There are few cartoons that have as strong a musical component as the Peanuts. You may not know the name Vince Guarladi or the song’s title “ Linus and Lucy ” but chances are you know the song. It is upbeat and perhaps in your mind’s eye you can see The Peanuts gang dancing to it, jumping and moving their head side from side to side. In so many ways it is difficult to separate the song from the animated characters, especially this time of the year when “A Charlie Brown Christ

Smule advertises their popular app Sing! as a “ Global Karaoke Party ,” which captures the way this app connects people across the world.  This is a wonderful concept that gives anyone the opportunity to sing with others, anytime, without leaving their house.  Singers can sing solos, duets, or group songs.  We like that this app encourages people to make music, and makes it a social experience as well. Often in our culture, we are encouraged not to sing by our family or peers

Thanksgiving is fast approaching and we’re sure you’ve planned the meal, delegated cooking assignments and decorated your table. But have...

Arts organizations and music educators — including us —  have lauded the benefits of music education for several years. It appears that...

This comedy duo from Great Britain combines their incredible concert musician skills with a sense of humor, creating an amazing and impressive routine that makes classical music more accessible to audiences while entertaining the heck out of them.  This video is just an exceptional, amazing performance that personally makes me (Charissa) so happy!  Please make sure to watch it to the end because each segment gets bigger and more ridiculous.  Just when you think they can’t t

Veterans Day is a special day in which we honor the men and women who served in war. There are many ways to remember their sacrifices but...

Nick Pitera belts out high notes that would make Adele proud and Lady Gaga drool. He has been a YouTube sensation for several years, singing both the male and female roles for Broadway musicals and Disney cartoons and, in the process, has amassed fans without being a signed artist. His ability to reach the C5 octave has even caused chatter online with people wondering if his videos are altered. His singing is real and he’s not alone. Pitera is part of a small group of male

They’ve seen the worst of atrocities fighting in a war and returned home after enduring life-changing injuries. Now, they’re moving on...

This is a neat example of overtone singing – a special vocal placement that allows a singer to create a note that actually has a higher 2nd pitch, which is voiced simultaneously with the lower note.  When you listen to it – make sure to listen carefully for the higher note to hear the melody – the lower note never changes.  In this example, the singer, Yuichi Tuba, creates a lower note that stays constant, and then manipulates his inner mouth shape to change the higher note

Daria van den Bercken loves classical music and will do just about anything to make sure you like it too. She has played the music of George Frideric Handel in the air, hoisted 25 feet above fans in Brazil. She’s played in parks and banks in Amsterdam. She has even invited strangers into her apartment to listen to Handel in an intimate setting. Why? Well, Bercken is inspired by Handel’s music. During a TED Talks presentation the musician said she felt “pure, unprejudiced am

Happy Autumn! For us, autumn makes us think of the smells of baked pumpkin and warm apple cider and the sights of dark nights and wind blowing through trees. But what does fall sound like? There are no shortage of online playlists focused on this season. You can listen to some here: Hook and Harmony Track Fall Playlist We think, however, that autumn belongs to Antonio Vivaldi, the Italian baroque composer who penned the wildly successful “The Four Seasons.” The violin concert

Ellen DeGeneres had 7-year-old Elias Phoenix on her show back in January 2014, in one of the best interviews a 7-year-old has ever given.  Even Ellen, after the interview, tweeted “Just finished taping 1 of the most memorable interviews I’ve ever done, with a 7-yr-old. Airs tomorrow. You have to see it to believe it.” I would agree that this is one of the most memorable interviews Ellen has done. Elias is totally comfortable on stage – he doesn’t seem to be intimidated at al

Sometimes the best music can happen inside a concert hall. And other times the best musical moments are unplanned. That’s what happened recently in Texas when an aspiring musician strumming his guitar outside a grocery store was joined by two strangers. A third stranger recorded their impromptu session and posted it on YouTube and Facebook. The rest is Internet history. The video has since gone viral, boosting the popularity of the three men so much that they  were flown to

This is six-year-old Emily Bear’s first performance on the Ellen show , where she shows off her range as a pianist from classical to ragtime – all pieces extremely advanced for even a 10-year-old, much less at age 6.  This child has studied for only a year and three months, learning pieces that are at least high school-level repertoire for most piano students.  Emily’s compositions are also very impressive. Emily started at age four, which is the earliest age for piano lesson

After an adorable YouTube video went viral showing little 3-year-old Dustin was upset that he couldn’t sing a Nicky Minaj song because of the “bad” words, Ellen invites him to sing the “clean” version of his song on her show.  It is impressive that a 3yo has the language skills to keep up with a song with so many words.  He seems to have a sophisticated understanding of our culture and how to express himself – saying in his original video that he would like to sing the clean

Sometimes the power of music can transcend a person from time and place and make him forget about all the worries and fears happening in...

We were watching an LA Philharmonic performance thanks to this blog post when a young child came up to us and asked about Gustavo...

LINK: Carly Rose Sonenclar - Stole My Heart Carly Rose Sonenclar , now age 23, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. In December 2012, she became the runner-up on the second season of the U.S.version of The X Factor. Carly started singing at the age of two. Carly made her Broadway debut at the age of seven in Les Miserables as Young Cosette (singing “Castle on a Cloud”).  She made her television debut as Gilda Flip in Season three of The Electric Company.  Screen cr

Science has proven what those of us who have begrudgingly hit the treadmill at 5 a.m. know – music can maximize your workout. Researchers...

We may take it for granted now but the speed in which we get answers on the Internet happens at an astoundingly fast pace. Google even...