Hello!

Just last week while my mom was cooking dinner I was doing my homework, which is a normal routine for us. My mom usually puts on BB King radio on Pandora which we both really enjoy. A song came on that really hooked me, and I immediately smiled and just listened. This song was "Angelina" by Keb' Mo'.

I loved everything about this song, the lyrics, the upbeat tempo, and the amazing guitar work. I found this video by the youtube user Pedro Guimaraes that I believe most of you will enjoy.

"Angelina" Keb' Mo'

Thank you for reading and I wish you all the best!

Hello again! I just wanted to make a quick blog post to share an amazing video I found today. 

As I do my homework in the evenings I usually listen to music that soothes and relaxes me. My playlist on Spotify mainly consists of Ed Sheeran, Corinne Bailey Rae, Claude Debussy, Adele, Amy Winehouse, Justin Nozuka, and John Mayer. Earlier this week I heard "Neon" by John Mayer, and the intro hooked me; I have to admit that I got really excited over this song. How had I not heard this before?!

In an attempt to also progress in my guitar playing I frequently look up live shows of my favorite artists and focus on the guitar. After hearing "Neon" I looked up a live video and came upon this one by the user Paul Kellerman. I just had to share it because this has changed my life. 

John Mayer - Neon (Live in LA - 1080 p)

Thank you for reading and good luck!

How to: Compose an original song

Hello again! I am back to share my insight on writing songs. And before you begin to wonder, no, I am not a very experienced or formal song writer; I just go with the flow and follow my own inspiration. Now, down the fun stuff... songwriting!

There isn't a step by step process of writing a song; you should follow your inspiration and let the words and music flow through your mind and body. If you find that your creation feels too technical, try opening the wells of your mind, listen, and be patient.

To begin, I usually encounter or experience something that instantly generates a flow of poetry in my mind, whether that be new life (like my baby cousin), nature, or anything that makes me feel a wave of emotion.

All of these images are moments captured by my amateur hand when I felt a surge of emotional energy. Moments like these should be a huge inspiration in songwriting/poetry.

Letting the flow of poetry take over is a key step in writing an amazing song, but you also need to have control over your creativity. Adding a musical instrument to poetry makes a song come to life. In my opinion, a song is most easily put to piano. By learning the key signatures and chord scales, you can easily create melodies and tunes that will coincide with your poetry. 

http://www.piano-keyboard-guide.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/key_signatures_chart.gif

http://www.bandcoach.org/KSC/ScalesMain72dpi.png

 A final step in songwriting is to have fun and let loose. You should always channel emotion into creativity, and when you feel frustrated, tired, sad, joyful, or any other feeling, it is best put into poetry and music. I have a journal in which I document the innermost workings of the poet and musician in my head. When a melody or line of poetry comes along, I take hold of it and immediately write it down. 

I hope you enjoyed my interpretation of songwriting! I find inspiration in everyday life, and the beauty of life itself is enough to make me feel gratitude and joy. After reading this post, go outside, take a breath of fresh air, and promise yourself to be an inspired, grateful, and humble soul. A beautiful song may be on the horizon once you reach a nice state of mind.

Thank you for reading and good luck!

Hello again!

It has been quite a while since I have posted an update, but I'm back. I have changed so much over this past summer, I might even be a whole new person. My eyes have opened to a whole new light on so many things, especially in music. With a fresh, new mindset, I welcome you to my music blog.

For those of you who don't know, my name is Ariana Licea, and I am a teenager currently living in Northern California. I have a love and passion for music, but then again, I believe everyone is a music lover. I have enjoyed playing piano for about six years, and I have just recently picked up the guitar (which I absolutely love). I have also loved to sing ever since I was able to hum and articulate words. 

Growing up, I didn't really show much promise to be a music enthusiast, but as I grew, I fell in love with the feeling that music gives me; the chills I get when I touch my piano, the flood in my body when I sing, and the deep affection I hold for music inspires me almost every day. 

I also have a love for poetry, and the combination of my two loves has yet to marry completely, but I still find myself creating little poems and singing them in my mind. I like to display an almost brutal candor in my poetry, and I like to comment on my generation's misconception of reality. 

I hope that you enjoyed reading my blog post! I will be blogging more this year about the music that I love and what inspires me to write poetry. Thank you for reading!

Hill, Allen. Jazz Was: Piano. n.d. n.i. allanhill. web. 23 September 2015. 

From my experience with music, (which has been all of my life) I've noticed that there are so many genres and new songs being released constantly. I, like most people, have an eclectic music taste, mine ranging from old school, alternative, indie, and whatever Ed Sheeran is (folk, rap, rock, acoustic, and many more). Ed's Music

According to many psychologists, (one being Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, a professor of Business Psychology at UCLA and NYU)  the type of music that you enjoy is tied to your personality traits. If you are a happy person, you would most likely enjoy happy upbeat music. In contrast, if you are a quiet and reserved person, you might like heartfelt, slow and meaningful music. Tomas states "aggressive people like Heavy Metal, clever people like Jazz and Classical, rebellious people like Hip Hop and Rock" (Chamorro-Premuzic). 



This is the brain on music. As you can see in some of the diagrams in this picture, memories, behavior, expression, and decision making are all aspects of personality that are a part of musical preference.

 
I hope that you enjoyed this little blog that isn't really a "how-to" but just something that I did a little research on recently that I thought was interesting.


Although this research is pretty conclusive, it's fairly general and doesn't apply to everyone. As I said before, I have a variety of genres of music that I really enjoy, and I know that many of you that read this do too. Thank you for reading!

Because of Zayn's departure in One Direction, I am dedicating a blog to the golden boy. Here is the URL for 18, my favorite song on Four. These sad days will pass soon, I promise my fellow fans. :)

Happy New Year!

I am very excited to have yet again experienced another turn of the year, and of course I can't wait to experience new music this year.

As most people do, I have decided to make a resolution for this year. In 2015 I hope to take the poetry I write and the melodic notes that float through my brain and create something worth creating... a song!

This is my lyric/poetry/idea journal. I have yet written a proper song, but I hope that I can combine different elements of my journal to create something that I am really proud of.

I hope that this post inspired you to make a New Year resolution or create any type of song or poetry. I can't wait to see what the New Year brings in the music world. I hope you have a very happy New Year and a fresh start on anything you want to accomplish.