And now, for something completely different...

[rowangolightly]

...and NON political!

I loves me some Christmas music!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ujzd2STgfU&feature=iv&annotation_id=event_55111

In other news, Queen's Gambit WILL be producing a 6th and 7th CD. The 6th one will be stuff that we've started doing since Nikki and Becky joined us, including Nikki's beautiful original and featuring the 4-part harmonies that our friends seem to love so much, Hell, that WE love so much.

Recording on that will be starting soon, soon as Bruce gets over his bronchitis and feels better. The guitar tracks come first, of course, and then we hope to do a lot of recording the weekend of Boare's Heat Feast and the Firefly/Serenity Shindig since Nikki and Becky will be here.

But we're also going to be doing a Christmas/Yule CD; the three gals love the idea and kinda ambushed Bruce with it. It started with AmberBob and I getting wonderful hand-knitted socks made by tensegrity and then Nikki and Becky getting some too. We gals hatched up the idea that the album cover should be all of us with our socks on, which meant of course that Bruce needs some socks of his own. Dear Sam was so obliging as to agree to make him a pair (green, of course!) We'll be in Victorian holiday get up, of course, (new costumes, woohoo!) with our stockinged feet in the focus of the camera ....I think it'll be a blast! It won't be out by this Christmas, of course, with all that we have to do currently. But it will be by next Christmas!

[EDIT: What I forgot to mention is that we need TITLES for the new CDs...in keeping with our Chess theme, of course.

Let me list what we have so far:
1) Opening Move-Take Two (cause take 1 sucked but there are still some out there)
2) Pawn to King Four (the one we cut in the studio)
3) Off the Board (the bawdy one)
4) En Passant
5) Fianchetto

So, six needs to be a logical chess move in line with what's gone on so far. And then for the Christmas one...I have no clue.

And in the meantime, I'm going to get a "Straight No Chaser" Christmas album!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vOwqN2PJST8&NR=1

These guys re-define a capella!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKx_BTj_-IE&feature=user

And the QG schedule is updated on our web-site:

http://www.queens-gambit.com/schedule-2009.html

Comments

[lord-enigma.livejournal.com]

I'm a big fan of this one by them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Fe11OlMiz8&feature=user

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

Yep, that was the first one I ever listened to last Christmas or so. Brilliant stuff; SO very difficult and they make it look so easy.

[jmthane.livejournal.com]

6th and 7th? Ye Gods, I don't even have the 3rd and 5th!

Way to go, you guys. Seriously. ::applause::

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

Yeah, we put out our fifth last Spring, "Fianchetto" which is mostly instrumental except for two songs.

It helps that we can do them at home and that Bruce is our recording engineer. Makes for a lot of work for him, but I help where I can.

Thanks....I appreciate it!

[kauricat.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad to hear about the planned CDs!!

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it means a lot of work but it's also fun.

[ericcaptdrake.livejournal.com]

Ye Gods....lol

Well you experts now should go smoothly.

Christmas album is on our list of things to do however NOT ANYTIME SOON!!

Thats what I told Tony when she mentioned it. lol

The idea with the socks is a hoot.

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

*lol* Well, we have so much new music now as well as a different sound with Nikkin and Becky with us. They both made a good point that the way we do things now sounds so different than it did before. Makes sense since Bruce nor I go back and listen to our CDs; frankly, all I can hear in them is what's wrong and it makes me nuts.

We're by no means experts but we seem to have worked out what works for us; now I just wish we had better equipment on which to record but the computer makes it so easy by comparison to what it used to be!

Bruce panicked when we first mentioned the Christmas CD and said, "NOT THIS YEAR!" *lol* We reassured him and said, "of course not, but next year!"

Now to come up with titles for them...

[jcw-da-dmg.livejournal.com]

"Castles"? Or does that need more setup? How about "Knight Moves"?

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

Probably needs more set-up. Of course, I know next to nothing about chess...

[jcw-da-dmg.livejournal.com]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_terms might be a starting point for places to look.

Other suggestions:
"Interposed"
"Passive Sacrifice"
"Pawn Storm"
"Positional Play"
"Quiet Move"
"Royal Fork"

Definitely NOT suggested:
"Stale Mate"

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

Royal Fork? No, no....too many bad jokes there.

[decembertyger.livejournal.com]

I like Knight moves hehe maybe for a love song theme CD? I'd buy that :D

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

*eyeroll*

[decembertyger.livejournal.com]

;p

[pleepleus.livejournal.com]

I'd so order a holiday CD! I lurve holiday music. *G*

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

It'll have to be next Christmas, of course, but I'm looking forward to it too.

We're going to mix old Christmas songs with some Yule songs; really old stuff. One of the nice things is that it will be one CD for which we'll have to pay no royalties!

[txreisende.livejournal.com]

*sigh* While I don't miss the drama one tiny bit, I dearly miss the music from singing in caroling choirs, first as a singer in someone else's choir, then as a manager of my own. Let me know if you need a spare alto at any point...I utterly adore Christmas music, and know most of it cold.

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

See, there doesn't have to be drama. Our stuff runs by a specific policy of "no drama, no politics, no bullshit, NO KIDDING" and my cast repeats that with me.

It makes a huge difference, it really does, when you stick by that and people know that you mean it.

Between all the members of QG, it'll be interesting to see what all arrangements of what all Christmas songs we all know. But I'm really thinking of some obscure ones that most people only know a bit and in original languages. We've got the definitive source for the German!

[txreisende.livejournal.com]

*grin* Unfortunately, by the time I got to anything like a position of authority, the drama was well entrenched. And in fairness, it was really quite minor by the standards of such things - by the time my partner and I were running things, the biggest problem was simply the management aspect of dealing with brilliant but flaky musicians - usually the sopranos and tenors - and those who THOUGHT they were brilliant and should therefore be flaky. *lol* But when it came time to perform, they all delivered, 100%, and I have absolutely no regrets about the work it all took.

I'd love to know what German carols you're referring to - my family has a fairly strong German-language background and some of my favorite carols (from an old, ancient tape sent to us by the parents of one of our foreign exchange students!)are German, but for many of them I know only the melody, not the names/authors, and have never been able to find sheet music arrangements.

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

My resource for German carols is Bruce...

[softpaw.livejournal.com]

Yeah Queens Gambit Christmas music!!

[ladyniniane.livejournal.com]

Is now when I point out that you've managed to spell Nikki's name three different ways in this post?

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

This is the week for typos...and I only see two.

*pblllll*

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

There, fixed. Ya happy?

*snerk*

[oldwolf.livejournal.com]

Pawn to Queens Gambit 4.

Wherein the number could be the album number.

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

Is that a real move? But I think we've come up with the one we like first try. Color me shocked....

"Castle Queen's Side"

[oldwolf.livejournal.com]

Not sure? I don't play.

The chess theme is so versatile.

[son-of-dust.livejournal.com]

J'adoube would have been a more appropriate term for Take2, but, alas... I didn't know you.

Caissa...

I do like Knight Moves, but I would say to make it all lovesongs\romance.. mushy stuff. Knight Tour may be more fun.. (A process of moving the knight across the board hitting all 64 squares only once.)

If you are going to make traditional Christmas music... K (abbreviation for King)

_Classical_ refers to controlling center 4 squares and developing pieces as quickly as possible.

_En_Prise_ (in a position to be taken)

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

I was waiting for your input. "Opening Move-Take Two" was literally a remake of Opening Move because we put it out too soon and it sucked. We tried to take them all back, offering a free exchange but some of our friends want to blackmail us later want the whole set from the very beginning.

I agree that I like Knight Moves but that it would have to be a sappy love song CD and that's not in the plans.

I like the idea of King Classical for the Christmas one...

All this will go to the group, of course, for consideration.

Thank you!

[son-of-dust.livejournal.com]

When you want to do music for Easter....

Sacrifice.

Kind of preachy, but what the heck. ehehehehe

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

*LOL*

I can't see that happening any time too soon...

[son-of-dust.livejournal.com]

There is always...


Pigs in the trough...Refers to Rooks in the back row ready to pick off the weak pieces.


Smothered King for your Elvis covers album.


Phalanx (2 pawns controlling 6 squares)


Gain a Tempi (double time... A move that controls game tempo by doubling the advantage of the side that is already in control of game tempo)



Skittles (meaningless game)


Go back to your first album and you can call it Queen's Gambit Rejected... an actual opening. Queen's Gambit is the offering. Queen's Gambit Accepted means that you play it. Queen's Gambit Rejected means that you don't and there are other choices.

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

*ROFL* I'm not sure we've got that many CDs in us...

[coeurdechoeur.livejournal.com]

What about "Fool's Mate"?

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

That would be good for a comedic CD on the folly of marriage :> ...

[son-of-dust.livejournal.com]

Scholar's Mate, Similar to Fool's Mate, but twice as long.

Money collected goes to a scholarship fund that you arrange... kind of a charity gig.

[foolscap001.livejournal.com]

Hmmm...if you ever did an all-ballad CD, perhaps Giuoco Piano?

[rowangolightly.livejournal.com]

Our fourth CD, En Passant is mostly ballads. We actually prefer and find it sells better to have a CD with a mixture of kinds of music.

This next one will also have a lot of ballads on it with some tunes, as well. I believe we've decided upon "Castle Queen's Side"