| High fidelity takes backseat to portability
SAN FRANCISCO, California (AP) -- Music lovers remember a familiar advertising image from the past: a man reclined in a chair, head back, blown away by music from his high-fidelity sound system. Like the Marlboro Man before him, Maxell's pitchman is now a relic. With their ability to store vast libraries of music in your pocket, sleek digital music players have replaced bulky home stereo systems as the music gear of choice. But the sound quality of digital audio files is noticeably inferior to that of compact discs and even vinyl. Are these the final days of hi-fi sound? Judging by the 2 billion songs downloaded from Apple Inc.'s iTunes service, the ubiquity of white iPod "ear buds," and the hundreds of thousands of folks file-sharing for free, the answer is yes.
Meister celebrates 85 years of music
In a shadowy back room, Jack Meister holds a saxophone in his hands. The bright brass glows with a brilliant luster in the low light.This year marks the 85th year that Meister Music has been in business in Keokuk. A sign in the window cheekily offers “Easy Credit Terms: Half Down and the Rest Right Away!" to promote the anniversary celebration. Inside, among the guitars and digital pianos, there are hats and pens that proclaim equal excitement upon reaching 85 years. Founder George J. Meister started the business primarily as a piano store. Meister was a piano tuner, having trained with a trade and craft union. In those days one learned technique from unions, that being the best way to ensure job security. The unions were the sole owners and purveyors of their trade-related information.The pianos were brought to Keokuk by train.“They loaded those pianos, those 800-pound pianos, into horse-drawn wagons to bring them up to the store on Main," said Meister.Meister Music sold Baldwin pianos, one of the more popular manufacturer of pianos in the early 18th century.
MySpace helps public follow 2008 election
MySpace is breaking out with a new feature: MySpace Impact. MySpace Impact follows the 2008 presidential campaign and contains links to the personal profiles of 12 candidates. Featured on the site are Democrats Joe Biden, Hilary Clinton, Chris Dodd, John Edwards, Dennis Kucinich, Barack Obama and Bill Richardson. There are also Republicans Rudy Giuliani, Duncan Hunter, John McCain, Ron Paul and Mitt Romney. Each site layout is similar to a typical MySpace page with an About Me section, a contact area and even an area to leave comments for the presidential hopefuls. Political issues, viewpoints of the candidates and detailed background information are addressed on most of the profiles. Personal videos are also found on many of the candidates pages. Well, its certainly a way of reaching a mass audience, junior Laura Craft, said.
Napster makes more music
Los Angeles - Online music retailer Napster Inc said on Friday it is teaming up with electronics retail chain Circuit City Stores Inc to launch a new digital music service. The co-branded service, called Circuit City + Napster, will be powered by Los Angeles-based Napster's subscription service, but will offer some exclusive tracks on a weekly basis not available to Napster users. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Unlimited access to the service costs $14.95 (about R105) a month. New subscribers will receive the first month of access free and five free song downloads. Individual song downloads can be purchased for 99 cents each. Prepaid download cards will also be available in-store and online in bundles of 15, 25 or 60 tracks. Individuals can sign up for the service beginning April 29.
LOHAN WAS SECOND PARENT DURING TOUGH CHILDHOOD
LINDSAY LOHAN was forced to intervene in fights between her parents as a child and acted as a "second parent" to her three siblings. The Mean Girls star witnessed many angry rows between her mother Dina and father Michael in the family home, but as the eldest of four children, felt it was her duty to protect her brothers Michael and Dakota, and younger sister Ali. She says, "I feel like a second parent in the sense that I helped raise my family. When my friends and family are around me, I feel like they're safe. No matter what happens, we're going to be fine." The star's estranged father was released from a New York state prison last month (Mar07) after serving almost two years for driving while intoxicated, among other charges.
19/04/2007 12:52
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LINDSAY LOHAN
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Gigya Launches Free Auto-Posting Tool to Boost Virality of Website ...
PALO ALTO, Calif., April 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Gigya, the leading provider of social-sharing tools, today announced the release of Wildfire, a free, powerful tool for content websites that enables the one-click posting of content to social networks and blogs such as MySpace or Xanga. Wildfire's one-click posting functionality lets users share content such as videos, slide shows, music, games, and widgets without leaving the content provider's site, replacing the clumsy copy/paste technique. "We are already bringing social-sharing tools directly to consumers via our Gigya Webmail product. Now, with the debut of Wildfire, our website partners can provide dynamic-sharing functionalities directly to their users," said Eyal Magen, Gigya's CEO. "Using Wildfire, our users are able to post more easily than ever before," said Joe Heitzeberg, CEO of Snapvine.
Capitol Records Nashville Launches Online Country Music Talent ...
NASHVILLE, Tenn., April 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Capitol Records Nashville today launched an innovative online country music talent search contest, called "The Road to Nashville." The contest gives aspiring country singers the chance to become Nashville's next big country star by auditioning online at http://bix.yahoo.com/TheRoadToNashville. For anyone with vocal talent and anyone who enjoys discovering great singers, this contest provides a new road to fame based on the votes of the online community. To demonstrate its commitment to discovering new talent, Capitol Records Nashville, with the help of Bix, Yahoo!'s online contest site, is allowing people to share their vocal gifts and interact with each other. The online audio and video karaoke contest provides a unique opportunity for an aspiring country singer to ultimately win $50,000 and a trip to Nashville to record three demos and experience in-studio time with esteemed Capitol Records executives.
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