CD Baby Has New Father – CD Baby – one of the major sellers of independent CDs on the Internet – has been bought by the company behind optical disc manufacturer Disc Makers. They say they will keep the Portland, Oregon based company with their staff of 100 people basically the same. In spite of reduced CD sales nationwide, CD baby – which sells directly from the performers without distributors – has thrived.
Jazz Guitarist Launches Internet Guitar Conservatory – Master jazz guitarist Mark Elf, whose CDs we have reviewed, has created an online Jazz Guitar Conservatory
where students can log on from anywhere in the world and study with him 24/7. The site features over 200 videos, and music pdf & midi files which students can download and print or use. They can ask questions and have them promptly answered, talk to Mark live via a chat room, and even upload videos of their own playing to get direct feedback on their progress. Mark has over 35 years experience of teaching, performing, recording and writing. Full access to the Conservatory 24/7 is $60 per quarter.
Japanese Theaters Fight Back to Gain Audiences – Some movie theaters in Japan are pulling out all the stops to offer luxuries and top quality projection to film fans content to watch their movies at home on their widescreen sets with high-end audio. One cinema complex has ten screens and 2,237 seats, with cutting-edge audio technology and large screens. One of their luxury rooms is the Platinum Room, which costs 30,000 yen per couple per screening. The number of moviegoers in Japan has peaked at 160 to 170 million annually the last seven years, while video and DVD rentals increased by 30%, along with an increase of Internet-distributed video.
Home Theater Away From Home – It’s now possible when you travel – if you tend to stay at pricey locations – to experience a home theater system that is even better than yours at home. The Skylofts at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, for example, have B&O BeoLab 4000 speakers (their top-of-line) and an iPod docking station, with a remote that operates the music, DVDs, TV, lights, drapes and temperature. Sony LCD displays ranging up to 50 inches dominate the bedrooms, media rooms and even the bathroom. Sony laptops and MacBook Pros are on hand should you have to do some work or Google something. In the Oriental and Presidential suites you get a B&O 65-inch plasma with BeoLab 2 & 3 speakers, plus an LG Blu-ray/HD DVD combo player, and everything is controlled by a Creston remote. Or course there’s plenty of discs to rent. With AV gear this good you may never leave your room.
