Notes & Frames by LASA Ezine

Notes Frames Spring 2019

Letter from the Editors We started by thinking of topics and titles for this Ezine, and found that we had very similar interests. We all liked and appreciated the fine arts, specifically music and filmmaking. Coming up with the name Notes and Frames, as well as the focus of our ezine, was a straightforward process. With our stories and infographics, we hope to tell you about dealings and experiences for music and film in Austin. We also hope we can convey and share the passion that we have for music and film making, to you, the readers. We hope you enjoy reading. Sincerely, The editors of Notes and Frames

Photo By Catherine Graves

Contents 2

Thanks for reading our Ezine!

Meet the Contributers

Learn about the Notes & Frames staffers

Independent Musicians in Austin

Jazz artists explain their occupations

Letter From the Editors

By Sam Fischer, Ella Williams, Jisung Seo, Sofia Schl

By Sam Fischer, Ella Williams, Jisung Seo, Sofia Schlaud By Jisung Seo

Different Genresâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Key Signatures

A look at jazz v. classical music

Documentaries: A Genre Quickly Growing in Popularity

What you didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know about documentaries

Filming Locations Around Austin

Map of famous filming sites

The Life of a Band in Austin

Advice and experiences from Austin Artists

Chord Progressions in Pop Songs

Learn to play your favorite songs on ukelele

The Movie Experience

How streaming is changing film viewing

Popular Film Through History

The highest grossing movies of every decade

By Jisung Seo

By Sam Fischer

By Ella Williams By Ella Williams

By Sofia Schlaud

story on page 18 Tiara Girls performing. They are a band of sisters who enjoy making and performing music together. (Courtesty of the Tiara Girls)

Meet the Contributors Ella Williams

Sofia Schlaud

Ella Williams is in choir and acapella. She plays guitar, ukulele, and piano as well, which makes her a very loud roommate (Sorry Mom and Dad!). When sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not singing, you can often find her writing speeches and blocks for her next policy debate tournament or watching endless amounts of Netflix. If she was stranded on a desert island and could only bring three things, she would bring her piano, ukulele, and cell phone. Ella is also rumored to have a pet stone.

Sofia Schlaud is a freshman at LASA high school. Her favorite subjects are English and science, and her favorite elective is band, where she plays the flute Outside of school, her hobbies include watching every TV show and movie known to man and avoiding doing her homework. If she could bring three things to a desert island that had food and water, she would bring a bed, a TV with every streaming service, and gummy snakes. A fun fact about her is that she is always cold.

Photo by Elijah Stewart

Jisung Seo

Sam Fischer

Jisung Seo is in band, and thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pretty much it. His life basically revolves around music. Jazz music, to be more specific. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not realy interestend in any other electives, except for maybe Japanese, because he consumes and inhuman amount of manga and anime on a daily basis. If he was stranded on an island with good food and water and could only bring three things with him, he would bring a trumpet, piano, and an infinite supply of manga and anime. Oh also, for about one week only, his name was Steve.

Sam Fischer spends a lot of his free time playing soccer and Ultimate Frisbee, two sports which he enjoys a lot. He also spends a lot of time watching TV and movies, and even more time listening to music, making him especially qualified for an entertainment magazine. If he was stranded on an island with good food and water, he would bring his phone, headphones, and a soccer ball. Although he was born in Washington, D.C, Fischer has spent most of his life in Austin.

Photo by Sofia Schlad

Photo by Elijah Stewart

Dan Walton and a wedding guest. In this photo, Walton is playing piano for wedding guests (Photograph by Jisung Seo)

Independent What Austin Performers think Musicians About Their Occupation

ustin musicians are working towards different dreams, but they all have a shared commonality, which is music. For some, it could be financial stability through musicmaking. To others, it would just be the opportunity to contribute back to the musical community with their creations. Whatever their goal is, it’s hard to achieve these goals in an

occupation with as many gray lines, inconsistencies, and independent choices as a musician does. It’s not a financially stable job, and it takes up much more time than any “normal” job. Especially if you are a performing musician There are many different people who contribute their different goals, creations, and insights here. Saying either what it means to 6

be a musician, duties of a musician, hardships of a musician, or how to succeed and/or enjoy being a musician. For any musician willing to take their art to the next level, and commit to making their goal in life to be able to have music as their livelihood, you can guarantee that they love music and would play it for as long as they could. Some

are freelance musicians, some have created their own community of musicians, and some are musicians that specialize in, or frequent specific genres, or niche communities. Sloan Fussel is the creator, owner, and curator for ATXflowdown. It is a group that performs at various venues with a mix of musicians and rotating lyricists in their band. He also sometimes goes on tour to different cities outside of Texas with the flowdown band, and he performs around venues in

Flyer upcoming jam and performance. (Courtesy of ATX Flowdown) Austin, has his own trio, and has a commitment to ATXflowdown. Chabraja is the dedicated pianist for most ATXflowdown events, and he doesn’t accept payment for his gigs because of a shared dream with Fussel that Flowdown will one day take off. Another Pianist, Dan Walton, is not associated with flowdown at all. Two-thirds of the time, Walton is a freelance musician, being hired to play at events or venues However, when he’s not playing at an event, Walton is the organizer of events. “There were no other jump bands who were doing what me and a handful of other people wanted to do,” said Walton. “Dan Walton

and the Jump Swing Imperials,” which he created because of a lack of supply to a specific genre. Fussel, even with the busy job of musician, that alone is not enough to be a stable career, and this is the case with many musicians. He has a day job at TOMS Austin, but all of his free time is dedicated to his project ATXflowdown. “10 to 20 bucks sometimes like, it can be rough because the hardest part is finding how to get pay,” Fussel said. In regards to how musicians are paid after a gig, Fussel said the most important part of the job, for most musicians at least, is also the most complicated. “The sum of money that is divided among the musicians can be proportionate to any number of things,” he said. “You should never accept a gig that you pay for the venue,” Fussel said. In other words, a venue should pay you, not the other way around. “They can always compensate you in some sorts. If it’s not, a direct pay hand-tohand, and if it’s not ticket sales, it can be percentage of a bar, or it can be, donation bucket at the front as well, like free meal, or just something.” Fussel said many factors could be a determinant for the sum of money that will be divided among the musicians, and it can be a complicated process to this. However, one can’t get paid if they aren’t performing at gigs, and one can’t get gigs if people don’t contact said person, and Fussel also talks about this. “Just show your face around town,” 7

“You gotta be present,” Fussel said. You gotta at least know everybody, ‘cause if you know everybody, then everybody might now you, and you can start there,” said Fussel, “Go outside and play your music. Like, if you’re good, shit will happen. If you are not good, nothing will happen.” Fussel said these things to make sure that nobody gets the idea that playing around town and having a presence in the music community alone is enough to be successful, and this is not the case. Even though there may be hardships to become a notable musician, there are still things that you need to learn even once you’re consistently breaking even. This includes a certain “musicians mindset,” and morals, like a professional’s standards. “Play it the same way that it was played before, well that’s useless, that’s nonsense you know, but to be able to

“The first thing, is understanding where it comes from. And understanding the history, and education of it, and then the second is to carry the torch, and to progress it,” -Sloan Fussel creator of ATXflowdown

play in progression is like building the bridge of music,” Fussel said. To Fussel as well as many others, this is almost like the duty of an established musician who contributes to their respective genre. Because of musicians that carry this “torch,” jazz and many other genres have progressed in ways that have expanded our horizons.

“The way we look at John Coltrane or something, it’s like this giant thing. That’s the way they look at musicians,” Fussel said. Fussel talked about one of these musicians that lengthened the finish lines for other torch carriers, by raising the bar. At the same time, he talked about the way rappers view musicians when they are given the opportunity to perform with them. “John Coltrane raised the bar, and many other jazz musicians take after what he did and recycle his ideas” “We don’t play the way that Miles Davis played, we play the way that Jdilla chopped up Miles Davis y’know? ‘Cause, art reflects culture which reflects art, and know, the culture has been reflected into like a double condensed version of jazz, is what we have now.” Fussel talked about this very idea of the recycling and reprocessing of musical ideas from past musicicians, and how this is reflected in culture, then back to music. “There’s this sort of full-circle mentality,” he said, and this is all furthering the torch for all kinds of music, whether hip-hop with JDilla or jazz with Miles Davis and John Coltrane. Lex plays piano with ATXflowdown. He has his own ventures and sources of money, but when it comes to Flowdown as an association, he’s invested in it personally, with a shared goal in mind with Fussel for the future of ATXflowdown. Regarding Chabraja, Fussel said,“That’s the thing too, Lex, He doesn’t accept money for the flowdown… he doesn’t take money from me. ‘Cause it’s more of a belief in the idea of it, and the belief that it’ll, like take off.” They’ve both invested their time and their effort, and Chabraja denies payment because of these reasons. “If we all hold on for just a little

longer. A little bit of like, barely holdin’ by. Y’know one day we’ll get our fuckin’ NPR tiny desk or something.” However, this mindset is only one side of the coin of what a musician such as Chabraja might do. One side would be a long term project that’s being invested in with the hopes that it can be one day the main source of one’s income. (Dan Walton below has more to say about that and those projects) While the other side has no long term commitments or contracts with a person or group, but being able to consistently find the gigs that will be able to pay the bills before any musician’s “side project” takes off. Chabraja also talked about how different environments encourage different ways of networking for different locations. He talked about his own experience and what he’s come to see as the best ways to network and establish a name. In Austin at least. Chabraja said that unlike some places like New York, where good relations to a college alumni network or a workers’ union -and can sometimes be the only possible way because of a monopoly on musicians and venues- is needed to know people and get gigs, this isn’t the case in Austin. “I mean, yeah, I do agree with what you’re saying, but I still think that the same kind of environment still exists here, but just smaller. I think word of mouth is still how people get gigs, and how you kind of embed yourself in the scene. Like, when I first moved down here, I only got gigs because I talked to people, I met people, and said, ‘hey I play piano, can like you hook me up?’ and they trusted me.” Chabraja does acknowledge that some of the “alumni network, workers’ union” necessities still remain to an extent, but he also adds that in Austin, word of mouth is what drives musicians to venues, and not 8

so much restaurant owners seeing a musician’s profile on a website and clicking for their phone number. Dan Walton is both a freelance musician and an organizer/creator for Dan Walton and the Swing Imperials, but that’s not his main job. “I’d say that about a third of the time I’m the organizer, and I’d say two thirds of the time, I’m the hired employee.” That’s Walton talking about how often he is the person behind the scenes, paying the musicians. “It’s an investment in the future. Later then, maybe I’ll make a profit. It’s like, if you’re starting a business or a lemonade stand, you’re not gonna

Photo of Dan Walton at the Hotel Ella, the venue for the wedding gig. (Photo by Jisung Seo) make money your first day, but hopefully, in two weeks you’ll profit.” That’s Walton describing what starting a project like his own, “Dan Walton and the Swing Imperials,” is like for not just him, but all musicians. Walton had many insights and not very widely-known information, that would be a given for any active performing musician, and with all of this knowledge, he had a relatively business-like approach. “I’m more successful than people that are musically better than me because I’m a better businessman. And I think that’s true.” Walton said. What Walton was saying here, is that while there’s a desire for more creative or higher performing

Dan Walton setting up equipment for thewedding gig. (Photo by Jisung Seo) musicians among a community of performers, there’s not that same kind of demand from “the commmonfolk,” which are the ones who are giving the money.” Contrary to what most people might believe.Walton has described himself as a good businessman more than one time, but he says this because there’s a difference between a good businessman, and a good musician, but to make money you’d need to introduce the aspect of business, youd need to be a good businessman. This can be safely said, because of many Austin musicians’ insights, that there is much to the occupation

“The job is often more logistics and making calls rather than time for actual music making, and opposed to what most people might think, the job is mostly preparations to get to that next gig”

-Dan Walton freelance pianist and director of Dan Walton and the Jump Swing Imperials

of “musician” that isn’t well known to most people. “I know people that are genius musicinas, but their careers don’t get off the ground because they can’t get it together,” Walton said. “The job is mostly preparations.” Walton describes some of these business like aspects that are essential for any musician, even if most people might hink that being a musician should be more about making the actual music, or how good of a musician you are.

Different Genres’ Key Signatures

Classical Music

Jazz

The Four Seasons Violin Concerto in E Major. is a

Jazz as a genre, most commonly has songs with

famous classical composition. E Major is a “sharp-

key signatures from the left side of the circle. The

heavy” key on the right side of the circle. In classical

side with many flats. This is because instruments

music, four-stringed instruments like violin are

common in jazz, like trumpet, have favorable notes

common, which is why keys like G, D, A, and E are

like Bb, or F. These are also keys in the left side of

common, which are coincidentally the strings on a

the circle. Their are exceptions to this however. Jazz

violin. However, just like in jazz, there are outliers

is a very propelled music form, in the sense that

to this “rule,” and an easy way to make a piece more

people are constantly pushing jazz to new places

difficult and virtuosic for a string player-performer, is

going outside conventional borders, and uncommon

to put it in a difficult, flat heavy key signature.

key signatures like A major is a way to step outside

Black-key glissandos, (when you slide your hand across the black keys) are only possible in the keys of Db, F#, and B Major. In other keys, not all black keys are included their respective major scales.

borders.

Playing all the white keys

starting from this note (c) would be a C major scale

“Feelings of anxiety of all the soul’s deepest distress, from being lost in daydreaming despair, of blackest melancholy, of the soul’s gloomiest condition... Every fear, every hesitation of the shuddering heart breathes from the shocking D minor, if ghosts could speak, they would doubtless speak from this key.” -Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart

ey” k ) or , and n i p t (m inalta s e dd to sp art a s e b g “Th ordin Schu acc ristian Ch

A key signaure of all the white keys on the piano

C Major

F Major

G Major

D minor

Bb Major

D Major

Eb Major

E Major

Ab Major

Db Major F#/Gb B Major Major

Songs in this key signature often have chords for only the black keys of the piano

A Major

Documentaries A Genre Quickly Growing in Popularity By Sam Fischer

n 1980, only 5 percent of films were documentaries, which has risen to 26 percent in 2014. Nineteen documentaries from the last five years have made the list of top 50 highest grossing documentaries of all time. Rapidly growing in popularity, documentaries have been on the rise as popular genre. Joe Gross, an arts reporter and critic for the Austin-American Statesman, had witnessed this rise in popularity and credits most of it to streaming services. “We happen to be a living in a particularly good time for documentaries with services like Hulu and Netflix that people are watching,” Gross said. “When I was a kid, being into documentaries was considered a pretty nerdy pastime, and now, they’re

j u s t something t h a t everybody watches all the time. Thanks to things like Netflix, Hulu, podcast series like Serial, and stuff like that, documentaries are having a

real renaissance right now.” With this renaissance occuring, knowledge of the unique process that goes into the production of documentaries can be very useful. Documentaries are defined by the Oscars as theatrically released nonfiction motion pictures dealing creatively with cultural, social, scientific, economic, or other subjects. It m a y be easy to focus on the nonfiction part, but there is so much more that separates them from a typical feature film. The production, right from the start, requires a different skill set and quite a few different responsibilities than a typical feature film, as well as the story format. According to Gross, a documentary is a whole separate method of telling a story, mostly because it is focused on the truth. “When you’re looking at a documentary, you’re looking at the subject,” Gross said. “There are lots and lots of mediocre documentaries, documentaries that weren’t very good but had a good subject, but a good

documentary filmmaker can turn almost anything into an interesting film. And the best documentary filmmakers can make things that, on paper, would s e e m extremely boring to be really, really riveting.” Creating something that “riveting” can involve a lot of different aspects. According to Mike Blizzard, a producer/ director of documentaries like No No: A Dockumentary, Also Starring Austin, and more, that area is not so different from a feature film.

“We happen to be a living in a particularly good time for documentaries.” -Joe Gross, arts reporter and critic

“I think a documentary is a movie and to me it has to work like a movie,” Blizzard said. “It has to have three acts, it has to keep people’s interest, you have to make them laugh, make them cry, if you can, if the story

able to work with people. “Part of the skill of doing this kind of filmmaking is to be able to listen to people, to understand them, and to work with them as best you can,” Stekler said.

“You’re trying to document life, and life doesn’t always go in a specific direction.” -Paul Stekler, political documentary director

12186 1 241 8

According to Blizzard, that skill is also important for a

producer, as they encounter similar experiences . “A lot of the time, the producer, especially if you’re in a situation where you’re attempting to do multiple interviews in a day, is dealing with the people, establishing a relationship with the people you’re going to be interviewing and sort of facilitating them,” Blizzard said. Blizzard has also had the responsibility fall on him to keep people content. “It’s a matter of keeping people happy while the interview is running late and they’re next,” Blizzard said. “There’s a lot of people skills involved.” A documentary also has the unique ability to change the story throughout the filming process.

MO TI VIE CK ET

ADM

IT O NE ADMIT ONE

(Graphic by Sam Fischer)

121 1 28 6 4 1 8 6 4

lends itself to that.” The story, according to Gross, is actually very different, but the amount of difference all comes back to the filmmaker. “You’re focusing on two different ways of telling stories,” Gross said. “A documentary has some sort of obligation to the facts of what it’s discussing, but how much it is wedded to those facts is really up to the filmmaker.” The casting process also shares some aspects between documentaries and feature films. Paul Stekler, a political documentary director of several films, including George Wallace: Settin’ the Woods on Fire and Getting Back to Abnormal, has had simil when finding a character. “It’s like casting a fictional movie,” Stekler said. “You cast because the actor or actress is not only able to play the role, but they come alive on camera” Stekler has had some difficulties when working with real people, rather than actors. “Are people sometimes hard to deal with?” Stekler said. “Do people sometimes decide they don’t want to give you as much access as they had promised? Does their real life get in the way of you filming? Sure.” With these roadblocks in mind, the job of a documentarian requires some crucial personality traits, to be

“It’s a combination of knowing enough about the story to be able to have some idea of who the characters are, what they’re liable to do, what their stories are liable to be,” Stekler said, “but also to be flexible enough to be able to film the story as it happens.” This is specific to the nature of documentaries simply because they depict real life. “Part of the dynamic of doing this is that you’re trying to document life, and life doesn’t always go in a specific direction,” Stekler said. Stekler’s documentaries do need to start with a basic subject for the film. There are many ways that documentarians find their subject. “Basically you go into a subject because you’re interested in the subject or the character,” said Stekler. “You always have some sort of idea of what may happen, just what

the specifics of a story might be and what the issues are and what the general conflict is.” It is important for the documentarian to be interested in the subject of the film they are making because the quality of their vision depends on their enthusiasm.

“I make films about things I enjoy, things I care about, things that I know something about.” -Paul Stekler, political documentary director

“I make films about things I enjoy, things I care about, things that I know something about,” Stekler said. Not all documentarians feel that only one specific type of documentary fits that category, but for Stekler, that applies to a general subject area. “I am attracted to making films that are interesting stories that involve politics in a way that explain things without being pedantic, explain things to people while also entertaining them and compelling them,” Stekler said. Blizzard got the idea for Also Starring Austin, his

(Graphic by Sam Fischer)

movie about the depiction of Austin in films and how they show Austin’s history and culture, while watching the movie Roadie at the Alamo Drafthouse. “I was watching that scene where a car chase was going through downtown, and I could feel that everyone in the audience was leaning forward, they wanted to press pause to say, you know, ‘It’s different, but the same,’ and it just clicked in my head,” Blizzard said. “If you strung these movies together, they would document something about the city. I started talking to people about it, they’re like, ‘Oh, this is a great idea, and here’s some other thoughts about it,’ and then it became much more about Austin’s culture, sets a very distinct tone of the city.” Blizzard’s story changed a lot throughout the production process, and to him, the flexibility of the story is a crucial element of the documentary genre. “I consider a documentarian a curator of a story, “Blizzard said. “The story’s there and it sort of bubbles up from the facts, from the people you interview and the things you discover along the way. You’re authorial voice should be rather limited. You need to be free enough to let the story tell itself.” ✳

Filming Locations Around Austin By Sam Fischer

Dart Bowl Cafe Boyhood (2000) Richard Linklater used this classic Austin bowling alley to shoot a scene in Boyhood where Mason Sr. takes his kids bowling to catch up on their lives. (Photo by Iane Becker)

Mt. Bonnell Slackers (1991) This popular scenic location with cliffs overlooking Lake Austin was featured in the final scene in Linklaterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Slacker.

(Photo by Frank Jacquier)

INITECH Office Space (1999) Mike Judgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s classic movie shot the Initech office exteriors at 4200 Friedrich Lane.

(Photo by Thomas Crenshaw)

Top Notch Burgers Dazed and Confused (1993) Richard Linklaterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s classic high school comedy featured this drive-in restaurant in a few scenes where the characters stop for food at the beginning of the film. (Photo by J. Dimas)

Americana Movie Theater Dazed and Confused (1993) Linklater uses yet another classic Austin location in Dazed Confused. This theater that has now been turned into a public library was the setting of a hazing scene. (Photo by Lars Plougmann)

Texas Capitol Spy Kids 2: Island of Lost Dreams (2002) Robert Rodriguezâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s second movie in the classic Spy Kids series started of in rotunda at the capitol, as the location of a large spy party. (Photo by Carol M. Highsmith)

Austin The Life of a Band in

By Ella Williams

All graphics by Ella Williams

ustin is commonly known as the “Live Music Capital of the World.” What does that mean for the artists who play there? “Austin’s music style is historically Rock ‘n’ Roll and Blues, but its identity is shifting as more people with different styles and sounds move to the city,” Chaka Mahone, member of an Austin band called “Riders Against the Storm,” said. Diverse taste in music is one of the things Austin has always been known for, but as more people move to Austin the style of music shifts. This means that artists must adapt their performances to new audiences quickly. The Tiarra Girls are another band in Austin. The band consists of three sisters sharing a love of music. They recently performed at Rodeo Austin, but make many appearances around Austin.

“Austin’s music style is so diverse and we don’t think a label could be easily placed on it. It seems like every person or community is tied back to the Austin music scene because it’s so welcoming and growing all the time,” Tori Baltierra, one of the Tiarra Girls, said. Artists in Austin each have their own individual style. Most musicians have a style that is malleable to the audience they play for. “Our music style has always been very versatile,” Baltierra said. “As teenagers and young adults, our process of writing songs changed and fluctuated as we gained new experiences over the years.” While some musicians have found a single style to play in, many musicians use multiple diverse styles of music. Daniels has said that this varying knowledge

of music is important for smaller musicians looking for more opportunities to perform. Being adaptive to trends in Austin is important for local musicians. Jack Daniels is currently a member of ten bands in Austin: Relative Circle, a modern rock band; Suburban Beat, a band focused on world music; Blackbird 3, a jazz trio; Michael Cross & the Peace, a blues and funk band; T. T. Brown & the Eastside, a band

Electric Circus performing. They are one band associated with the Cord Stone brand. (Courtesy of Cord Stone)

Satellite performing. (Courtesy of Cord Stone)

that plays soul music; Newland Morefield, an independent artist; Kim Meeks & Her Bad Habits, a country, blues, and pop band; Animals Songbook, an Animals tribute band; Groovy Gravy, a hippy jam band; and Parkland Project, a pop band. “It’s best to know as many diverse and different styles of music to work and make more money, and when you work and do more different styles like that, you will find that you become more in demand,” Daniels said. It’s important to be in demand, especially in a city as large and full of musicians as Austin. This makes it harder for some musicians to get noticed and makes the music scene very competitive.

“Austin bands, there are so many of them, and they’re prolific, and they’re all good, but there are so many that they have to strive for being seen” said Marty McAllister, an Austin-area piano teacher. One factor in determining a band’s success is how active their fanbase is. Austin-area bands require supporters to be noticed by different venues. Band members frequently visit each other’s performances, in hopes that the venue will notice the audience the musician is bringing in. “The best way to support musicians right now is to share their music.” Mahone said, “Go stream it, and share it as often as

possible. to their shows when they play, and bring a friend or two. Share the show on social media, and let people know why they are the best thing since sliced bread.” Many musicians use social media to promote themselves and rely on fans to spread their music on their own social media profiles as well. Mahone said that the ability to share music online is often what keeps musicians relevant. “The best way to support local musicians is to go to shows, follow them online and spread the word!” Baltierra said, “Social media is an amazing outlet and it allows us to talk to our fans, let them know about our next show, and meet other artists in Austin.”

While writing and performing music may seem like a hobby, musicians in Austin have to work hard to stay relevant. This process is very demanding and is often stressful for musicians, but it is important that they do not lose hope. “The advice we always get from other musicians is to not give up,” Baltierra said, ”Being a musician comes with highs and lows with songwriting, playing shows, and the overall stress of having to promote yourself in a city full of people like you.” Musicians use networking and their fan base to book gigs. Going to shows and posting about it online are two of the best ways to support local musicians. Sharing music online is key to engaging in new audiences. “We learned over the years that practice is very important, inviting your friends to your shows always helps build a fan base, and networking with other musicians, sound engineers, and venue owners is crucial,” Baltierra said. While being a musician in Austin is very difficult, many consider it their passion. This passion for music is what keeps

bands interested in playing. “Keep it fun! It can feel like a job sometimes, but it should mostly feel like something you would do regardless of whether you got paid or not,” Mahone said.

“Austin bands, there are so many of them, and they’re prolific, and they’re all good, but there are so many that they have to strive for being seen” stone cold steve austin

-Marty McAllister, AustinArea piano teacher

Musicians enjoy making music together and meet up to play together frequently. This expands their musical flexibility, which allows them to play with a more diverse set of musicians. “All musicians here, we kinda meet up with each other at certain jams,” Daniels said, “It’s where musicians meet, and you’ve got two or three songs that you play, then, ‘Next!’” Musicians get to know each other because they go through the same struggles. This creates a

The Space Rockers performing. (Courtesy of Cord Stone)

supportive environment between different artists. “It’s kinda like we’re almost all relatives,” Daniels said, “We’re all relatives because we’re trying to work, and we network and compliment and watch each other’s shows, just so the club owners think that they have a crowd.” This idea of family is important in networking. Musicians support each other like family, which makes working in a band inviting to aspiring musicians. “The act of networking has always been important to us because when you’re a band that is self managed, getting gigs is sometimes reliant on talking to people and putting yourself out there,” Baltierra said, “We are very much involved in the process of booking our shows, because of all the elements it includes like stage plot, equipment needed, soundcheck, et cetera” Musicians rely on their fans and their friends to network in the Austin area. They play together in different jams and support each other frequently. Bands in Austin are very encouraging to each other, which makes Austin a great environment for new bands. ✳

Chord Progressions in Pop Songs By Ella Williams

Learn how to play 25 of your favorite songs in just a few minutes. The ukulele is the easiest instrument to pick up, so playing these songs will be a breeze. The chords in the top, right-hand corner show the fingering positions required to play these chords. When holding the ukulele with the neck on the left side of your body, you should read the chart with the left-most line being the top string, and the top space being the first fret. All of the songs listed on the right follow the same chord progression: C-G-A-F. Simply play these chords in this order to successfully play these songs. Have fun making beautiful music! 22

1. Journey - “Don’t Stop Believing” 2. James Blunt - “You’re Beautiful” 3. Black Eyed Peas - “Where is the Love” 4. Alphaville - “Forever Young” 5. Train - “Hey Soul Sister” 6. The Calling - “Wherever You Will Go” 7. Elton John - “Can You Feel The Love Tonight” 8. Akon - “Don’t Matter” 9. John Denver - “Take me Home, Country Roads” 10. Lady Gaga - “Paparazzi” 11. U2 - “With or Without You” 12. The Last Goodnight - “Pictures of You” 13. Maroon Five - “She Will Be Loved” 14. The Beatles - “Let it Be” 15. Bob Marley - “No Woman No Cry” 16. Men At Work - “Land Down Under” 17. Spice Girls - “Two Become One” 18. A Ha - “Take On Me” 19. Green Day - “When I Come Around” 20. Toto - “Africa” 21. Beyonce - “If I Were A Boy” 22. Kelly Clarkson - “Behind These Hazel Eyes” 23. Jason Derulo - “In My Head” 24. Joan Osborne - “One of Us” 25. Avril Lavigne - “Complicated” 23

The Paramount and Stateside theaters in downtown Austin. The paramount is the oldest theater in Austin, and shows 100+ movies each year according to Austintheatre. org. (Photo by Sofia Schlaud)

The Movie

Experience 24

By Sofia Schlaud

ince its beginning, film has been a force connecting people to each other throughout time, a shared experience unlike any other which transcends all labels. In 2019, the consumption of film has started to look very different than it did even just a decade ago. The number of people streaming video media online reached over 230 million in 2019, and is expected to increase by nearly 10 million people by the year 2021 according to PricewaterhouseCoopers’ outlook and Statista.com. Likewise, the amount of subscribers to streaming services and the amount of content of these services have increased exponentially over the last decade as shown by data released by Youtube and Amazon Prime. According to author Alison Macor, these changes to media consumption have changed the way people are thinking about and viewing film by taking away something many people, including filmmaker PJ Raval, consider an integral part of the movie viewing experience. Nonetheless, film is still very much alive and continues to draw people in. “One of the things I like about film as material to write about is that the subject matter, the things that appear in film are just as large as life,” said Marjorie Baumgarten, film critic and former film editor for the Austin Chronicle. “You can learn so many different things, or see different kinds of experiences.” Many people in the film industry share the experience of

“There’s something really special about sitting alone in the dark with other people, and you can hear them breathing, or you can hear them laughing.” - Marjorie Baumgarten, Austin film critic

falling in love with film later in life, rather than being surrounded by surrounded by it growing up. However, people still connected with film in different ways and for different reasons. Documentary filmmaker and part-time professor at UT Austin PJ Raval said his introduction to film was important in connecting to the outside world. “Things that were created, like music, books, magazines, including films, were ways for me to experience the world and learn about different people, and maybe people who look more like me and thought more like me,” Raval said. As a member of the LGBT community who grew up in a small, conservative town, Raval believes that finding film was

important to his discovery and acceptance of his own identities, and that it’s an important resource in getting messages to a widespread audience. “It’s one of the most successful and powerful mediums,” Raval said. However, film and the way that it’s consumed have changed significantly in the last decade. In a time where more and more movies and media are being viewed from the comfort of one’s own home, Raval said that it is important not to forget about the experience of seeing a movie in the theater. “When we think of films, we think of ‘captivated audience’,” Raval said. Raval and Baumgarten also

stressed the importance of meeting Many people are upset or new people in a theater. discouraged by the film industry’s “There’s something really special about sitting alone in the dark with other people, and you can hear them breathing, or you can hear them laughing,” Baumgarten said.

Raval said that there were many reasons it’s important to see movies with other people. “you might be sitting with a group of people who think differently or look differently than you, yet you’re sharing this experience,” he said. Raval said, “There’s something really powerful about having that communal experience. And if you think about it, there’s not really a whole lot of times that happens in your daily life. Some people get that through going to church, for instance, but other people might experience it by going to some kind of creative or artistic outlet, like a movie or a concert.”

books about the film industry in Austin, Alison Macor, believes that the separation of film watched in theaters and film watched on streaming has become less necessary. “I think distinctions between movies and TV and YouTube and that sort of thing may be less of an issue now,” she said. She also discussed the new recognition made-for-streaming programs, such as Homecoming and Big Little Lies are getting. “TV or small-screen projects like Netflix have more cache,” Macor said.

shift to streaming services, and are afraid that.this communal..experience may cease to exist. Baumgarten, however, remains hopeful. “I think the people who like doing that in their living rooms “It’s one of the are still people who like going out to movie theaters,” she most successful said. “There’s something very and powerful unique and special about that mediums.” experience that we keep coming back to.” - PJ Raval, documentary filmmaker and professor at UT F o r m e r Austin film critic for the Austin ..American Statesman and author This transfer of media is of two not without its problems though. Aside from less people going to theaters to see movies, there are serious consequences for anyone who works in some part of the film

“The internet is wide their work is on multiple and broad, and you can platforms.” Macor said. write to your heart’s She does believe that some of content.” She said. these problems may be alleviated Macor also shared as time goes by and more standards are established. “It happened so quickly that I think a lot of times people are running to catch up in terms of compensation and issues like that.” She said. Raval said this shouldn’t

industry, according to Macor and Baumgarten. “Jobs doing this are drying up more and more, as publications dry up more and more,” Baumgarten said. However, Filmmaker PJ Raval on a shoot for his she has hope latest Call Her Ganda. He works as a for the next part-time professor at UT Austin. (Photo generation of courtesy of Call Her Ganda Film) film writers. sentiments about the effects of streaming services like Netflix becoming more and more popular. “I have a lot of friends who work predominantly in films, and in part just to stay viable they’ve moved into TV,” Macor said. There are also still problems for people working within the popular and growing industries. “There are definitely issues for writers-how they are getting paid when 27

stop anyone from making the films they want to make. “People who want to make films should make them,” he said. “Everyone has a unique story and perspective, don’t be afraid to tell your own: try something different.” ✴

Popular Film Through History

By Sofia Schlaud

A Look at the Most Popular Films of Each Decade Based on Gross Domestic Product “Ben-hur: A Tale of the Christ,” was released in 1925 and grossed $10.7 million, translating to over $24 million in 2019 “Bambi” was released in 1942 and grossed $3 million or around $46 million in 2019.

“Gone With the Wind” was released in 1939 and grossed $189.5 million, or around $3.4 billion in 2019.

“The Ten Commandments” was released in 1956 and grossed $65.5 million, or around $606 million in 2019.

“The Sound of Music” was released in 1965, and grossed $159 million, or $1.2 billion in 2019.

1920’s 30’s 40’s 50’s 60’s Sources: filmsite.org and boxofficemojo.com

70’s 80’s 90’s 00’s 10’s “Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope” was released in 1977 and grossed $307 million, or $1.3 billion in 2019.

“Titanic” was released in 1997 and grossed $600 million, or around $940 million in 2019. Other highgrossing movies from the 90’s include Star Wars Episode I and Jurassic Park.

“E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial” was releasedin 1982 and grossed $359 million, or $936 million in 2019.

*all box office numbers represent the film’s lifetime domestic gross

“Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens,”

was released in 2015, and was the highest grossing movie of the decade, grossing around $936 million.

“Avatar” was released in 2009 and grossed $749 million or $878 million in 2019.

Graphic by Ella Williams

Graphic by Sofia Schlaud

Front and Back Cover by Ella Williams