Eish!!: December 2008

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Some holiday cheer with FREE Christmas Music

The Garritan Community is offering a downloadable MP3 Christmas album full off Christmas classics.

The current album '2008' has 19 tracks and if you search around you can get up to 79 from previous year's albums dating back to 2004.

Garritan is 'a community of musicians from all over the world met on the Garritan community forum and agreed to submit their own recordings of holiday music, to be freely distributed. Each of these orchestral recordings were made not with large live orchestras in vast recording studios at huge expense, but rather were created by a single person working on their own desktop or laptop computer. What they have in common is the use of Garritan libraries representing software musical instruments based on samples of real instruments.'

Have Merry Christmas

Link : http://garritan.com/Xmas.html

Labels: , , ,

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Friday, December 12, 2008

Friday SA Music Spotlight - jacSharp

Even though jacSharp won HP's Design you personal life at the beginning of the year already, I must admit they have not been on my radar at all. However they are creating quite a buzz all of a sudden as they release their debut album Technicolor this month and quite rightly so.

Juliet Harding (Vocals and Keyboard), Emelio Gassibe (Bass), Ben Peters (Drums and Sampling) and Carl Wegelin (Guitars and Vocals) make up the band who put themselves into the Electro/Afro/Jazz/Pop/Rock genre. Personally I would reorganize this to Rock/Electro/Pop/Afro/Jazz. Man, I pity the music store assistants as they try and figure where to put the upcoming cd. As I write this, I am listening to the tracks they have posted on various sites and find myself backspacing and re-writing my descriptions. Their offerings are so diverse that I has actuall given up. Perhaps the only constant is that they are distinctively South African.

I enjoyed this bio from laodtheshow.com though:
  • What do you get when you mix an electronic drummer, rock/funk guitarist, afro/jazz bassist and a pop/jazz singer? A completely new, eclectic genre of music that's unique to Cape Town based band, jacSharp. If you dig to the core of this band, you will find something magical that has been built on a foundation of nothing but good times, good tunes and keen understanding of musical diversity. All of this has been melted down, mixed together and energetically thrown at their enthralled audiences.
Their debut album bash is on the 18th December @ the Assembly but they are embarking on a nationwide tour with Plush from tomorrow, so I strongly suggest you follow the links and give their tracks a listen and then make a note in your diary to go check them out when they are in your neck of the woods.
Oh, and when visiting their website jacsharp.com you can download the title track of the new album Technicolour (check the SA spelling!) for free, gratis. Well worth the visit.

Links

Tour Dates : The Keep it in the Family Tour with Plush

13 Dec: Harvey Wallbangerz , Durban

15 Dec: Douglas Mitchell Sports Ground, Uvongo, KZN

16 Dec: Johannesburg, Tanz Cafe

17 Dec: Johannesburg, Tanz Cafe

18 Dec: Assembly, Cape Town

27 Dec: Crab’s Creek, Knysna

28 Dec: VIP, Plettenberg Bay

29 Dec: Neptunes Festival, Kenton on sea

31 Dec: Phoenix Rising New Years party, Kenton on Sea

3 Jan: Tapas Al Sol, Port Elizabeth

4 April: Kirstenbosch Summer Concert

Labels: , , , ,

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Thursday, December 11, 2008

Around the world on a Tractor

Travelling over our local mountain pass, Ou Kaapse Weg, last weekend we passed a tractor and a rather old looking one at that. This is not something we see very often, especially with a dog peering our at the passing cars.


I have since learned that this very tractor was been driven by a Manon Ossevert who, also known as the Tractor Lady, is 'a dynamic, enthusiastic lady who recently arrived in Cape Town from the Netherlands on a tractor. With a top speed of 25 km per hour the trip took 3 years. 39,000 kilometres and one flat tyre.' These 39,000 kilometres have taken her through The Netherlands, Belgium, France, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, & South Africa. She is using the trip to inspire others to dream and then follow those dreams while at the same time drawing attention to Non Governmental Organisations like WarChild and The Hunger Project and small local projects from the regions she visits.








Her story :
'As a theatre maker I came up with a plan for a journey.
A journey of a little girl on a tractor.
A journey to the end of the world, and back.
But what is the end of the world?
If I was a child, I would say: the South pole!
As an adult I said: the worst war-country I can imagine.
Both voices, the one of the child and the one of the adult, said: We want to go!
Then I thought: All right, we'll just do that.'


To finish her trip she needs to get to the South Pole. In order to do this she has to undergo cold weather training. She is currently planning to fly to Canada to do this training! There has been a call out to anyone who is able to assist her here in Cape Town, or at least South Africa, so if you can do so, or know anyone who can please contact her @ www.tractortractor.org or leave a comment and I will supply you with a local contact person.

Labels: , , , , ,

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Gordons Bay Fire Pictures and Video

Gale force South Easters have been fanning fires in the Gordons Bay area since the weekend. This morning things are no different, which is not surprising considering the buffeting we got last night. I have been scouring the internet for images and news and have found the following video and pictures.




Further Video : Wolfie.za.org



Further Pictures : ChrisJacobs.co.za

Blog post with more pics : Craniac's Place


Eye Witness News : Fires rage in Gordons Bay

The guys working hard to save what they can from further destruction : capefires.com

Labels: , , , ,

AddThis Social Bookmark Button

Monday, December 1, 2008

A chance to save the Springbok?

Perhaps those sympathetic to the cause of keeping the Springbok alive in SA Rugby can latch on this little bokkie and use him/her to their advantage?

Born on the 17th October 2008 @ Heia Safari Ranch (who have since seen another black Springbok enter the world on the 2nd November) , it seems that this is mother nature's answer to B.E.E.











Labels: , , , ,

AddThis Social Bookmark Button