Over the years, the prize was typically awarded to older composers, which is why this year’s winner comes as somewhat of a surprise. Caroline Shaw is only 30 years old!

The talented Princeton graduate student that so far excelled as violinist and vocalist has now received a recognition that will surely establish her as a new, innovative composer as well.

Her award winning composition is a four-part a capella piece called “Partita for 8 Voices”. Caroline wrote it for her vocal octet, Roomful of Teeth. If you’re curious to see a roomful of awe, check out the video of the octet’s premiere performance of Partita’s fourth part! This enchanting performance is viewable on Caroline’s website, where you can also listen to the audio of the entire award-winning composition.

With chatter and whispers melting into more classical singing, “Partita for 8 voices” has won over the Pulitzer Prize committee with its polished novelty. The prestigious $10,000 prize will certainly launch Caroline’s career into new heights, and she admits that the greatest change is that now more people will know her as a composer. That must feel like winning the jackpot in your favourite Online Casinosz!

About “Partita for 8 Voices” she writes that it was “born of a love of surface and structure, of the human voice, of dancing and tired ligaments, of music, and of our basic desire to draw a line from one point to another.”

Caroline was born in North Carolina, but currently lives in New York, where she is working as a freelance musician. Primarily performing as violinist with the American Contemporary Music Ensemble and as vocalist with Roomful of Teeth, Caroline also works with many other choirs and ensembles.

After UK, the ‘Believe Tour’ moves to Portugal, where the Canadian pop star was scheduled to perform two concerts. The latest news reports that the second Lisbon concert (on March 12) has been cancelled, the “unforeseen circumstances” being cited as the reason. This of course raised speculations on the true reason of cancellation – while some blame it on his recent health problems, other rumours blame low ticket sales. So far, the rest of the Western European tour is to continue as planned.

With intrusive paparazzi on his trail, James Franco’s “Boyfriend” parody and his ex-girlfriend Selena Gomez giving interviews about moving on to date “older, mature men”, it might be understandable why Bieber doesn’t feel so great. The young heart-throb has celebrated his nineteenth birthday first day of March, and was caught saying that it’s his “worst birthday ever”.

Well, being a teen celebrity clearly doesn’t make it easy to deal with private problems – in fact it might just make it worse.  Hopefully he won’t turn to drugs, online casinos or the latter, we’d love to see at least the rest of his ‘Believe Tour’ to continue without further incidents!

The representative of the nine contestants, lawyer James H. Freeman has filed a letter with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of his clients, who have taken part in the show over several seasons.

Corey Clark ( >who sued MTV for their coverage of his dismissal from the show in 2012), Jaered Andrews, Donnie Williams, Terrell Brittenum, Derrell Brittenum, Thomas Daniels, Akron Watson, Ju’Not Joyner and Chris Golightly have been named as Mr Freeman’s clients.

The letter accuses American Idol of running a “cruel and inhumane” plot to exploit African-American contestants in particular, by embarrassing them when they are asked if they have ever been arrested during the background check section of the show.

The nine claimants- all black – have each been publicly ousted from the show at this point, but Mr Freeman cites that this is in violation of Californian employment law.

Furthermore, Freeman states that none of the nine contestants disqualified were ever convicted of the crimes but he feels that their portrayal on the show has led to their professional and personal lives remaining “permanently and severely impaired”.

He also accused the show of using “destructive stereotypes” of black people, adding that the show has “never once publicly disqualified a white or non-black American Idol contestant in its 11-season production.”

Producer Nigel Lythgoe denied the allegations stating “we treat everybody the same…no matter the race, religion or sex.” As an added bonus (just like the casinos offer), we found this video for you. Watch and get the whole picture.

One of the reasons ARTPOP is still in the works is that Lady Gaga is a perfectionist, and, despite accusations to the contrary, she is still more of an artist than a businesswoman. Refusing to profit off her current popularity by releasing album after album of hastily slapped together songs creating chaos like at the blackjack table, Lady Gaga still insists on writing every song herself. Naturally this creative process takes inspiration and of course time.

In a tweet last November, Gaga announced she had written “like 50” songs for ARTPOP, but the process of recording and producing the songs continues. Both Gaga and her producer intend to make history with this next album. The star promises that ARTPOP will be very risky—even riskier than her last album, Born This Way, which was released in 2011. She also said that ARTPOP will be a multimedia experience linked to apps on various platforms like iPad and smartphones. A “Telephone” sequel has also been promised.

Though it seems fans have heard a lot of talk about ARTPOP, with Lady Gaga’s groundbreaking style you really never know what to expect until it happens. Fans may have to keep their excitement under control for now and check back with Gaga when her current tour ends March 20.

If you have talent and you are seeking information on how to utilize it and start a band of your own, then you have landed on the right page. Given below are some important tips for you:

1. Firstly, see how many members you have and who excels in what department. You will need a guitarist, singer, drummer, keyboard player and lyricist. Always make sure that everyone in your band specializes in his or her area. If you have a lack of members then you can advertise and look for the best person to join your band.
2. Secondly, choose the type of band you are going to have. Will you be punk, metallic kind or something else? It is important to concentrate on one genre so that you can make your mark in it.
3. Thirdly, choose a name for the band with mutual consent. The name should be apt and well in sync with the kind of music your band presents. It should also be easy on the lips so that people find it easy to remember you. Your band members’ names should follow the same rule. If not, you can easily give each other ‘stage names’.
4. Lastly, prepare a song and advertise it. You do not need a full blown concert. You can start by performing at small gatherings such as college functions. Also, record some testimonials and your videos to present to promoters to take a big leap.

The most important thing is having patience and faith in your talent. If you have it in you then you will surely make it.

Keep it smooth and classy. If you want to give your online casino night a classy feel, play jazz or classical music all night. The music won’t distract from the games and it will set the vibe.

NXNE Music Showcase Toronto 2006 We’ve been invited to play!

Seattle Weekly Live Shots from the SWMA Festival in Ballard. Check us rocking the outdoor stage!

Seattle Weekly Music Awards: The Seattle Weekly has nominated us for Best Pop/Rock Band for 2006!