2 . What’s On?

Electric Underground

7.30pm－1.00am   Free at the Cyclops Theatre

Do you know who’s playing in your area? We’re bringing you an evening of live rock and pop music from the best local bands. Are you interested in becoming a musician and getting a recording contract? If so, come early to the talk at 7.30 pm by Jules Skye, a successful record producer. He’s going to talk about how you can find the right person to produce your music.

Gee Whizz

8.30pm-10.30pm   Comedy (喜剧)at Kaleidoscope

Come and see Gee Whizz perform. He’s the funniest stand-up comedian on the comedy scene. This joyful show will please everyone, from the youngest to the oldest. Gee Whizz really knows how to make you laugh! Our bar is open from 7.00pm for drinks and snacks(快餐).

Simon’s Workshop

5.00pm-7.30pm   Wednesdays at Victoria Stage

This is a good chance for anyone who wants to learn how to do comedy. The workshop looks at every kind of comedy, and practices many different ways of making people laugh. Simon is a comedian and actor who has 10 years’ experience of teaching comedy. His workshops are exciting and fun. An evening with Simon will give you the confidence to be funny.

Charlotte Stone

8.00pm-11.00pm     Pizza World

Fine food with beautiful jazz music; this is a great evening out. Charlotte Stone will perform songs from her new best-selling CD, with James Pickering on the piano. The menu is Italian, with excellent meat and fresh fish, pizzas and pasta(面食). Book early to get a table. Our bar is open all day, and serves cocktails, coffee, beer, and white wine.

3 . While you are online there are plenty of perfectly legal sites where you can listen to music for free. This gives you the chance to listen to music before buying it, discover new music, and create great online playlists that you can share with others.

The Sixty One

The Sixty One is devoted to showcasing obscure (模糊的) or unknown artists of all genres (体裁). There is a range of musical styles from classical to rock and roll, folk to jazz, and everything in between. Don’t expect to find big name musicians on here; you are more likely to find the musicians playing at local coffee shops than bands you hear on the radio. You can find fantastic music that you never would have heard of otherwise.

Pow Wow

Pow Wows are the Native American people’s way of meeting together, to join in dancing, singing, visiting, renewing old friendships, and making new ones. This is a time method to renew Native American culture and preserve the rich heritage of American Indians. PowWows.com has 2 online radio stations that play Native American Music 24/7 free! Here you can listen to your favorite artist and drum groups on your computer or mobile device and add your music to our station.

Playlist

Playlist has an enormous library, so you can create playlists with almost any musician you can think of. They have both some less known artists and big names, so you have a really good selection. The worst part: Due to licensing laws, many of the songs on Playlist are now restricted, to certain countries. So unless you live inside the US, it is likely that you might not be able to find all of your favorite songs.

Pandora

Pandora is an intelligent Internet radio site. Basically, as you listen, you can give each song thumbs up or thumbs down. You can create your own radio station that only plays music you like. The best part: It listens to your opinion, so that after a while it’s only playing music you like, but the list is always changing and expanding.

My Space

Combine a major social networking site with thousands of artists around the world. Each musician has their own page, which normally has a playlist of several of their songs. But it has a huge range of musicians ranging from huge stars to the up-and-coming, and you can listen to the music and interact with the rest of the page.

4 . On November 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman, the world famous violinist, came on stage to give a concert at Lincoln Centre in New York City. If you have ever been to a Perlman concert you know that getting on stage is not easy for him. He got polio (小儿麻痹症) as a child, and has to walk with the aid of two crutches (拐杖) now.

That night Perlman walked slowly to his chair. Then he sat down and began to play. But, suddenly, one of the strings on his violin broke. You could hear it break — it broke with a loud noise.

People thought to themselves, “He would have to get up to either find another violin or find another string for this one.”

But he didn’t. Instead, he waited a moment closed his eyes and then signaled the conductor to begin again. The orchestra (管弦乐队) began, and he played from where he had stopped. He played with such passion and such power.

Of course, everyone knows that it is impossible to play a symphonic work with just three strings. But that night Itzhak Perlm refused to know that. You could see him changing and recomposing (重新作曲) the piece in his head.

When he finished, there was a silence in the room. Then people rose and cheered. We were all on our feet, doing everything we could to show how much we appreciated what he had done.

He smiled and then he said in a quiet tone, “You know, sometimes it is the artist’s task to find out how much music you can make with what you have left.”

His words have stayed in my mind ever since I heard them. That is also the way of life. Perhaps our task in this quickly changing world in which we live is to make music, at first with all that we have, and then, when that is no longer possible, to make music with what we have left.

5 . Do you love music? If you are a music lover, there are some music festivals for you to learn about.

Strawberry Music Festival

Held at the most beautiful fairgrounds (露天广场) in California, Strawberry Music Festival takes over the Nevada County Fairgrounds every Memorial Day (美国阵亡将士纪念日) for four days of family run. This park, which is set in the Sierra Nevada foothills (山麓小丘), offers the perfect environment for camping and performances by some of the top artists. The festival also offers children’s programmes, workshops and activities for all ages.

Tree Town Music Festival

You don’t have to be in the Southwest or in Texas to enjoy yourself in the country lifestyle. Country living can be found all over the United States. Tree Town Music Festival in Forest City, Iowa, is a great example of country fun in the Midwest. Tree Town Music Festival features camping and live music from some of the biggest names in modern countries.

Tampa Bay Indian Music & Dance Festival

This festival shows respect for the traditions of India and its people. Food, music and performances are top attractions and display the Indian tradition proudly. Yoga fans can catch a relaxing practice. This experience of Indian culture is fun for all ages.

SXSW Music Festival

The SXSW Music Festival is a world-wide music event taking place every March in Austin, Texas. Each year the SXSW Music Festival hosts a wonderful mix of artists performing in clubs, parks, hotels and more in Austin, Texas.