The Playground
The Simply Music blog
Gordon is a busy father of two, musician and Simply Music stalwart from Melbourne, Australia. He is a composer and performer of eclectic music with his band Aquiline, a Simply Music Master Teacher, member of the Simply Music Council, blogger and tireless contributor to The Playground, long-time friend of Neil Moore, and even longer-time music tragic.
The Great Courses: Creativity & Your Brain
The Great Courses: Creativity & Your Brain I’ve been a fan of The Great Courses for a long time. Typically designed as packages of ‘lectures’ that might mirror a semester of university study, these comprehensive courses cover topics as varied as your imagination. In my…
12 Notes by Quincy Jones [Book Review]
Quincy Jones may well be music’s all-time greatest multitalent. From jazz trumpeter to band leader to arranger for the likes of Frank Sinatra, conductor, composer, Broadway and Academy Awards director, producer for the likes of Michael Jackson, record company executive, impresario, educator, activist and more,…
How 2 songs became 1: Londonderry Air & Danny Boy
As most of us could agree Danny Boy is a legendary musical piece, possibly one of the most famous songs in the world. It is synonomous with all things Ireland and has made its way to being an unofficial Irish national song. But did you…
This Dream of You – Diana Krall [Album Review]
Think of the word “jazz” and chances are you’ll picture something like a smoky bar with a small group of guys hunched intensely over their instruments. Or perhaps a concert hall with an ensemble of tuxedo-clad men swinging through Tin Pan Alley standards. What you…
Mr Bojangles – Story (and Study) of a Song
Jerry Jeff Walker, who passed away recently at the age of 78, is remembered as one of the artists who brought country music out of the backwoods and into the mainstream. He was very prolific but he will always be remembered for one song: Mr…
Story of a Song – The Lion Sleeps Tonight
Music, like most art, is not as original as it may seem. With the new CGI animated Lion King coming to cinemas this summer, what better time to look at the creation and history of a timeless song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight? Join us as…
Wishing you a HAPPY PIANO DAY, every day!
Piano lovers, it’s that special International Piano Day time of year again! We have celebrated Piano Day in many ways in the past with shared lists of unusual pianos, collections of all things piano and more. This year, to commemorate our favorite mechanical friend, we…
Learn to Love Jazz
Next time you’re with a group of people who are at all interested in music, insert the word “jazz” into the conversation and observe how they respond. For every person who pricks up their ears, there will probably be a half-dozen who roll their eyes.…
Study of a Song – How to Make Gravy
Although he’s spent quite a lot of time in the USA and elsewhere, Paul Kelly is not necessarily a household name worldwide. Here in his native Australia, this everyman poet is an unofficial Living National Treasure, one of our most loved musicians, for his unforgettable…
You & Your Piano: Digital or Acoustic
This is the first in a series of articles designed to help you choose and care for your piano. Here at Simply Music, we’re not too precious. When it comes to your choice of instrument, many teachers will insist on beginning on a good-quality acoustic…
