Chinese classics are music to his ears

Sydney has always had a large and active Chinese community, but in the past few years that presence has taken a major leap forward.
There are about 4.6 million people in greater Sydney and half a million are ethnic Chinese. That's one in nine.
Over the past 15 years, those local Chinese have turned the city's Spring Festival celebrations into a major cultural event, which now attracts 40,000 ethnic Chinese from various parts of South East Asia, and plenty of locals from all ethnic backgrounds as well.
There are now more Chinese tourists visiting Australia each year than people from any other nation, with the exception of neighbor New Zealand.
One person who has seen this huge increase in the Chinese presence here is journalism graduate Paolo Hooke.
Hooke works in Sydney as a public servant in the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet and once a month, as a volunteer, presents a radio show that features classical Chinese music.   
Hooke's personal interest in China reflects the growing interest in Chinese things that is spreading across Australia. His curiosity was sparked during his undergraduate days at Sydney University when visiting Chinese students opened his eyes.
"I enjoy the evocative and exotic sounds of Chinese traditional instruments, particularly the erhu, pipa, yangqin and suona. "I especially like the blending of Chinese traditional instruments with Western instruments and the unique sounds that this creates."

Sounds of Simon, Garfunkel chosen for preservation

A popular tune by Simon and Garfunkel written after John F. Kennedy's assassination and Chubby Checker's 1960s dance hit "The Twist" will be among 25 recordings selected for preservation at the Library of Congress.

These are just a few sounds of the 20th century being added to the National Recording Registry on Thursday for long-term preservation due to their cultural, artistic and historic importance. The library said Checker's rendition of "The Twist" became a symbol for the energy and excitement of the early 60s after "American Bandstand" host Dick Clark chose Checker to record a new version of the song.

Later, the 1966 album "Sounds of Silence" by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel was a hit in its day but not before the duo struggled and split early on. Their song "The Sound of Silence" from the aftermath of President Kennedy's assassination 50 years ago this year had initially flopped — but it became a hit after it was re-edited as a single. That prompted the duo to reunite and quickly record another album under a similar title.

Third Man Records to Release Shovels and Rope Covers

Jack White's Third Man Records is set to release a new single on their Blue Series from Charleston, South Carolina, duo Shovels and Rope, who aptly describe themselves as "sloppy tonk."Brittany Howard Teams with Third Man Records for New Single

Out April 2nd, the single features two covers: a rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "Johnny 99" on Side A, and a version of Tom Waits' "Bad as Me" on Side B. You can check out the duo's rendition of "Johnny 99" below, which turns Springsteen's sparse, acoustic-and-harmonica original into a jaunty number with a rollicking piano two-step and tick tack percussion, all carried by singer Carry Ann Hearst's dry, sobering wail.

The tracks are available for pre-order now on iTunes; the vinyl seven-inch record is available through the Third Man website.

Chinese and Western backgrounds

"One thing I was really aware of growing up as a Chinese-American was that most of the types of music that are popular here did not originate in China," says Liang, who was born to immigrant parents in Kansas and grew up in New York State.

"When I heard Shanghai jazz, that was the first time I felt that there was music that could speak to both my Chinese and Western backgrounds.

"Then when I started composing music myself, I was searching for music that reflected parts of me. As someone who never felt like I fully fit in with any one demographic, this was a way for me to tell all the stories I had stored up, probably subconsciously in a way that spoke best to me."

Steven Summerstone believes the young people of Beijing are not so different from their counterparts in his native United States.

This Song Saved My Life was one of the most popular songs on the band's latest album Get Your Heart On.

Billie Joe Armstrong Writing Songs for Rock Adaptation of Shakespeare

Billie Joe Armstrong is returning to the theater by writing new music for a Yale Repertory Theater adaptation of Shakespeare. According to the New York Times, the Green Day frontman is contributing to These Paper Bullets, a rock adaptation of the Bard's Much Ado About Nothing that follows a band from Liverpool as they navigate romance and the music industry in London. It will premiere in March 2014.Billie Joe Armstrong Opens Up About Substance Abuse

Armstrong already has musical theater credibility under his belt, having adapted Green Day's American Idiot to Broadway in 2010. Green Day resumed their postponed U.S. tour earlier this month and will stay on the road until their April 19th show in Los Angeles.

Jim James takes search for connection to SXSW

My Morning Jacket frontman Jim James thinks music is a spiritual force that can unite humanity.

He's taking that message — and his new solo album "Regions of Light and Sound of God" — to the South By Southwest Music Festival this week.

"I feel like society likes to highlight our differences so much, to make us feel so isolated and so separated and so different," James said. "Music does that a lot, too. The walls are put up so big. What could a country music fan possibly have in common with a hip-hop fan? I feel if you take everything down to the core, it's the same in a beautiful way. It's all the same."

There's no better example of that sort of spiritual communalism than SXSW where musicians and artists of all stripes gather to find some kind of connection. James, the singer-songwriter who normally heads up the rock 'n' roll band My Morning Jacket, launched a five-set examination of higher powers early Wednesday morning in Austin, Texas, and will wrap things up Friday when he appears at the free outdoor show at Auditorium Shores, one of the week's highlights. And in April he'll start an extensive tour to support "Regions of Light," which came out last month.

Celebs also hit the thrift shops

Eebbie Harry loves to search for unique items at thrift shops, but sometimes the Blondie frontwoman had to do it because times were hard.

"At various times in my life (it has) been really necessarily to shop like that," she said in an interview.

Harry, 67, said she also hit up thrift shops to fuel her creativity when deciding what to wear to an event or photo shoot. Her favorite used item? A silver 1960s Betsey Johnson jumpsuit.

"Let's face it, when you don't have a lot of money and have to dress cool, it's the best way to go," she said.

The singer says she loves thrift shops in Florida and that as a kid her bargain shopping annoyed her father.

"My dad was horrified when I was in high school and I would come home with something from Salvation Army," she said. "He was terrified that I would be bringing a large population of bugs."

She also enjoys thrift shopping because it's somewhat of an adrenaline rush.

Canadian singer Stompin Tom Connors dies at 77

Canadian country-folk singer Stompin' Tom Connors, whose toe-tapping musical spirit and fierce patriotism established him as one of Canada's biggest cultural icons, has died, his promoter said Wednesday night. He was 77.

Connors passed away from natural causes at his home Wednesday evening, Brian Edwards said. The musician, rarely seen without his signature black cowboy hat and stomping cowboy boots, was best known for songs "Sudbury Saturday Night," ''Bud the Spud" and especially "The Hockey Song," a fan favorite played at hockey arenas around North America.

Those three songs are played at every Toronto Maple Leafs home game. At Toronto's Air Canada Centre Wednesday night, many fans took to their feet as "The Hockey Song" was played after Connors' death was announced.

Although wide commercial appeal eluded Connors for much of his four-decade career, his songs are regarded as veritable national anthems thanks to their unabashed embrace of all things Canadiana.

Train strongly opposes any kind of policy

Members of Train said Friday in a message on their website that they were unaware of the policy barring gay scouts and adult leaders from participating in the organization before agreeing to perform.

"Train strongly opposes any kind of policy that questions the equality of any American citizen," the statement said. "We have always seen the BSA as a great and noble organization. We look forward to participating in the Jamboree this summer, as long as they make the right decision before then."

Deron Smith, publicity director for the BSA, says the organization is moving forward with plans for the Jamboree.

"We appreciate everyone's right to express an opinion and remain focused on delivering a great Jamboree program for our Scouts," Smith wrote in an email. Smith was unaware of any other performers scheduled to participate in the event.

The BSA's policy has drawn attention before and gay rights organizations hailed Jepsen and members of Train for taking a stand and helping to bring the issue back into the public debate.

Train Refuse to Play Boy Scouts Event Unless Ban on Gay Scouts Is Lifted

Train have made a public statement against the Boy Scouts' longstanding ban on scouts from the LGBQT community by refusing to perform at the Boy Scout Jamboree unless the band is lifted, according to Queerty. The pop-rockers were set to play the July event in West Virginia with Carly Rae Jepsen, but a recent Change.org petition by gay Eagle Scout Derek Nance urging the musicians to take action got their attention when GLAAD signed on for the cause on March 1st. The petition convinced Train to boycott the event, and they released a statement on their blog.

"When we booked this show for the Boy Scouts of America, we were not aware of any policy barring openly gay people from participation within the organization," they wrote. "Train strongly opposes any kind of policy that questions the equality of any American citizen. We have always seen the BSA as a great and noble organization. We look forward to participating in the Jamboree this summer, as long as they make the right decision before then."

Van Cliburn remembered as gifted pianist

Legendary pianist Van Cliburn was remembered Sunday as a gifted musician who transcended the boundaries of politics and art by easing tensions during the Cold War and introducing classical music to millions.

About 1,400 people attended a memorial service for Cliburn, who died Wednesday at 78 after fighting bone cancer. As the service began, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra accompanied a choir while pall bearers carried his flower-covered coffin into a Fort Worth church.

Several speakers referred to what made Cliburn famous: winning the first International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958, when he was just 23. At the height of the Cold War, the win by the pianist who grew up in Texas helped thaw the icy rivalry between the United States and Soviet Union.

Rolling Stone Announces SXSW Rock Room Day Parties

Rolling Stone returns to Austin this year with our Live Rock Room day parties featuring some of the biggest names in town for SXSW. Curated by Rolling Stone editors, the set list features five bands taking over the Rock Room stage each day, along with the Peached Tortilla truck serving up good eats on Friday and our annual Saturday Rock & Roll BBQ set for Saturday.

The Rock Room will return to La Zona Rosa (612 W. 4th St) in downtown Austin, with the festivities kicking off at 11:30 am on both March 15th and 16th. Friday's show will be headlined by the Screaming Eagle of Soul himself, Charles Bradley, and Brooklyn multi-instrumentalists the Menahan Street Band. Also set to play are Chelsea Light Moving, the new project from Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore, rock luminary Eric Burdon, eclectic indie rockers Fitz and the Tantrums, Chicago soul-revivalists JC Brooks and the Uptown Sounds, and Swedish garage pop outfit Shout Out Louds.

Big-riff – and big-hair – rock devotees Free Energy will headline Saturday's show while guests chow down on free BBQ all day. Rising singer-songwriter duo Gus + Scout will also take the stage, as will 16-year-old British wunderkind Jake Bugg, Los Angeles folk rockers Lord Huron, and alt-rock outfit Surfer Blood.

Singer Scott Weiland responds to STP firing

Singer Scott Weiland said he learned that he'd been fired by the Stone Temple Pilots when the band released a one-sentence statement to the media Wednesday.

"I learned of my supposed 'termination' from Stone Temple Pilots this morning by reading about it in the press," he wrote in a statement. "Not sure how I can be 'terminated' from a band that I founded, fronted and co-wrote many of its biggest hits, but that's something for the lawyers to figure out."

The statement by the band said: "Stone Temple Pilots have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland." No other information was provided.

Weiland said he's focusing on his solo tour, which kicks off Friday in Flint, Mich.

Stone Temple Pilots' 1992 debut, "Core," has sold more than 8 million units in the United States. Their hits include "Vasoline," ''Interstate Love Song" and "Plush," which won a Grammy in 1993 for best hard rock performance with vocal.

Dan Toler Former Allman Brothers Guitarist Dead at 65

Guitarist Dan Toler, best known for his work with the Allman Brothers, died today in Manatee County, Florida, according to Ticket Sarasota. Toler had been battling ALS – also known as Lou Gehrig's disease – and was unable to play guitar or speak for his last few months. He was 65.

Toler joined the Dickey Betts and Great Southern band in the late Seventies and moved to the Allman Brothers with his brother David "Frankie" Toler and Betts. Toler played with the Allman Brothers on their 1979 comeback album Enlightened Rogues and was in the band for their next two records, 1980's Reach for the Sky and 1981's Brothers of the Road.

Dan and Frankie Toler then spent much the 1980s playing with the Gregg Allman Band, touring and recording I'm No Angel in 1986 and Just Before the Bullets Fly in 1988. Toler rejoined Betts' Great Southern band in 2002 and later created the Townsend Toler Band with John Townsend. He then joined the Renegades of Southern Rock and wrapped his career with Toler Tucci Band, along with Chaz Trippy from the Gregg Allman Band.

26-year-old man named as suspect in Vegas shooting

The black SUV used as a getaway car in a pre-dawn shooting and crash that killed an aspiring rapper in a Maserati and two people in a taxi on the Las Vegas Strip was found Saturday as police named a 26-year-old man as the prime suspect.

Ammar Harris was being sought in connection with the shooting and six-vehicle chain-reaction carnage Thursday on the neon-lit boulevard near the Bellagio, Caesars Palace, Bally's and Flamingo resorts, police said.

"His location is unknown," police Capt. Chris Jones said of Harris, who sometimes goes by the name Ammar Asim Faruq Harris. Police say he has been arrested for working as a pimp.

Police released a photo that was taken when Harris was arrested last year on pandering, kidnapping, sexual assault and coercion charges. The disposition of that case was not immediately known.

The photo shows Harris with tattoos on his right cheek and words on his neck above an image that appeared to depict an owl with blackened eyes. Jones warned that Harris should be considered armed and dangerous.

Late Bloomer Charles Bradley Eager to Release Second Soul Album

Charles Bradley waited more than 60 years to tell his story on his debut album, 2011's No Time for Dreaming. Even as he was touring relentlessly to support that album with his backing group, Brooklyn's Menahan Street Band, he was impatient, itching to get back into the studio.

"All it did was open the first page of the first book," says Bradley, whose second album, Victim of Love (Dunham/Daptone), comes out April 2nd. "A lot of things inside me have not been told. They're crying for a chance to come forward."

Whether he's singing about his hungry heart or his deep despair over the world's inequities, Bradley has become known for his pleading brand of hard, classic soul. Though he's been billed for years as Black Velvet, appearing in a James Brown tribute show with another Brooklyn group, the AllStarz (whose members have toured with the Intruders, Clarence Carter and Brass Construction), he's not about smooth: Bradley, also tagged the Screaming Eagle of Soul, emotes like he's trying to be heard in a "Hurricane," to name one new song.

Adele among winners at Brit Awards

British music put on a brash, confident show at the Brit Awards on Wednesday, celebrating a resurgent industry whose bands and artists are topping charts around the globe.

Winners ranged from established acts such as Coldplay and Adele to world-conquering boy band One Direction, who won in the new Global Success category.

One Direction's Louis Tomlinson called the prize "absolutely mind-blowing."

American artists Frank Ocean and Lana Del Rey were among the non-British winners at a ceremony that embraced the mainstream while rewarding artists with distinctive personalities.

Surfing English folk singer Ben Howard and chanteuse Emeli Sande each won two awards.

Sande was named best British female artist and won the album of the year prize for her debut "Our Version of Events," which has been in the British charts for more than a year. Scotland-raised Sande got a big boost in 2012 when she performed at both the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympics.

Mumford top eclectic Bonnaroo lineup

There will be a British invasion of the main stage at Bonnaroo this year.

Paul McCartney and Mumford & Sons are among the headliners for the 2013 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Manchester, Tenn.

The four-day festival, held on a rural 700-acre farm, always features an eclectic roster, but the June 13-16 event is even more varied than usual.

Returnees Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers also hold down a headliner spot. Then things get a little crazy with R&B star R. Kelly, alternative queen Bjork and Wu-Tang Clan celebrating its 20th anniversary. Wilco, Pretty Lights, The Lumineers, The National, The xx, Kendrick Lamar, A$AP Rocky, Nas and ZZ Top also top the list announced Tuesday by "Weird Al" Yankovic via Bonnaroo's YouTube channel.

The Voice of China

The divergent opinions do not seem to disturb Wu, who is a sophomore studying pop singing at Shenyang Conservatory of Music.

"But that's me. I don't want to pretend to be humble or conservative," she says in her signature big voice during an interview.

"When I look at the mirror, I feel beautiful," she adds with a laugh.

She always wears her trademark red lipstick, thick false eyelashes, smoky eye makeup and even front bangs.

In the last seven months since she first performed in The Voice of China, Wu has been exposed to various shows, starred in films and modeled for fashion magazines.

Powell began working as a professional musician

Over six weeks, the American musician flew to Beijing twice for the program, which ended in the middle of January, when he had to head back to the US to perform with Diana Ross.

Powell began working as a professional musician immediately after high school, when his family moved to Los Angeles.

"Since I got out of high school, I looked in the city to see what bands were playing and who was famous and I wanted to play with them," he says.

"I went to them saying that I wanted to play in the band. Most of the time, they would say OK. Because I practiced a whole lot, I became very good soon."

Powell achieved his five-band high school dream, playing with Stevie Wonder among others.