Brent Fitz Now Using Vater Drumsticks Brent Fitz is now using the Vater MV-10 Model Drumstick. His first public performance with the Vater MV-10 was on Conan on February 5. A quick backstory on how Fitz ends up in a band with Slash and the guys… The musical dots that connected Fitz and Slash started in 2010, and were certainly 20 years in the making, but most likely due to Fitz’s diverse resume and much respect amongst his musical peers, who all turned Slash’s attention towards Fitz. Growing up in Canada, the long list of roads traveled and gigs played lead Fitz to Los Angeles in the mid nineties (a key career move at the time) and contributed to a much larger scale of musical opportunity. From Winnipeg, Canada to Hollywood, California, the long list of artists Fitz has worked with include Union, Vince Neil, Alice Cooper, Theory Of A Deadman, Econoline Crush, Kenny Shields from Streetheart, and The Guess Who, to name a few. A twenty-five year span of many gigs and musical opportunity have all played a factor in the dots that would eventually connect Fitz and the guys to form Slash Featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators – a band that proudly features Fitz’s best work, and with the best musicians of his career. Brent is currently on tour with Slash, supporting World On Fire. Dates can be seen at www.slashonline.com. JHS & Lewitt Sponsor International Producer of the Year Award The Music Producers Guild hosted their 7th Annual Awards ceremony at the Park Plaza Riverbank Hotel in London. With a host of industry stalwarts, Grammy-award winning producers, and engineers in attendance, the show also featured live performances from top producer and former Eurythmics star Dave Stewart who picked up the MPG’s Outstanding Contribution to UK Music Award. Austrian microphone manufacturers Lewitt Audio in conjunction with UK and Eire distributors John Hornby Skewes & Co. Ltd., were proud to sponsor the International Producer of the Year Award to a shortlist that included Dan Auerbach, Pharrell Williams, and T-Bone Burnet. The award was presented to Dave Arnold on behalf of Dan Auerbach, who was unfortunately unable to attend, by compere Tom Robinson and JHS executive director of sales and marketing Alan Smith. “It was a privilege to represent JHS and Lewitt Audio as a sponsor of the MPG awards,” said Smith, “particularly to sponsor, and present, such a prestigious award as International Producer Of The Year.” Auerbach, probably best known for his work as guitarist/producer with the band The Black Keys, has also worked as producer for Lana Del Ray, Dr. John, Michael Kiwanuka, Hacienda, and Ray LaMontagne. Lewitt Audio’s head of sales, Mike van der Logt said, “It was an honor to attend the MPG awards with so many great producers and audio professionals present. Handing over an award for the best international producer confirms our interest in the creative process of recording. It further underlines our involvement with providing high quality microphones that are unaltered, authentic, and memorable.” On-Stage Honors Kraft Music as Dealer of the Year On-Stage presented its third annual Dealer of the Year award at the 2015 Winter NAMM Show. Established in 2012, The Dealer of the Year award is presented to On- Stage dealers who have shown exceptional growth, customer service, and commitment to the On-Stage family of brands. This year’s award was presented to Kraft Music. Ben Kraft, Brandon Zunker, and Jamie Medina were on hand to accept the award. In 2014, Kraft Music demonstrated the largest On-Stage products sales growth among all authorized dealers. On-Stage brands include On-Stage Stands, Hennessey, DrumFire, Hot Wires, and Audio Spectrum. Kraft Music’s commitment to On-Stage brands illustrates the win-win relationship between On-Stage and its dealers, moving both sides towards continued success. On-Stage senior vice president of sales and marketing, Sharon Hennessey, commented, “Kraft Music was awarded the Dealer of the Year because of their monumental growth in 2014. We truly appreciate the business that Kraft brings and the relationship that we have with them. They are a real pleasure to work with. We are excited for their success in the industry and look forward to exploring more opportunities with Kraft going forward.” Casio Donates Keyboards to Notes for Notes Casio America, Inc. is proud to announce it will be donating digital pianos and synthesizers to six new Notes for Notes Recording Studios at Boys & Girls Clubs and after-school facilities across the country. The donated instruments will be used by the Notes for Notes team to help give youth the opportunity to explore, create, and record music for free, particularly in geographic areas of the highest need that are also removing arts from the curriculum. “Music can be a very powerful outlet for today’s youth to express themselves in a positive way and it can also be a great tool for developing an individual’s self-esteem,” said Stephen Schmidt, vice president of Casio’s Electronic Musical Instrument Division. “We are proud to support such a worthy cause like Notes for Notes and we’re excited to bring our electronic musical instruments to the new recording studios, enabling the aspiring musicians of tomorrow to fine-tune their skills.” Notes for Notes is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that designs, equips, and staffs after-school recording studios inside Boys & Girls Clubs and after-school facilities offering youth the opportunity to explore, create, and record music, free of charge. At the core of the organization is a focus on putting youth on positive paths with music as the first step. This year, Notes for Notes will open six-plus new recording studios in cities including San Francisco, Ventura, Brooklyn, Atlanta, Detroit, and Austin – which has been made possible due to the support of the Country Music Association Foundation and Notes for Notes’ partners. In support of this growing music education program, Casio donated brand new musical instruments including seven Privia Pro PX-5S digital pianos and seven XW-G1 Groove Synthesizers to be used in the new studios. Playground Sessions and Yamaha Music Interactive Enter Partnership Playground Sessions and Yamaha Music Interactive, Inc. have partnered to offer Playground’s piano and keyboard learning software on Yamaha’s popular MusicSoft platform using Playground’s Play To Learn technology. Co-created by the music producer, composer, and artist Quincy Jones, Playground’s keyboard learning program launched on the Yamaha site in mid-December. “Playground Sessions employs technology, popular music, and classic hits, as well as elements of gaming to reach the musician in all of us,” according to Playground Sessions’ CEO, Chris Vance. “In today’s digital world, it’s more important than ever to provide an interactive experience, allow for instant gratification, let users learn at their own pace, and serve up content they relate to and are inspired by.” According to Jason Nyberg, marketing manager for Yamaha Music Interactive, “The goal is to make music right away, and Playground does a fantastic job of making that a reality. It is a remarkable program, both in functionality and in style. This is not another online flash-in-the-pan series of video clips. It has an intuitive interface that leads the user through effective and entertaining music lessons at beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels.” Playground Sessions also boasts an extensive online music library with a wide range of musical genres. With over 30 hours of video tutorials and printable arrangements, there is more than enough for users to stay interested and engaged. In addition, users often share their scores, progress, and messages on Facebook and Twitter. “We are very pleased to make Playground Sessions available to the Yamaha family,” commented Nyberg. “This powerful and effective online instructional tool will help ensure that our customers will be able to maximize their musical proficiency and enjoyment with our instruments, regardless of their ability or experience.” “We are deeply gratified that a manufacturer of Yamaha’s caliber recognizes the mutual benefits of this collaboration for both companies. It is a natural partnership for our market-leading brands,” said Vance. Ashly Audio Appoints Sound Directions as UK Distributor Ashly Audio announced the appointment of Sound Directions, Ltd. as its exclusive distributor in the United Kingdom. Sound Directions caters to consultants and A/V integrators with peerless systems knowledge and a free system designing and programming service. The Chessington, Surrey-based company will distribute Ashly’s entire line of products, including Ashly’s networked multi-channel amplifiers, Protea DSP-equipped amplifiers, and customizable user interfaces, such as Ashly’s iPad app. Stanislas Boivin-Champeaux founded Sound Directions in 1998. “From the very start, we’ve worked closely with our customers to demystify the vast array of technologies that are available in the installed A/V market,” he said. “When it benefits our clients, we happily design and program systems that work flawlessly under the pressures and challenges of the real world. We’ve seen countless systems designed by others that left end-users with a system that they did not understand and could not operate. We go the extra mile to ensure that this is never the case for the systems we design. A job is never complete until everyone is perfectly satisfied.” The effort Sound Directions puts into system design and programming for its audio professional clients is unique among distributors,” said Mike van der Logt, EMEA sales manager with Ashly Audio. They have a strong technical team that has depth of experience in the markets their customers operate in. They understand the pressures their customers face and work alongside them to create on-time solutions, within budget. That ultimately wins more projects for everyone involved. We’re pleased to partner with such a well-respected and forward-thinking distributor. Our existing UK customers will be pleased, and we expect Sound Directions’ reach to win legions of new Ashly fans.” “We have travelled the world to pull together a portfolio of products that work flawlessly together, and Ashly Audio has a well-deserved reputation for building reliable, well-engineered solutions at exceptionally competitive prices,” said Boivin- Champeaux. “Ashly’s hardware, software, and user interfaces complement our existing partner brands perfectly, and their products are very flexible and Dante- and CobraNet-compatible, allowing us to leverage Ashly solutions in a huge range of designs.” Kimberly Freeman Partners with Blackstar Amplification Blackstar Amplification has announced a new partnership with Kimberly Freeman, the front-woman of rock duo One-Eyed Doll. Freeman has chosen the HT Metal 100 Series Amps as her go–to for the band’s upcoming North American spring tour. “I’m so excited to bring the Blackstar HT Metal 100 on our Witches album release tour this spring! As the guitarist in a two-piece rock band, it’s so important to have an amazing sounding amp. One-Eyed Doll is just drums, vocals, and one loud guitar. No backing tracks or tricks, so the amp has to be powerful. It’s the backbone of our show,” shared Freeman. “The rich, clear tone of the HT Metal 100 has everything I need for any size venue. I can’t wait to show it off!” “We are really thrilled to be working with Kimberly,” said Loren Molinare, product manager for Blackstar. “Kimberly as a guitarist is on the forefront of Women in Rock, and with her playing through the Blackstar HT Metal 100 stack we are looking forward to a rocking partnership!” For more information on Freeman and drummer Jason Rufuss Sewell, visit www.oneeyeddoll.com. On-Stage Honors AIMM Dealers On-Stage announced its Outstanding AIMM Dealers of 2014 during a reception held at Winter NAMM. This year’s recipients included Robert M. Sides Family Music Centers, West Music, Dietze Music, Paige’s Music, and Palen Music Center. Jeremy Payne, On-Stage sales & marketing director, described the award in his comments, “TMP is a proud and longtime partner of AIMM. As a whole, AIMM is a fantastic organization and each year we like to recognize the very best performers in the group. We select the recipients of the Outstanding AIMM Dealer Awards based on many criteria, including purchasing growth, product assortment, business communication, and overall support of our lines. It is truly rewarding to be able to recognize these great friends and partners for their dedication to The Music People in 2014.” On-Stage is proud of all of its dealers’ success and continuously work to provide them with the innovative and desirable products that contribute to that success. On-Stage looks forward to another positive year with all AIMM members as strategic partners. Chauvet DJ Geyser Adds Impact To Mardi Gras Floats The Krewe of Endymion Parade, started at City Park and Orleans Avenues in New Orleans, and from there took visitors on a journey that figuratively at least reached far beyond the confines of the Crescent City. Built around the theme “Fantastic Voyages,” the largest and most legendary of New Orleans’ Mardi Gras parades featured floats depicting 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Gulliver’s Travels, and other tales of transcendent journeys. Accenting it all, along with 2,650 masked revelers tossing beads to the crowds are Geyser RGB Foggers from Chauvet DJ and video panels from Chauvet Professional. “Chauvet products are a key part of our design,” said Ray Ziegler of RZI Lighting (New Orleans), which does most of the lighting and special effects lighting for Endymion. “Being in New Orleans at Mardi Gras, the Endymion floats have to be very lush and rich visually to capture the imagination. Yes, the Chauvet products certainly contributed to this look.” The Endymion project starts with a series of 45-foot floats which are linked together to form a parade train that rolls through New Orleans. Each float was decorated to reflect the “fantastic voyage” theme of this year’s parade. Chauvet DJ Geyser RGBs helped add more light and depth to the floats with their streams of colored fog. “The average person looking at the float gets about 30 seconds to view it before it moves further down the street,” said Ziegler. “So we really needed a fixture like this that shoots a quick shot of fog with no re-heating.” The Geyser RGB blasts a vertical stream of safe, water-based fog while simultaneously illuminating it with 21 high-output RGB LEDs to create streaming 30-foot plumes of color. “We get a lot of excitement out of the Geysers with very little installation time,” said Ziegler, who positioned 10 of the units on his float. “Endymion is near and dear to a lot of people in New Orleans, so we wouldn’t make a decision about gear lightly. I feel good about the Chauvet fixtures and the contribution they can make to our floats.” Kala to Include Humilele with Every Elite Ukulele MusicNomad Equipment Care’s Humilele, a humidifer for the ukulele, will now be included with every Kala Elite Ukulele sale. The Elite Ukulele is Kala’s newest American-made, highend ukulele. “Kala wants to ensure our customers understand the critical nature of proper humidification of their ukuleles. That’s why we chose the Humilele humidifer,” says Mike Upton, founder of Kala Brand Music Company. “Music-Nomad’s Humilele is the perfect size for the ukulele and with its special anti-drip Humid-i-bar insert that holds a lot of water, it gets the job done with less maintenance,” says Upton. Humidity levels below 40 percent require instrument humidifers. “We’re honored to partner with Kala... and to be part of this important initiative to educate musicians on proper Uke care,” says Rand Rognlien, MusicNomad owner. The Humilele retails between $9.99 and $10.99.