Washington, D.C. -- The National Association of Broadcasters announced Charlyn Stanberry has joined the organization as vice president of Government Relations, effective today. Stanberry will report to Shawn Donilon, executive vice president of Government Relations.

“Local broadcasters carry the mantel of investigative journalism, shining a light on government corruption, questioning those in power and ensuring consumers have a powerful voice to fight back against injustice. It is concerning that some public officials – typically those whose actions have been called into question – would ask the federal government to step in and censor broadcasters in violation of the First Amendment. The Federal Communications Commission must reject such unconstitutional attacks on free speech. It is a slippery slope, and one that our nation’s founders clearly sought to prevent.”

Washington, D.C. -- Radio and television stations are not adequately compensated for their news content on technology platforms because of an imbalance in market power, according to a new study released today by BIA Advisory Services. The study found that each year broadcasters lose nearly $2 billion in value that they generate for two of the largest technology platforms through publication of their valuable content – particularly local news.

WASHINGTON, DC -- Fourteen members of the House of Representatives and three Senators have added their support to the Local Radio Freedom Act (LRFA) opposing "any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge" on local broadcast radio stations bringing the number of cosponsors to 138 in the House and 18 in the Senate. The National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) expressed their support for the resolution, which signals members of Congress's opposition to any potential legislation that imposes new performance royalties on broadcast radio stations for music airplay, in a letter to congressional leaders on June 11.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to recent incidents of violence involving broadcast journalists, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith:

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In response to yesterday's introduction of the Local Journalism Sustainability Act in the Senate, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith:

Washington, D.C. -- The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) today launched new spots underscoring the importance of fact-based broadcast radio and television journalism at a time when misinformation is running rampant on social media.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In response to passage by the House of Representatives of the Build Back Better reconciliation package that includes provisions in the Local Journalism Sustainability Act, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Hubbard Broadcasting Senior Vice President and General Manager Joel Oxley testified today before the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust, and Consumer Rights at a hearing titled "Breaking the News – Journalism, Competition, and the Effects of Market Power on a Free Press."

Washington, D.C. -- NAB Show attendees will navigate a convention floor featuring some of the world’s leading brands and companies, as well as first-time exhibitors and innovation zones showcasing the most cutting-edge advancements changing the broadcast, media and entertainment industries. The 2022 NAB Show will run April 23–27 at the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC).

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to recent revisions to the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt:

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In response to passage by the Senate Judiciary Committee of the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt:

Washington, D.C. -- In response to the announcement by the House Judiciary Committee that it will markup the American Music Fairness Act next week, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt:

Washington, D.C. -- In response to the House Judiciary Committee's markup of the American Music Fairness Act (AMFA), the following statement can be attributed to NAB CEO and President Curtis LeGeyt:

In response to the shootings of two Spectrum 13 journalists and others in Orlando, Florida, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt:

Washington, D.C. -- The 2023 NAB Show, held April 15-19 in Las Vegas, will offer an engaging lineup of educational sessions, networking opportunities and exhibits for the radio broadcast community. Radio sessions and networking opportunities will be conveniently located in the newly announced Broadcast District in the West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, where radio exhibitors will be also be easily accessible.

Washington, D.C. -- The 2023 NAB Show will lead a collaborative, immersive and interactive exploration of the transformative impact Web3 and other internet advances are having on the media and entertainment industry on April 15-19 at the Last Vegas Convention Center. Educational programming, hands-on demonstrations, special events, networking sessions and dozens of exhibitors on the show floor will explore the next generation of the internet and its potential to unlock new opportunities in the content lifecycle.

In response to the introduction of the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act (JCPA) in the Senate, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to passage by the Senate Judiciary Committee of the Journalism Competition and Preservation Act, the following statement can be attributed to NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt:

Ray Quiñones has joined the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) as director of Government Relations, effective today. Quiñones will report to Shawn Donilon, executive vice president of Government Relations.

The day we got out for Christmas break I felt the pressure of school lift off and decided I wanted to pull out the old guitar and give it another try. The thing is I don't really know how to play the guitar, I know how to play about 4 chords. Enter the iPad.

When I first started getting into recording my own music, I tried every way to find the best free solutions in recording software. I can remember like yesterday, scouring the internet for the most mediocre of recording programs. I would download and use them, but still the results were always limited, and probably because of the times. Now why did I choose to do this? well the reason back then was because I didn't know anything about recording my music, and especially not by way of direct, digital methods, so I didn't want to waste any money at this time.

I can now honestly say that I am a proud owner of Ableton Live, which I use religiously, and would recommend to absolutely anyone. However, the program is a little pricey AND it requires months of experimentation just to get the basics down. Is this recording program worth all the money and effort? yes it is, but a lot of people want something that they can use immediately, without having to spend hundreds of hours devoting their time to reading through training manuals, and investing just as much time by way of trial and error.

I recently found a great solution to this problem. Though this is a guitar
instructional blog, I have no problem talking about recording software or anything related, because recording your own music also benefits the expansion of learning and recording musical art, well....duh!

There is a beat creation program that is now available called Sonic Producer. This beats program, mainly assists a musician in creating music of a hip hop or rap flavor, which you would think would only benefit those who are interested in hip hop music or similar styles. I beg to differ.

I have a drum set, yet I do not have the space, amount of mics, equipment, nor acoustic set up to facilitate the process of recording live drums. This is great if you have a drummer to work with, but if you are an independent guitar player such as myself, and you want an easy solution, then a recording program like Sonic Producer is the way to go.

I do have Ableton Live which is in my opinion the most phenomenal recording program ever to grace the face of the planet, and is pretty much the cream of the crop for beats, but I know that it isn't the cheapest solution. With the release of Sonic Producer, I can seriously say that this is the cheapest solution for creating backing tracks to compose to or jam over that I have ever seen. Sonic Producer contains thousands of samples to work off of, and if you are more traditional, you don't just have to work with new age hip hop beat sounds. Yes, it can deliver exactly what you want, no matter what your style is. Its 30 bucks!!! my God!!

I can't believe this, because anything of this high caliber is always in the multi-hundred dollar price range. I'm really thrilled, because though it can't do what a program such as Reason or Ableton can do, it isn't that far away from the quality of these programs.

I look at it this way, and from the perspective of a mainly lead guitar player - the drums and bass are the bones of the song, and the rhythm guitar is the meat. What's the candy of this operation? lead guitar of course! It doesn't matter what your deal is, you gotta have the bones to make this music thing work. Sure, you can turn the bones into the candy of your masterpiece, but you still gotta have 'em!

There is nothing tastier than creating raw beats to either practice guitar over, or to recording with. How do you think I practice or find inspiration? I gotta have beats and bass!! with my recording program, it takes me five minutes to get a good, basic backing track down. Sometimes I just practice over a set of drum beats, but a lot of times it amounts to a complete song.

I also like the fact that Sonic Producer is so easy to use, and it the necessity of it easily fits in with other plugins or bits of recording software.

If you feel that rhythmic backing tracks are what is lacking in your arsenal, then definitely check out Sonic Producer.

Its typical for any guitar player to want to isolate techniques and work on each one separate from another. For instance, we tend to work on sweep picking, and then when we're finished doing that we'll move on to something like alternate picking. Here's the rub - most professional sounding guitar players will combine such techniques. There are two strong reasons for this. One, it makes playing the advanced stuff on the guitar easier, and two, it gives a guitar player more room for expression.

So in this lesson we're going to work with an outstanding exercise that I use to warm up with personally, that combines two techniques. What are they? alternate picking and economy picking, but with more focus on alternate picking.

One more thing before we get started - I truly believe in the power of limiting yourself to working with just two exercises per technique. One big and one small, and I'll show you exactly how we're going to do that. We're going to build a small exercise, and then gradually turn it into our larger exercise.

Watch the video, then consult the tab.

Room 21, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 21, Parliament Buildings

Room 21, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 29, Parliament Buildings

Room 29, Parliament Buildings

Room 29, Parliament Buildings

Room 29, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 29, Parliament Buildings

Room 21, Parliament Buildings

Room 21, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings

Room 29, Parliament Buildings

Room 29, Parliament Buildings

Room 21, Parliament Buildings

Room 21, Parliament Buildings

Room 30, Parliament Buildings