Hello, Musicians and Friends!

Feedback on your music is a doubled-edged sword. Don't change your direction based on others' opinions, but keep an open mind.

When you present your music to people, they will undoubtedly have their own ideas about it. They may encourage you to do different pieces or tunes, or even to go in a different direction. Chuck Anderson’s latest post addresses how to to handle this feedback (and criticism), and how much to take it to heart…Our latest reader story is from a California man whose return to drums came around the same time he had spinal surgery. He feels the drums have played as big a role in his recovery as physical therapy…Thanks, Robert, for sharing this great story…Stephen Wise, our guide to home recording, has a great post about how to use ‘ducking’ in Audacity. The pros use ducking to, say, automatically lower the volume of music or background sounds when a person is talking or singing…take a look… Vocal coach and guest blogger Judy Rodman’s latest post is about strengthening the body – to keep the voice in shape…take a look! Thanks to all who submitted stories. You’ll see them in the coming weeks. If you’ve started or returned to music in mid or later life, please fill out this form. We’d love to hear from you!