Any music-lover who’s had a beer has tried giving a few toots on their bottle. This new microbrew makes it a cinch to stay in tune while doing so. Grab a few six packs of Tuned Pale Ale and a few friends from band camp and put a performance together that will put bell choirs to shame. Read more at geekosystem.com. Also check out several other bizarre ways to make music in Making Music magazine’s Music and Health section.

The Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) is now warning anyone intending to travel with a small instrument to check very carefully before travelling and to ensure their instruments will be accepted as hand luggage before booking any flights. Read more about one little girl’s problem with air travel.

Are You a Music Teacher? If so, Making Music would like to hear from you. To better provide resources for our readers — and your students — we are creating a Music Teacher Advisory Council.
We have developed a monthly e-mail newsletter filled with fun tips and interesting facts just for music teachers. Contact us today for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate.

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Financial hardship need not get in the way of musical creativity. Laid off 56 year old Eric Sidebottom adds a new beat to the street in downtown Charlotte. He uses No. 2 pencils and mismatched glassware on steel public tables to play along to funky tunes on his portable CD player.

Read more of freelancer April Denee Baker’s article in the Charlotte Observer. And if you’re on a budget but don’t want to play percussion on something that should go in the dishwasher, read our feature article from May on making your own percussion instruments.

We still need to get the word out about protecting hearing. Hearing loss in teenagers is about 30 percent higher now than it was in the 1980s and 1990s, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Assocation. (Read more about the study) The study wasn’t large enough to determine whether increased earbud headphone use has contributed to the trend. What is known is that impaired hearing can hamper learning, and it also takes an emotional and social toll. Just knowing this should help us remember to wear ear protection in exceptionally loud situations (like the front row of a concert) or from turning our iPod to top volume. Browse through Making Music magazine’s numerous short articles on music health including this one: Now Hear This.

Here’s a clip of a neat documentary about an invention that was influential in popular music and the way it was and is created–basically the dawn of sampling! For more interesting bits from electronic music history see Theremin Therapy and Laser Koto Zither and If you are nearby California, check out this event at the Museum of Making Music.

Is it important to pare down hobbies so you can specialize in one? Trent Hamm thinks so. The Christian Science Monitor ran a thoughtful article of his about the value of practice and practice being the main determinant of skill and success. Read the article and let us know what you think.

Tristan Perich: 1-Bit Symphony (Part 1: Overview) from Tristan Perich on Vimeo.

You might not be able to try this at home unless you are a Radio Shack regular, but Tristan Perich’s 1-Bit Symphony project is intriguing. In this video he explains the source of his fascination with making music with microchips. When listeners plug their headphone jacks into his tiny apparatus, which fits neatly within a clear CD jewel case, what they will hear will be an actual performance not just the recording of a previous performance. Read more bits about Tristan Perich at the Creators Project blog.

Violinist Midori is a great role model. Life is wider than your job, no matter how cool or important it is. Midori sees her successful performance career as a springboard to help people. She uses her fame and skills to encourage music education at all levels and training musicians on the importance of connecting with communities outside the concert hall. Read more about Midori in Fred Child’s piece at NPR.org

An admirable symphony orchestra in Steamboat Springs, CO recognizes the impact their music can make physically and emotionally. They are offering free admission to a matinee concert to hospice patients, low-income older adults and residents of long-term living facilities in their locality. Read more in Steamboat Today
For more information about music therapy, visit the American Music Therapy Association at www.musictherapy.org