

The music of Baltimore can be traced as far back as 1784, when the city first became Maryland's largest and most prominent cultural hub. Musical theater and opera were among the preferred forms of entertainment, and the city also hosted several major music publishing firms until well into the 19th century. Around that time, Baltimore became a huge producer of musical instruments, including pianos and woodwinds. The many Protestant churches in the area created another avenue for music; meanwhile, the jazz and gospel scene grew with Baltimore's rapidly expanding African American population. This vast diversity has remained a constant characteristic of Baltimore's music scene: Alongside historic institutions like the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and the Peabody Institute, the more modern fields of rock, hip hop and R&B thrive.

Originally established in 1866, the Peabody Orchestra was the first professional orchestra in Baltimore. It was famous early on for premiering many works, including those by Asger Hamerik. The prominent Danish composer eventually became director of the Orchestra, which was followed in succession by Ross Jungnickel's Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. By 1899, that Orchestra has also gone under; it was immediately replaced by the Florestan Club, which included author H. L. Mencken. The Club reformed the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and their version (which began performing in 1916) became the first municipally funded company in the country. It was reorganized as a private institution in 1942 under Reginald Stewart, who directed both the Orchestra and the Peabody. That connection paved the way for a lasting, meaningful relationship between the two institutions. To this day, most of the major musical organizations in Baltimore were founded by musicians who trained at the Peabody Institute's Conservatory of Music.

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra underwent a series of transitions, becoming more professional during the latter half of the 20th century. Under Music Director David Zinman, it recorded for major record labels and was the first Orchestra to tour in the Soviet bloc. It is still an excellent option for classical music in Baltimore--but definitely not the only one! Choral organizations, founded in the early 19th century for the purpose of instruction in choral music, left their mark on the city by way of an impressive music education system. Check out the Bach Choir, the Choral Arts Society, the Handel Society, Baltimore Choral Arts, and the Baltimore Symphony Chorus. Opera is also a beloved part of Baltimore's classical music scene: There's the Baltimore Opera Company, first founded in 1924, and the Martinet Opera School. The Baltimore Chamber Music Society has commissioned a number of renowned works, and the Baltimore Women's String Symphony Orchestra has been famous since the days when women were barred from the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (but allowed in the Baltimore Colored Symphony Orchestra.) In the early 20th century, institutions like the Baltimore Colored Chorus and Symphony Orchestra and the Baltimore Colored City Band introduced jazz-like sounds to Baltimore's classical music. During these times of great racial tension, the interracial Aeolian Institute for higher musical education was established as a beacon of hope. Meanwhile, the Director of Municipal Music for Baltimore forbade jazz in local venues--and the Peabody Institute debated whether jazz was music at all! Thankfully, those days have passed.

Jazz is now alive and well in Baltimore, as are other forms of popular African American music. An early pioneer was the Baltimore Afro-American, a prominent periodical based in Baltimore in the early- and mid-20th century; another was WBAL radio personality Chuck Richards. Baltimore was also at the forefront of the East Coast ragtime movement, producing the legendary performer and composer Eubie Blake. Chick Webb, Billie Holiday, Noble Sissle and other celebrities of that era played in Baltimore, especially in venues along Pennsylvania and Fremont Avenues. The section of Baltimore Street between Calvert and Gay, known as The Block, was another mecca for jazz players and audiences. The first local bar to specialize in jazz was Club Tijuana, and the Sphinx Club (opened in 1946) was one of the first minority-owned nightclubs in the United States. However, no stage in Baltimore was quite as important--or intimidating--as the one at the Royal Theatre. It produced one of the city's musical leaders in Rivers Chambers, who led the Royal's house band from 1930 to 1937. Blanche Calloway, one of the first female jazz bandleaders in the U.S., was also from Baltimore. The city also gave us Ethel Ennis, Elmer Snowden, and a great number of jazz saxophonists. Once the Left Bank Jazz Society was formed, the city attracted the likes of Duke Ellington and John Coltrane.

Doo-wop groups and soul also had hey days in Baltimore. A few decades later, other genres came onto the scene: New wave musicians Ric Ocasek and David Byrne, Frank Zappa, Tori Amos, Cass Elliot of The Mamas & The Papas, Adam Duritz (the vocalist for the Counting Crows) and other successful rock acts from the '70's and '80's are all from Baltimore. A lively hardcore punk scene grew, but was overshadowed by the one in nearby Washington, D.C. More recently, the Maryland city has given us Animal Collective, Beach House and Cass McCombs. The all-volunteer Baltimore Rock Opera Society adds another voice to the scene, reminding audiences of the city's rich classical heritage. The famous minimalist composer Phillip Glass hails from Baltimore, as do R&B/rap legends like Dru Hill, Mario and Tupac. (Like we said before--there is something for everyone.)

Attractions for the music-lover visiting Baltimore include a plaque marking the site of the now-defunct Royal Theater, and the statue of Billie Holiday that remains on Pennsylvania Avenue between Lafayette and Lanvale. Many of today's most popular nightclubs and live music venues can be found in the districts of Fells Point and Federal Hill. There are also six major concert halls in Baltimore. Be sure to see the Lyric Opera, modelled after the world-famous Gewandhaus in Leipzig, Germany. The Meyerhoff Symphony Hall (the permanent home for the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra) and the Kraushaar Auditorium at Goucher College, both designed by Pietro Belluschi, are other landmarks. Johns Hopkins University's Shriver Hall, the Peabody's Miriam A. Friedberg (the oldest concert venue still in use in Baltimore) and the Joseph Rebecca Meyerhoff Auditorium at the Baltimore Museum of Art (which routinely hosts concerts by the Baltimore Chamber Music Society) complete the list. The Society for the Preservation of American Roots Music and Jazz in Cool Places (which presents concerts in architecturally significant locations throughout the city) also work hard to keep the local music scene at its best.

Although the Baltimore Afro-American is no more, numerous papers and media sites have sprung up to take its place. Check the listings in The City Paper, The Baltimore Sun and Music Monthly, as well as the periodical distributed by the Baltimore Blues Society. For more information on Baltimore's music scene, check out Aural States (voted Best Local Music Blog of 2008) and Beatbots (Best Online Arts Community 2007.) Also keep checking back here with us at HillTop Records as we continue to bring you music news from around the country.

Great American Songwriters: Paul Simon

Perhaps best known for his contributions to the legendary duo Simon & Garfunkel, Paul Simon is actually the songwriter of the two. While that successful partnership catapulted him to global fame, Simon has also enjoyed a respectable solo career. The award-winning songwriter has collected 12 Grammys and a number of other impressive accolades. In 2006, he was selected as one of the "100 People Who Shaped the World" by Time magazine and the following year, he was named the first recipient of the Library of Congress' Gershwin Prize for Popular Song. And it all began in New Jersey in 1941, when Simon was born to professional musicians who undoubtedly passed their passion and talents down to him.

Paul Simon's father was a classically trained bass player and a first violinist on the main radio station of Budapest before he immigrated from Hungary. His mother, also Hungarian-born, was a private music tutor and elementary school teacher. Fellow songwriter and musician Donald Fagen (of Steely Dan) later described Simon's childhood as that of "a certain kind of New York Jew, almost a stereotype, really, to whom music and baseball are very important. I think it has to do with the parents. The parents are either immigrants or first generation Americans who felt like outsiders, and assimilation was the key thought — they gravitated to black music and baseball looking for an alternative culture." Simon, upon hearing Fagen's description, acknowledged that it "[wa]sn't far from the truth."

As fate would have it, Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel were both cast in their school's production of Alice in Wonderland when they were 11 years old. They immediately became friends, and began singing together (sometimes at school dances) when they were 13. The two boys idolized the Everly Brothers, and tried to imitate their use of close two-part harmony. Simon also looked up to legends like Woody Guthrie and Lead Belly while he wrote music, which he started doing when he was around 12 years old. His first song was called "The Girl for Me," and his father wrote out the words and chords by hand. That piece of paper became the first officially copyrighted Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel song, and it is now in the Library of Congress. By the time the boys were in their mid-teens, they had signed their first recording contract (with the Big Records label) and adopted the stage name Tom and Jerry. The first song they recorded under that name was "Hey, Schoolgirl", which reached Number 49 on the pop music charts. Simon and Garfunkel both took time off to earn university degrees, however, they both knew that they would return to music as soon as they were able.

Between 1957 and 1964, Simon wrote, recorded and released more than thirty songs. Some of these songs, including "That's My Story" and "Our Song," were collaborations with Garfunkel; others involved other partners, or were solo efforts by Simon. The singles were released on several minor record labels, and some (like, for example, "Motorcycle" sung by Tico and the Triumphs and "The Lone Teen Ranger" by Jerry Landis) enjoyed moderate success on the charts. The next highlight of Simon's musical career was in his early 20's, when he moved to England and started touring folk clubs and coffee houses. While there, he collected a number of musical influences--and he also recorded his solo LP, The Paul Simon Songbook. Among the many people he met in the UK were Kathy Chitty (who became his girlfriend and was the inspiration for "Kathy's Song" and "America") and Bruce Woodley of the Australian pop group The Seekers. Simon co-wrote several songs with Woodley: including "I Wish You Could Be Here", "Cloudy" and "Red Rubber Ball." Later, the American group The Cyrkle recorded a cover of "Red Rubber Ball" that reached the Number 2 spot in the U.S.

Simon and Garfunkel soon reunited, and landed a contract with Columbia Records. For the first time, they were encouraged to record under their real names (instead of "Tom and Jerry") and their first LP as such was Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. The 12-song album (with 5 of those songs written by Simon) initially flopped; however, East Coast radio stations began receiving requests for one of the tracks--Simon's "The Sounds of Silence." The duo's producer, Tom Wilson, overdubbed the original track with electric guitar, bass and drums, and then released it as a single. That single eventually climbed to the top of the American pop charts--and it is to this day regarded as one of Simon's best. The commercial success of "The Sounds of Silence" prompted Simon and Garfunkel to record four more influential albums together: Sounds of Silence; Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme; Bookends; and the hugely successful Bridge Over Troubled Water. The pair also contributed extensively to the soundtrack of The Graduate (1967), starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft. Simon wrote "Mrs. Robinson" specifically for the film.

Simon's musical career apart from Garfunkel has been just as impressive. After the pair split in 1970, Simon launched whole-heartedly into producing solo material. He released his eponymous album Paul Simon, along with the experimental Jamaican-inspired "Mother and Child Reunion." That first foray into reggae was one of the first by a white musician, and it was a hit in the U.K. and the U.S. The album was also well received, praised for its variety and confessional tone. After that came the pop-folk masterpiece There Goes Rhymin' Simon, released in 1973. The album contained "Kodachrome", "Loves Me Like a Rock", "American Tune" and "Something So Right". It was also released as a live album, Live Rhymin'. Still Crazy After All These Years (1975) was Simon's highly-anticipated follow-up album; it featured a darker mood than the songwriter was typically known for--and yet, it is still his only No. 1 album on the Billboard charts. It received a Grammy Award for Album of the Year, and Simon's performance also won for Best Male Pop Vocal. The album contains "50 Ways to Leave Your Lover," which is Simon's only No. 1 single to date.

The following decades brought even more success for Simon, and that success was in several different fields. He wrote music for the film Shampoo, and was cast in a role in Woody Allen's Annie Hall. His single "Slip Slidin' Away" (off the 1977 compilation album Greatest Hits, Etc.) reached the Number 5 spot. One Trick Pony, Simon's first album in almost five years, was released in 1980 to coincide with the release of the motion picture of the same name (which Simon wrote and starred in.) After that came Hearts and Bones, a confessional album that is widely considered to be one of his best. In the early '80's, Simon combined pop, a cappella, isicathamiya, rock, and mbaqanga sounds to create Graceland. He was then inspired by Brazilian music, and recorded The Rhythm of the Saints. One song from that album, "She Moves On", has a particularly interesting anecdote: Simon's ex-wife Carrie Fisher says in her autobiography Wishful Drinking that it is about her. She also wrote the line, "If you can get Paul Simon to write a song about you, do it. Because he is so brilliant at it."

Paul Simon still continues to perform, record and release music. He loves to experiment with genres and techniques from around the world, and often strays from his original American folk roots. In the 1990's, he wrote and produced a Broadway musical called The Capeman; he also played himself on the Disney Channel TV movie, Mother Goose Rock 'n' Rhyme. He has appeared on Saturday Night Live (SNL) a total of 13 times, and has performed everywhere from music festivals to the White House. Occasionally, Simon and Garfunkel reunite to record a single, perform a concert--or accept an award. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame together in 1990, and they jointly received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. When they got back together in 2004 to perform a free concert at the Colosseum in Rome, that concert drew 600,000 people.

You may be a fan of Simon & Garfunkel, or Paul Simon as a solo artist. Either way, you will surely agree that he is among the truly Great American Songwriters.

Meet the Viola

Bridging the sound gap between the violin and the cello, the viola is the "middle voice" of the violin family. In this family, it also takes on the role of the middle sibling, often overlooked and easily ridiculed. In an orchestra, no member is subjected to as much teasing and mocking as the violist:

How do you keep your violin from getting stolen?
- Put it in a viola case.

Why do violists stand for long periods outside people's houses?
- They can't find the key and they don't know when to come in.

What's the difference between a viola and an onion?
- No one cries when you cut up a viola.

There are dozens of these jokes--but why? Certainly, the viola serves a specific (and valid) purpose. And in fact, many of the great composers (including Beethoven, Bach and Mozart) preferred the viola to the violin when playing in ensembles. Joseph Haydn, Franz Schubert, Felix Mendelssohn and others chose to play the viola throughout history. However, it is true that very little virtuoso viola music was written before the twentieth century. This lack has obviously resulted in a lack of well-known viola virtuosi--and perhaps this explains the quickness with which the instrument is teased. The underdog of the instrumental world, the viola is more a team player than a leader. And while it may be too modest to show off on stage, we'd like to give the viola its moment in the spotlight.

In early orchestral music, the viola was most frequently used for filling in harmonies. It was rarely assigned any melodic material and when it was, the part was often in unison with the melody played by other strings. One famous exception to this is the Brandenburg Concerto No. 6 by J. S. Bach. The piece was scored for 2 violas, a cello, 2 violas da gamba, and continuo (in which the two violas were placed in the primary melodic role.) A few Baroque and Classical concerti were also written for the solo viola. Examples of major viola roles in orchestral music include the Enigma Variations by Edward Elgar and Richard Strauss' "Don Quixote" for solo cello and viola and orchestra.

Historically, the instrument has played a major role in chamber music. Mozart successfully liberated the viola from its traditional confines when he wrote his six string quintets (some of which are still considered to be his greatest works) for two violas. He also wrote for the viola in his Sinfonia Concertante, in which the solo viola and violin are equally important. A set of two duets for violin and viola and the Kegelstatt Trio (for viola, clarinet and piano) are other examples of Mozart's love for the viola. Another pioneer was the young Felix Mendelssohn, who wrote a little-known viola sonata in C minor in 1824. Brahms featured the viola prominently in his earliest works; in fact, his sextets for strings Op. 18 and Op. 36 contain what amounts to solo parts for both violas. Antonín Dvořák played the viola, and even reportedly called it his favorite instrument. Bedřich Smetana, another advocate, included a significant part for the instrument in his quartet "From My Life."

After Dvořák and others paved the way, more 20th-century composers began to write for the viola. Many were inspired by specialized soloists like Lionel Tertis, whose skills on the viola prompted Arthur Bliss, Benjamin Dale and others to compose specially for him. Popular viola concertos were written by William Walton, Bohuslav Martinů and Béla Bartók. Paul Hindemith typically performed the premieres of his own viola works. Rebecca Clarke, Ernest Bloch and Revol Bunin were other great composers who were inspired by the viola. Much more recently, the viola has appeared in contemporary popular music (check out 10,000 Maniacs or John Cale of The Velvet Underground, who plays the electric viola) as well as jazz and folk. Notable folk violists include Eliza Carthy, Mary Ramsey, Helen Bell, and Nancy Kerr. Great spectral composers have also loved the instrument for its lower overtone partials.

While the viola is similar in material and construction to the violin, it is easily distinguished for its larger size. A full-size viola's body is usually between 1 and 4 inches longer than the body of a full-size violin, with an average length of 16 inches. Hermann Ritter's version, the 'viola alta,' was created for use in Wagner's operas; it measured about 18.9 inches long. Meanwhile, the Tertis model was built with wider bouts and deeper ribs to promote a better tone. More recent additions to the mix include the Otto Erdesz 'cutaway' viola, the 'Oak Leaf' viola, five-stringed violas, viol-shaped violas like Joseph Curtin's 'Evia' model, vertical violas that are played like cellos, and the beautiful Dalí-esque models by Bernard Sabatier. These 'non-standard' violas are still used today. However, most composers write for a traditional-sized viola--and changes in size or shape result in changes in tone, which can have unintended consequences upon the balance in an ensemble. Thus, ergonomics vs. sound is a topic of constant discussion within the viola-making community. For centuries, viola makers have experimented with the size and shape to make a lighter and less cumbersome version while also keeping the sound box large enough to create an unmistakable 'viola sound.' This period of trial and error still continues--and so unlike the violin, the viola does not have a standard full size.

Other key features that serve to differentiate the viola from the violin: The viola tends to have heavier strings, and its bow has a wider band of horsehair. The four strings of the viola are normally tuned in fifths, exactly one fifth below the violin and an octave above the cello. Music written for the viola differs from that of other instruments because the viola primarily uses alto clef, which is otherwise rarely used. When substantial sections of a composition are written in a higher register, the viola employs the treble clef.

In 2006, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music launched The Viola Project. Led by Professor of Viola Jodi Levitz, the program was designed to sing the praises of the violin family's unsung hero. There have been other recent attempts at re-introducing (or introducing for the first time) the viola to the public eye. To learn more about the viola and the musicians and composers who have loved it, check out www.viola-in-music.com. And be sure to keep checking back with us at HillTop Records, as we continue to profile instruments of interest!

The Best Halloween Music Festivals 2011

It may not have well-known carols or organized sing-alongs, but Halloween is a holiday filled with music: Haunted houses use spooky songs to help set the mood, and beloved anthems like Michael Jackson's "Thriller" are played over and over on the radio. There are also many great music festivals this time of year; they range from family-friendly events to adults-only affairs. So if you've already got your costume together but are still looking for something to do this Halloween weekend, consider one of these exciting events. Some are scary; some are not. But they are all sure to be filled with fantastic music.

The Voodoo Music Experience - New Orleans, Louisiana
For three days, the City Park area of New Orleans is taken over by the Voodoo Music Experience. For years, the annual music festival has been drawing gigantic crowds to several main stages and a variety of other tents. Traditionally, the festival grounds--located adjacent to the New Orleans Museum of Art--are divided into three sections: "Le Ritual" features world-famous acts on two main stages, "Flambeau" is dedicated to celebrating New Orleans' unique music culture (be sure to check out the local and international acts in the Preservation Hall tent and on the WWOZ stage) and "Le Carnival" highlights the city's underground arts. Blink-182, Snoop Dogg, Soundgarden, Girl Talk, My Chemical Romance, and other major headliners make this the largest Halloween music festival in the country.

Moogfest - Asheville, North Carolina
An annual ode to all things electronic music, Moogfest continues to grow bigger and bigger each year. This Halloween weekend, the line-up will be truly impressive: the Flaming Lips, Passion Pit, TV on the Radio, Chromeo, Moby, Tangerine Dream, Crystal Castles and more make this three-day concert's tickets the hottest in town. Along with multiple stages and a variety of vendors, this year's Moogfest will be featuring an innovative art installation: 77 Million Paintings by Brian Eno, widely considered the godfather of modern ambient music. Originally conceived as "visual music," the multi-media configurations will be shown in the YMI Cultural Center in downtown Asheville.

The Hangtown Halloween Ball - Placerville, California
The El Dorado County Fairgrounds will soon be magically transformed into a spooky, Halloween-themed world. Visitors are invited to set up camp (literally!) and enjoy great food, beer, wine--and live music. Railroad Earth will be performing for two nights, and other internationally acclaimed acts will be hitting the stage as well. The line-up for 2011 includes Ozomatli, the Funky Meters, 7 Walkers, Elephant Revival, and more. Another highlight of the three-day festival is the Epic late-night hall that can accommodate up to 2,000 partiers--in costume, of course!

HARD Haunted Mansion - Los Angeles, California
It may not really be haunted and it may not really be held in a mansion, but HARD is definitely one of the country's biggest Halloween parties. This year, the music festival will be held in the Shrine Expo Hall in downtown L.A. and it will feature the musical stylings of Fatboy Slim, Major Lazer, Rusko, and other world-famous DJ's and bands. Halloween costumes are not required; however, if you opt out, you will surely be in the minority.

The Great Harvestival - Chico, California
The picturesque Concow Campgrounds are actually located about 30 minutes from the city, against the stunning Sierra Nevada Mountains. This year, the environment will act as the setting for the Great Harvestival, a new event formed to take the place of two festivals on hiatus this year: Bobolink and Las Tortugas. The Great Harvestival will combine elements from both events and feature fantastic live music (by the likes of Hot Buttered Rum, New Monsoon, and Isabella) in a family-friendly atmosphere. The music festival will also have themed camps (including Margaritaville) as well as costume parties, workshops, food and drink vendors, and even free late-night shows.

No matter which part of the country you're in, you are sure to find fun things to do this Halloween. And as 2011 eventually comes to a close, there are bound to be fantastic holiday-themed music festivals near you! Keep checking back in with us here at HillTop Records, as we do our best to keep you updated and in-the-know!

Great American Songwriters: T-Bone Burnett

His birth name may be Joseph Henry Burnett, but most people know him as T-Bone Burnett. The award-winning songwriter, musician and record producer has been a major player in the music industry for over forty years. His songs have been covered by everyone from Los Lobos to k.d. lang, and he has won Grammy and Academy Awards for his movie soundtracks. No, you probably won't see his face on the cover of Rolling Stone Magazine anytime soon. However, T-Bone Burnett has been helping to shape American music from behind the scenes for quite some time now. He has definitely earned a spot on our HillTop Records list of Great American Songwriters.

Born in St. Louis and raised in Fort Worth, T-Bone began his songwriting career at an early age. He wrote and produced 4 of the 11 tracks on The Unwritten Works of Geoffrey, Etc. as part of the pseudonymous Whistler, Chaucer, Detroit and Greenhill. The album was released under Uni Records in 1968--when Burnett was just 20 years old. That same year, he also produced a collection of 6 songs for a group of friends. At the time, the group called themselves The Case Hardy Boys. They would eventually move to Los Angeles and become known as The Fare, and then as El Roacho. T-Bone himself moved to L.A. in 1972, and recorded his second album that same year. Soon afterwards, he landed a gig as a guitarist for Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. Once the tour ended, he and two other members of Dylan's band (Steven Soles and David Mansfield) formed The Alpha Band and released three albums: The Alpha Band and Spark in the Dark in 1977, and The Statue Makers of Hollywood in 1978.

Burnett released his first post-Alpha Band solo album, Truth Decay, in 1980. It was produced by Takoma Records, and its roots rock tracks were categorized by the Rolling Stone Record Guide as "mystic Christian blues." Two years later, his album Trap Door (released by Warner Brothers in 1982) gave T-Bone Burnett his first commercial hit: "I Wish You Could Have Seen Her Dance." Burnett toured after the release of that album, opening several dates for The Who. He then released a series of albums that were all critically acclaimed but not hugely successful commercially. The song "When the Night Falls" off Proof Through the Night (1983) got some airplay, but it was becoming apparent that T-Bone Burnett would not make his biggest contributions to the music industry as a solo artist. To this day, he is best known as a songwriter and producer--and for good reason.

In 1985, T-Bone collaborated with Elvis Costello on "The People's Limousine." Around the same time, he began producing music for some of the most promising and successful artists of that time period: His obvious talents went into Counting Crows' August and Everything After, Los Lobos' How Will the Wolf Survive, the Wallflowers' Bringing Down the Horse, Elvis Costello's King of America and Spike, Spinal Tap's Break Like The Wind, Gillian Welch's Revival and Hell Among the Yearlings, the Roy Orbison tribute A Black & White Night Live as well as the artist's two-record In Dreams: The Greatest Hits, and almost everything by Sam Phillips (Burnett's former wife.)

In 1997, Burnett returned to songwriting in a major way when he composed the original music for Sam Shepard's play The Tooth of Crime: Second Dance. A CD of those songs, featuring guitarist Marc Ribot and vocals by Sam Phillips and singer/songwriter David Poe, was released in 2008. In 2006, he began his first concert tour in nearly two decades in Chicago at The Vic Theater. He was also busy producing albums, like The Story by Brandi Carlile and (most notably) Thunderbird by jazz singer Cassandra Wilson. Burnett produced that entire album, wrote one of the songs, and co-wrote another with Ethan Coen. One of his two Grammy nominations the following year was for Producer of the Year for his work on Thunderbird as well as on the soundtrack to Walk the Line and his own The True False Identity. His other nomination was for his efforts as Executive Music Producer and Album Producer on the Walk the Line soundtrack, which was also nominated for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.

Burnett won a Grammy for 2007's Raising Sand, a collaborative album featuring Alison Krauss and Robert Plant that he produced. He also plays guitar on 10 of the 13 tracks. The year following that release, Burnett finally gave a reason for why he had essentially retired from the music business in the mid-1990's to pursue opportunities in theater and film: He had grown dissatisfied with the quality of music processing, during a time when others were beginning to favor brighter and more compressed sound. In 2008, he began a new venture called Code, a new audio format that was created "to do for music what THX did for movie-theater sound: set standards that ensure the best possible quality." Code involves the simultaneous release of multiple sound formats, thus avoiding much of the processing which takes place when sound is converted from one format to another. The first Code album was released on July 15, 2008. It was John Cougar Mellencamp's Life, Death, Love and Freedom, produced by T-Bone Burnett. Burnett also produced the follow-up to that album, No Better Than This.

What makes T-Bone Burnett's still-evolving career so fascinating is its variety. Not one to stick to one title or occupation, Burnett shifts among multiple roles with ease and frequency. He will often write or co-write a song for an album he is producing, or even lend his guitar-playing abilities. He co-wrote "Sulfur to Sugarcane" on Elvis Costello's Secret, Profane & Sugarcane (an album that he produced) and he collaborated with Elton John and Leon Russell on 2010's The Union. Most recently, he has been working with Lisa Marie Presley on her latest album.

T-Bone's contributions to the silver screen are equally impressive. In fact, much of Burnett's most celebrated work has been for film and TV. He wrote songs with River Phoenix for The Thing Called Love (1992) and even acted as the vocal coach for Samantha Mathis. He produced music for the remake of the film All the King's Men, wrote several songs ("I Wish My Baby Was Born", "Like a Songbird That Has Fallen" and "Scarlet Tide") for Cold Mountain, collaborated on music for Crazy Heart (he won a Golden Globe, an Academy Award and a Grammy for "The Weary Kind", which he composed with Ryan Bingham) and composed the score for Don't Come Knocking. He also wrote the score and produced the soundtrack for O Brother, Where Art Thou? That soundtrack--an award-winning mix of traditional American folk music, blues and bluegrass--garnered numerous industry awards and sold over seven million copies.

Although T-Bone Burnett always seems to be wearing more than one hat, he is at his core a songwriter. In 2006, he released two albums: The True False Identity (his first album of new songs since 1992) and Twenty Twenty - The Essential T-Bone Burnett, a 40-song career retrospective. Whether you have learned to love his music listening to an album or sitting in a movie theater, we are sure you will agree that he is among the Great American Songwriters. We know that he has served as an inspiration for many HillTop Records songwriters.