Wow! This game used to be called ‘Piano Hero’ - but was then changed to ‘Synthesia’.

You can download the game here

So what is Synthesia? Synthesia is a game that teaches you to play the piano using falling notes. No sheet music reading is required. With it, you can:

• Learn to play songs using a musical keyboard connected to your computer.
• Keep track of your progress in every song with per-song scoreboards.
• Slow, fast-forward, and rewind songs while learning new parts.
• Practice left and right hand parts together or separately.
• Try out any MIDI file you can find on the Internet.
• Use it on either your PC or Mac.

Synthesia is completely free. All you need is a real piano or synthesizer, a Windows PC or Macintosh computer, and MIDI music files. (Check this forum post for discussion on where to find MIDI songs on the Internet.) If your piano is connected to your computer (via USB, MIDI cables, or an adapter) then Synthesia reads from it and scores your playing. If not, Synthesia lets you follow along on your own without scoring.

Synthesia also lets you choose which instruments you play in a MIDI song and which are played in the background for you as back-up.

Here’s actual video of the game.

Here’s actual video of the game.

Was just at my Alma Mater. While there I stopped in to say hello and had a meet up with a few people. I also stopped in to say hello to all the old teachers I’ve had. It’s nice seeing people you haven’t seen for a while. And by while I mean 18 months.

: )

You go back into a place like that and it seems COMPLETELY different than how you remembered it being. Not that things have changed - they haven’t. It’s just that you’re seeing things through a different set of lens - different eyes. You start noticing ALOT more things that you were completely unaware of before.
Anyway,  while there I answered a few questions to future Animators about film/music etc.

Thing is these students are always asking questions, but nobody is there to answer them. Will this work? How about if I edit this? What should I do here?…  So overall, it was a great experience, and made me think about the things you do at a young age, and then looking back on that… it’s amazing.

As you may know - I was featured in Paragon magazine this month. Well, they sent out a Press Release the other day, and I figured I’d post it today. Its a great magazine, you should definetly check it out. If I understand the PR correctly - Basically, one of the people at Paragon has started offereing his own Prints for Sale (separate from his work at Paragon)
DIGImmortal Photo, the official concert photographer for Paragon Music Magazine, is proud to announce the launch of its first-ever online store.
Robert Acocella, president and photographer, has been waiting to launch his store for quite some time, working hard to build a diversified portfolio, ranging from Scenic/Nature shots to Wildlife/Animals portraits to Artistic/Decorative pieces, which would appeal to a broad audience. While the selection at the store may seem limited at first, Rob advises to check back often, as more photos will be added regularly. News releases will be put out announcing major changes and updates made to the store.
Prints will be sold in sizes ranging from 8”x10” to large, poster-size prints. All photos, excluding larger format poster prints, are printed professionally on archival quality Photo Reactive Silver Halide paper, meaning the photos resist discoloration, scratching, dust, and fading. Some shots will also be offered on canvas to give them an authentic “painting-style” appeal, as well as in black & white and sepia formats. In the future, photos will also be offered with frames, but currently, prices are for prints only.
With the holidays coming up, and birthdays, anniversaries, and special occasions occurring all year round, DIGImmortal Photo offers unique, purely original photos that offer beauty and inspiration. Whether buying them for yourself or as a gift, these top-quality photos shine with the integrity of the artist behind them at a price most competitors can’t match.

Contact:
Robert Acocella
Rob@DIGImmortalPhoto.com

My thanks to Paragon - nice pictures, too!

Special Thanks to Gavin and Ellen for the Permission.

Bush ‘Little Things’… FOR ORCHESTRA!

Arrangement Copyright(C) 2007 Walt Ribeiro

Hope you guys like this!

Stay well,
Walt

It was a few months ago, and I lost my wallet. Just was laying on the couch today and found it. All this AFTER I recover all my stuff that I had to report.

So it got me thinking about how good it feels to find something. Like - that feeling of complete expectancy and surprise when you find something you’ve been missing.

“!!!$*&$Y@JDH^6&#!!!!!!!     OMG  !!!  There it is!”

…What a great feeling. Although once in a while is good enough for me. This seriously drove me through a wall. The opposite is true too. There’s nothing worse than losing a something.