Just as we thought, spring break has come and gone in the blink of an eye, and just like you, we’re already counting down the days to summer. Nevertheless, we have something to make the first week back to school a little less painful – another ART GIVEAWAY from our favorite artist, Thomas Robert Meyers of ArtfulMusicianNY!

So, here’s the deal. Thomas Robert Meyers is generously donating three of his incredible prints from his online store exclusively for three of our Groovers. Not only that, but you get to choose exactly which 11×14 print you want out of over 100 options for just that size alone, so there’s something for absolutely everyone. Awesome – we know.

The giveaway will run from midnight on Tuesday, March 26th, to midnight on Tuesday, April 2nd, and three randomly chosen people who enter below will be crowned the winners! Tweeting about the giveaway counts as two entries, and all other options listed count as one entry each. That means you can enter up to five times the first day, and up to six more times if you tweet about the giveaway each following day! You only have seven days to enter the contest, so ready… set… GO!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Want to see what you could win? Here are some of our favorite prints from ArtfulMusicianNY!

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Whether you’ve contributed to The Groove in the past or this is your first time getting involved, our info session will cover the perks and opportunities that come along with being a contributing writer, the hiring process, how to join our street team (event volunteers, promoters, etc.), and the inside scoop on all of the awesome things we have planned for this semester.

Here are the details:
Date: Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Time: 7:30pm – 8:30pm
Location: 921 Boylston, Rm. 311
There will be a Q&A session and refreshments provided.
RSVP strongly encouraged: tinyurl.com/grooveinfosession (must be logged into Berklee email)

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Start off your semester with a bang! We compiled the top 10 FREE college nights, concerts, and festivals this month so you can have fun without breaking the bank.

Berklee Books & Music Fall Patio Concert Series – Thurs 9/6 – 10/25, 1-2pm. Performances are free and will be held every Thursday from September 6^th through October 25^th from 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. on the patio in front of the Berklee Books & Music Store. Each week will bring a different style of music, so you won’t want to miss any of these great Berklee student performers!

MixFest – Sat 9/8, 4pm. Mix 104.1 is putting on a free concert at the DCR Hatch Shell. Featured artists include Train, Gavin DeGraw, and Andy Grammer!

Harvest Festival featuring the Yesberger Band – Sun 9/9, 3pm. The annual Harvest Festival will feature free food, games, family activities, and live music by Berklee’s own Yesberger Band, the project of leader singer/pianist Devon Yesberger. Attendees can compete for prizes and the title for best-baked apple pie and locally grown harvest. Mmmm!

“As Seen on TV” Pop Culture Trivia Night – Wed 9/19, 7-9pm. This trivia night is part of Plug-in to Berklee, a series by the Student Activities Center that gives students ways to get involved, meet each other, and have fun! Come to the SAC lounge on the third floor of 939 Boylston (enter through 921 Boylston).

Berklee Groove Welcome Back Hangout – 9/21, 7-9pm. We know the first month of school can be overwhelming, so we’re throwing a hangout session where you can take your mind off things, meet other Berklee students, relax, and have fun! Come to the SAC lounge for food, music, prizes, giveaways, and more. Keep a lookout right here on berkleegroove.com and on our Facebook page for updates and announcements.

Out in the Park @ Six Flags – Sat 9/22. Okay, so this isn’t TOTALLY free, but Berklee students can get such a ridiculous discount that we had to include it on our Top 10 list! The Student Activities Center and BUGLE will take 25-30 Berklee students down to Six Flags New England on a chartered bus. The SAC will sell subsidized tickets to this event for about $10-$15 (price TBD) on a first come, first served basis. Keep a lookout on the BUGLE Facebook page, because these tickets will go FAST!

CollegeFest – Sat 9/22, 12-7pm and Sun 9/23, 12-6pm. CollegeFest is the most heavily attended back-to-school event in New England, attracting over 17,000 college students each year! CollegeFest is a Boston institution featuring live music, celebrity appearances and free swag from more than 100 local and national sponsors. Tickets are $10 online and $15 at the door, but there are ways to get discounted and free tickets. We’ll be giving away free tickets to a few lucky students who come to our Welcome Back Hangout (details above), and the Student Activities Center will also be providing a limited number of free tickets.

Museum of Science College Night – Mon 9/24, 5pm. Bring a valid college ID for free admission to the museum’s exhibit halls and any two of the following venues: the Butterfly Garden, Mugar Omni Theater, 3-D Digital Cinema, and Charles Hayden Planetarium. Catch a Theater of Electricity show, a live animal show, and other live performances. You can even hop aboard a free Boston Duck Tour to explore the city’s streets and plunge into local waters. College Night 2012 is supported by The Metro and KISS 108. KISS 108FM will be on site playing music.

Berklee Beantown Jazz Festival – Sat 9/29, 12-6pm. The Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival has delighted tens of thousands with a host of jazz, Latin, blues, and groove acts. Our communities come out in force—with attendance swelling to 70,000 strong at its height—to enjoy world-class music on three stages, great eats, and good times stretching six blocks in Boston’s historic South End. Families are entertained with face painting, inflatables, photos, and an instrument petting zoo. More than 70 vendors participate, making the Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival the place to be.

Get into the Groove Info Session – Date TBA, 7-8pm. If you want your voice to be heard by the Berklee and Boston community, being published on berkleegroove.com is the best way to do it! All the info you need to know about how to become a contributing writer and eligibility requirements to be hired as a staff writer through Student Employment will be provided in this session. There will be a Q&A and light refreshments. Come find out how YOU can get into the Groove! Further details will be announced right here on berkleegroove.com and on our Facebook page, so keep a lookout.

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Spring 2012 "In The Groove" Grand Prize Winner, Ethan Thompson.

By: Lisa Occhino

Last month, we launched our second-ever “In The Groove” Songwriting Competition. We received 60 amazing submissions from talented Berklee songwriters who all wanted a chance to win our best prize baskets yet, mass exposure for their music, and a feature interview in The Groove (see below!).

The competition was open to every genre of music, as long as it had a “groove.” Our staff meticulously listened through each submission and judged the songs on the music, lyrics, arrangement, and originality. After much deliberation, we finally decided on our Top 3: Candy Mabra, Christina Brehm, and Ethan Thompson. But this time around, we put a little twist on the competition: for the first time ever, we had the three finalists performed LIVE at our end-of-semester party, and the audience was given the power to vote for the winner!

The Student Activities Lounge was packed wall-to-wall with students who came to support the finalists (not to mention all of the free food we had for everyone!). After the incredible performances, we tallied up the votes and announced the results:

THIRD PLACE: Christina Brehm – “Sabotage”

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Website •  Bandcamp •  Facebook •  YouTube

SECOND PLACE: Candy Mabra – “Smoke and Mirrors”

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Bandcamp •  YouTube

FIRST PLACE: Ethan Thompson – “World to Run Around”

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“World to Run Around” Music Video •  YouTube •  Website

–

STUDENT PROFILE: ETHAN THOMPSON

Berklee Groove: Congratulations on winning first place in our “In The Groove” Songwriting Competition! Can you give us a little background on the song you submitted? How did it come about?
Ethan Thompson: The chorus for “World to Run Around” popped into my head on a walk home on a sunny weekend last November. I sat down when I got home and wrote about 80 percent of the tune. Then I started recording from there, and finished the recording and writing about two weeks later.

BG: Who are your musical influences?
ET: I’d say my influences range from Newton Faulkner, Jamie Cullum, and Vampire Weekend, all the way to Tom Petty.

BG: How did you get your start in music?
ET: I first started music with piano lessons when I was around the age of five. I always liked writing my own things. When I was young I would change the songs I was playing in my lesson to something that I liked. I ended up writing a book of simple melodies for my first teacher when I was around eight and told her I’d like to play them instead.

BG: What led you to study at Berklee?
ET: I started writing my own songs with lyrics when I was around 17. My voice teacher told me that I should check out Berklee for its writing and performance programs. After going to the University of Montana for vocal performance for two years, I decided I really wanted to be going to school to work on my own original material rather than classical. After attending the Berklee in LA songwriting program, I was hooked on the idea of going to Berklee as a full-time student.

BG: What’s your semester, major, and principal instrument?
ET: I am about to be in my fourth semester at Berklee. My major is songwriting and my principal is voice!

BG: What’s the most valuable thing you’ve gotten out of Berklee so far?
ET: It’s hard to place value on the things I’ve gotten out of Berklee. The teachers are great, the students are amazing, and I learn a new lesson every day.

BG: What do you plan on doing after you graduate?
ET: I plan on having a successful career in songwriting and performing and living off of music.

BG: Where do you ideally see yourself in 10 years?
ET: Being an artist with a great fanbase. I want my shows and music to be an uplifting experience for all involved. I also plan to be successful enough to spend time not performing in Montana.

BG: Are you releasing any new music this summer?
ET: I am planning on releasing my next album in June 2012, and I just posted the music video for “World to Run Around.” A free download will be linked with the video to for all to enjoy!

BG: Awesome! Anything else you’d like to mention?
ET: I’d love to have a shout out to the guys in the band who played live with me. They got together and practiced in one week during finals for the show! Couldn’t have done it with out them: Caitlin Timmins, Adam Kronowski, Dan McCallum, Yusuke Sato, Trey Macias, and Sam Fischer! Also, thank you to The Berklee Groove for the opportunity to play in this show with the other great artists, Candy Mabra and Christina Brehm. They both had killer tunes and it was a fun event!

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Pang explaining a personal photo of her and Lennon. Photo Credit: Lisa Occhino.

This past Wednesday afternoon May Pang stopped by Berklee to give a seminar and promote her book, Loving John: The Untold Story, detailing her time together with John Lennon. Her story is quite interesting; she worked for Lennon and Yoko Ono for a few years before dating Lennon. Although it may seem as if there were tension between Pang and Ono, the relationship was actually suggested by Ono in private, until Lennon made his own pursuit. Over the course of their 18-month relationship, Lennon was on hyper-speed in terms of creating and recording. Mind Games, Walls and Bridges, “Too Many Cooks Spoil the Soup,” and a rock ‘n’ roll project with Phil Spector were just a few things Pang and Lennon accomplished together. Although Pang is proud of her musical accomplishments with Lennon, she is most content with the work put into John’s relationship with his fellow Beatles, and most importantly, with his son Julian.

Photo Credit: Lisa Occhino.

John hadn’t seen Julian for three years before Pang suggested they should see one another. The disconnect occurred after Lennon’s relationship with Ono took off. The two moved to the U.S. leaving behind many loved ones who they’d later have to rebuild relationships with. Pang shared stories of spending time with “the boys,” as she called them. One story was about the first day the agreement was supposed to be signed to officially end the writing partnership of the Beatles. Every member except for John was present, along with a room full of lawyers as well. John didn’t want to go and left everyone at that meeting hanging, but it mostly offended George Harrison.

John was on good terms with everyone but George, which is sad because he always viewed him as a kid brother. “George was just George,” said Pang. Since he and John were equally stubborn, George was the Beatle that John really needed to come face to face with. After a while John apologized, and when asked why he wasn’t there for George, John replied with, “I’m here now.”

Pang spoke of a night when she was hanging out with John, Paul and Linda McCartney. Paul told them of a new project he would be going down to New Orleans to record, which later became Venus and Mars. That night, after the McCartneys left, John confessed to Pang that he wanted to go down to New Orleans with Paul to write. Pang looked at him and said, “Now that you are not bound by a piece of paper, I think it’s a great idea.” Sadly it never happened, but it makes you wonder, what if?

Pang worked for Apple Records for quite some time, but before that she never had an expansive knowledge of music. I had a moment with Pang and asked her: “How deeply were you involved in the music scene when you applied for the job at Apple Records?” Her answer was, “I wasn’t much of a performer, but I was always interested in who wrote the songs and created the harmonies, the behind the scenes aspects of the music.” Pang had a great ear for what sounded good, and in the music business, that is what really matters.

Along with Loving John: The Untold Story, she also released a book of photography called Instamatic Karma. They are both available in bookstores around the world as well as online.

The years Pang worked for Apple was definitely a highlight of her great career. She’s brought much knowledge and information to the surface, and what she’s accomplished in her life is very impressive and inspiring.

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The Berklee Groove and Capitol/EMI are hosting an exclusive screening of the unreleased David Guetta documentary “Nothing But the Beat!” Free food will be provided, and all attendees will have the chance to win exclusive David Guetta wristbands, vinyls, posters, Starbucks gift cards, and more! Do NOT miss this!

DATE: Wednesday, December 7, 2011
TIME: 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
PLACE: Berklee College of Music Media Lab (150 Massachusetts Ave, Boston, MA)

Click here to RSVP!

ABOUT: Number one house DJ and double-Grammy-award-winning David Guetta has teamed up with Burn Energy Drink (from The Coca-Cola Company) to inspire eager fans with the new movie “Nothing But The Beat.” The documentary-style film follows David on the rise from underground DJ to worldwide sensation. By fusing house and electronic music with hip hop and R&B, David was able to reach an epic amount of music lovers, catapulting him into superstardom. With commentary from Will.I.Am, Kelly Rowland,Snoop Dogg, Ludacris, Taio Cruz, and dance music legends Norman Cook aka Fatboy Slim, Laurent Garnier, David Morales, and Pete Tong, this film brings a peek into the journey of making “Nothing But The Beat” while inspiring new audiences across the globe. So sit back, relax and let us introduce you to the innovative sounds, brought to you by the one and only, David Guetta.

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So basically, there’s going to be a ridiculous amount of free/awesome stuff at the Berklee Groove Welcome Back Party, and you’d be insane to miss it. (Hint: 10 randomly selected people from the “attending” list on the Facebook event will be given a free ticket to CollegeFest!)

It’s on Friday, September 30 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the SAC Lounge (921 Boylston, 3rd floor). It’s completely free to attend, and absolutely everyone is welcome to stop by – Berklee or non-Berklee!

We’re going to have one of the best DJs in Boston, DJ One Percent, spinning top 40 and hip hop, plus tracks by the top three winners of our very first “In The Groove” song contest! (deadline for submissions is Sunday 9/25 at noon – click here for details.)

There will be all-you-can-eat catering, so make sure you stop by for some delicious free food!

If you want to help out with the event (promoting, setting up, etc.) or have any questions, feel free to email thegroove@berklee.edu.

See you all there!

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We’re launching our first ever “In The Groove” Song Contest! Submissions are totally free, and if your song is chosen as one of the Top 3, you’ll win awesome prizes and mass exposure!

Here are the details:

1. Send an email to thegroove@berklee.edu with subject “In The Groove” and attach an MP3 of your best song (one submission per person, please). You must be the songwriter and copyright holder, or we cannot accept your submission. It can be any genre, as long as it’s got a “groove!”
2. In the body of the email, please include the following information: your name, semester, principal instrument, major, phone number, the title of the song, and your role(s) in the recording (i.e. lead vocals, guitar, piano, producer, mix engineer, etc.).
3. You will be judged by the Berklee Groove staff on the music, lyrics, arrangement, and originality. You will not be heavily judged on production quality, but if it is distracting from the song it will affect your chances of winning.
4. The deadline for submissions is SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 25 at 12 p.m. EST. Any submissions received after that will not be accepted.
5. The winners will be announced at the Berklee Groove Welcome Back Party on Friday, September 30 between 5:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. in the SAC Lounge (921 Boylston, 3rd floor).

Here are the prizes:

THIRD PLACE:
- Your track will be played in the DJ’s set for dozens of people to hear at the Berklee Groove Welcome Back Party
- You will receive recognition on berkleegroove.com, with links to your website/Facebook/Twitter pages and a streaming MP3 for all of our readers to listen to

SECOND PLACE gets all third place prizes, PLUS:
- Two tickets to CollegeFest
- A surprise gift card (will be revealed soon)

FIRST PLACE gets all third place prizes, all second place prizes, PLUS:
- An editorial feature on berkleegroove.com, which will be heavily promoted on our homepage, Facebook, and Twitter pages
- An additional surprise gift card (will be revealed soon)

If you have any questions, please feel free to email us at thegroove@berklee.edu.

Good luck!

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