Zone Recording: Video

Hello readers. Welcome again to a place for me to vent and spew my thoughts.

This month I am going to talk about video and what it can do for you. First off, I am quite new to this and am learning myself.

They always say a picture is worth 1000 words. Well if a picture is... how about a video? I am not talking about a pro music video at all. There are a couple points that I will touch on. Have you ever wondered what you look like when you perform or practice? I have. Do I look like and idiot... do I look cool... can I perform under pressure when the record light is on... not on the computer but on the video camera?

These are pretty relevant questions. Lets say you can play the crap out of something but freeze up every time someone watches you play. That would suck, since people do not get to see the real you. It is quite something to see yourself on video and learn from it. We watch people daily but can never really watch ourselves. This will help fix some of the problems that can surface. I remember seeing myself recorded on video the first time when I did a guitar clinic years and years back. The first thing I noticed was how uncomfortable I looked. Also my speech was lacking. I always said ummmmm..... ummmmm... while I was searching for the words in my head. I hated how it looked, but that taught me a valuable lesson. I now had a few things to fix the next time that happened. Not to mention the playing could have been better. From that time forward I would record myself playing so I could feel a bit more comfortable the next time that situation would present itself to me.

Now comes the clincher. I have gotten into a habit of trying to record as many things as I can, be it in a studio, live shows with a band, etc. There is hours and hours of this stuff. Hmmmmmm. What could someone do with all this stuff? Well, if you are playing music and starting to get a little following, do you think some of your fans might like to see this? Possibly... possibly not. At least it is there as a documentation of time as you evolve.

As you might or might not know I am just about to re-release the "Shut Up N Listen" album. As I dug through video after video I found I had recorded some of the session at McClear Pathe in Toronto where we tracked the album. I also had footage of different bands that I played in performing the songs from this album. Then the idea came; why not re-release the album with video clips from the studio, live stuff and some bonus tracks.

Well, that is what I am about to do. Following are some screen shots from the CD-ROM, which will be available in one month at Guitar Nine.

Here is the entrance page:

The artwork was done from one of my students named Pick Shuen. She is a talented young 16-year-old guitar player who has a gift as you can see. The CD is broken down into different sections. The profile gives an explanation on who I am and what I do.

Next is the Music section:

Here you can play the songs from the album as well as the bonus track. Of course there is a link to the awesome Guitar Nine as well as my record company Lion Music.

Next is the Video section:

Here you can watch three music videos from the album, as well as click on each of the players in the band and watch studio performances and funny stuff. There is also a bonus video for the hell of it.

Next is the Discography section:

This is a page that lists all of the albums that I have done and played on.

And last but not first is the contact page:

People have to get a hold of you. As you can see, the old videos that I thought would be just for me now have a purpose... hmmm. Time to get that video camera out and start recording.

May the tone be with you.