Sheet Music in Suffolk
Have you been searching in music shops throughout Suffolk for a particular piece of music? Come to Balaam’s Music, a member of the Music Industries Association, today. We’ve been selling printed music and musical instruments for over 50 years, and carry large stocks of music, instruments and accessories. Anything that we don’t have in stock, we are more than happy to order for you.
Wide range of instruments
We are based in Bury St Edmunds, and if you play an instrument, or are planning to start learning and are searching for suitable instruments and music books, we are your ideal one stop shop. We sell a wide range of musical instruments and accessories, including the following:
- Keyboards and Digital Pianos
- Drums and Percussion
- Brass and Woodwind Instruments
- Guitars
- Stringed Instruments
- Microphones and Amplifiers
Additionally, there is a repair workshop on the premises, which is equipped to deal with any problems that may arise and to check that each instrument is ready to play. Some of our sax playing clientele come to us from far and wide to have their cherished instruments serviced and overhauled by David Ivory.
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News
Saturday, 9 March 2013
Thursday evening saw us selling CDs in the Apex, Bury St Edmunds. The event was a fairly well-attended piano recital by Noriko Ogawa.
It's a shame the hall wasn't completely full, because her performance was wonderful. The Mozart and Beethoven would each have justified the entrance money on their own, but in the second half, this tiny, twinkling, utterly charming lady absolutely thundered through the Liszt B minor sonata, exploring the heights and depths of emotions, extremes of power and delicacy, and the absolute summit of virtuosity. It just didn't seem physically possible.
After the performance, Miss Ogawa was kind enough to come and sign copies of the CDs that we sold, and meet the audience. First question - "do you work out at a gym? Surely you must do special exercises?" I cannot reveal the answer, because I didn't hear it, but I bet she spends more time practicing the piano than she does at the gym.
We were surprised that we sold all the copies we had of her recording of the complete piano music of Toru Takemitsu, who doesn't often feature on "Desert Island Discs". She opened the second half with his "Rain Tree Sketch II", and it was a captivating, utterly beautiful sound world. It was so beguiling that we sold out and took orders for more.
The other sell-out was of her box set of the complete piano music of Debussy. Six CDs by a world-class artist for the price of two!
We have a number of her CDs at special prices on offer until March 16th, including her latest release of Mozart Sonatas.
Unfortunately all the signed ones have gone, but the music is utterly beautiful !
Thursday, 28 February 2013
Next Thursday, March 7th. the Apex in Bury St Edmunds presents a concert appearance by Noriko Ogawa. She's one of the most remarkable pianists of our generation, and I've been wanting to hear her live since she released a wonderful account of the Rachmaninov 3rd Concerto some years back.
Noriko Ogawa has achieved considerable renown throughout the world since her success at the 1987 Leeds International Piano Competition. Her ‘ravishingly poetic playing’ (Telegraph) sets her apart from her contemporaries and her programme for this concert includes Takemitsu’s beautiful Rain Tree Sketch II, Liszt’s B minor Sonata, often considered his greatest work for solo piano, and the Mozart Sonata that includes the popular Rondo alla Turca.
Her playing has attracted all sorts of superlatives from critics and fellow pianists. I am looking forward to an evening of poetry and brillance.
Better still, she has kindly agreed to sign copies of her CDs afer the concert - yes, you have to buy one first - but we shall have them on sale in the interval and afterwards. JB
Wednesday, 27 February 2013
Barnes & Mullins has just announced the release of two new products from Chinese PA manufacturer, Musik Yang.
The new MYamp MY100 is a lightweight vertical line array consisting of eight 3" Audio Piston speakers. The unit's features include a high-efficiency power amp providing 220 watts RMS of Class-D power; two hybrid XLR-1/4" inputs; switchable pantom power for condenser mics; -10dB switchable gain pad on each channel and folding stand and padded nylon carry bag. The MY100 weighs in at approximately 25 pounds and retails for £339.
The MY101 subwoofer is a compact, 100-watt powered sub. The unit features an adjustable gain control. adjustable low-pass crossover from 200Hz to 500Hz and comes with a mounting pole (for the MY100) and padded carry bag. The sub retails for £199.
An ideal compact PA - we have one in stock for you to try with your favourite microphone or instrument.
Tuesday, 26 February 2013
As I’m sure you are aware, the photocopying of printed has been a thorny problem within schools.
Music publishing is one of the few industries that does not currently issue licences to authorise the currently illegal activity of photocopying. The law is widely misunderstood, and commonly broken.
The Music Publishers Association has decided to develop a Schools Printed Music Licence. The licence authorises the making of copies or practical arrangements of printed sheet music for use in schools. It has clearly defined parameters and has been designed to legitimise current activity whilst protecting composers’ and authors’ rights.
Needless to say there are limitations to the right to photocopy:
-There is an overall prohibition on using the licence to substitute for purchase of a publication
-Schools must own a copy of any publication they copy
-Copies can only be used for school purposes and must not be used for individual or group instrumental or vocal teaching
-Borrowed or hired publications may not be copied
-Only members of staff may make copies
-Choral leaflets may not be copied
-Only 10% of the items in anthologies, albums and multi movement vocal scores can be copied
-Publishers may exclude publications if they wish
The licence is in the experienced hands of the Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) who have administered educational licences for nearly 30 years. The Schools Printed Music Licence will complement their existing portfolio of licences and comes into effect on 1 April 2013
The licence has already been purchased centrally by the Department for Education for all state supported schools in England thereby leaving school departmental budgets intact and allowing schools to continue purchasing sheet music. We understand that Academies are also covered by this licence, but for the avoidance of doubt, it might be best to confirm this!
Schools will be encouraged to continue purchasing music legitimately whilst new resources currently being developed by the MPA will explain to all users of printed music that photocopying and otherwise reproducing scores is illegal without an appropriate licence.
Thursday, 13 December 2012
Do you want to play alongside Andy Sheppard and huge numbers of other saxophonists on the opening night of the 2013 Bury Festival?
It doesn’t matter whether you are 7 or 77 or whether you have been playing for just a few weeks or whether you are a seasoned professional, or whether you play soprano, alto, tenor or baritone…..you are all welcome.
If yes, then you will be part of Andy Sheppard’s Saxophone Massive of hopefully over 100 saxophonists all playing together on the opening night of the Festival (Thurs 16 May 2013). If you are under 16 you will need to be accompanied by a parent or a responsible adult (preferably someone who will also be able to join in as a saxophonist).
Since its first outing in Bristol in 2006, the Saxophone Massive has now appeared at the London Jazz Festival as well as Norwich, Leeds, France, Norway and Switzerland. A documentary was made by the Festival in Norwich which will give you more of an idea and you can watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok8_Z69FeBo
If you think you might like to take part then please register your interest by emailing Michelle at info@buryfestival.co.uk with your name and email address and put Saxophone Massive in the subject field. Alternatively, you can call her on 01284 758101.
Saturday, 3 November 2012
OK, so the century's only a dozen years in, but we haven't seen anything better than this so far.
A full sized, 88-note keyboard, with Scaled Hammer Action for authentic Grand Piano feel, an incredibly realistic piano sound, in a traditional cabinet, all for £499-99.
Anyone looking for a good -quality piano, particularly parents of young learners, need look no further than the Celviano AP-220. It never needs tuning, doesn't mind the heat or the cold, and can be easily moved about by two normally fit adults without undue exertion! It can be played at unsocial hours using headphones, and has a range of voices and digital effects including transposition, pitch tuning, metronome, recording, duet mode, and, believe it or not, 16 different temperaments.
Most importantly, it's a decent piano at an absolute bargain price. Order yours now - they'll probably all be gone by Christmas!
Yes, it's here at last, in stock at Balaam's Music, the famous plastic trombone, the P-Bone !
It really works like a traditional Brass trombone, it's a fantastic, fun instrument, and it's a lot more resistant to everyday wear and tear than your average 'bone. Immensely appealing to the kid in all of us, it's also being taken on as an instrument for whole class learning at KS2.
Pitched in Bb, and available in six different colours, it's yours for just £119.
find out more at
www.pbone.co.uk
Many years ago, we started keeping a collection of tales of some of the funniest things that have happened in the shop. I came across the folder by accident this morning, and had a look. Some of the entries are hilarious. Some are so un-hilarious you wonder why anybody bothered to write them down. Some of the funny conversations with customers have been repeated so often that they’re no longer surreal, merely routine. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been asked if I know who wrote Pachelbel’s Canon.
Many of the best ones are telephone conversations. I remember picking up a phone call one night just after we’d closed. The voice said “Is that Mr Pullman?”
“No we don’t have a Mr Pullman. Perhaps you have a wrong number. This is Balaams Music on 766933 “
“Are you a trombonist?” asked the caller, in a baffling non sequitur.
“No I’m not..”
“Then how do you know that 766933 is Balaam’s Music ?”
“Because I am answering the phone from there”
Caller hangs up…..
No it doesn't make sense, does it?
Around a hundred years ago Delta Blues musicians made and played their own basic one-string ‘guitars’ and created powerful music. Sometimes known as ‘diddley bows’, ‘jitterbugs’ or ‘one-strings’ , the instruments were built from a wide variety of available (often discarded) materials. The single string was either hammered or plucked and different note pitches were obtained by sliding a bottle neck (or a key or any hard object) along the wire or guitar string .
It has been re-invented as the Nineboys Wedge, and we have it in stock, full of amazing possibilities. Watch the video at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktPPZKe6cBg and then come in and try ity out!
Next to it in the shop is another amazing guitar innovation.............but I'll tell you about that another day!
A friend of mine was recently asked to accompany a soprano singing at a funeral. Meeting up before the service, they had a fairly routine run-through of Schubert's Ave Maria.
"That'll be fine" she said, "but I don't know what to do if they want an encore...."
Here's a way to make your sax sound like a Yanagisawa (if it isn't already!) without spending a fortune:
1 Try a Yanagisawa mouthpiece on your Sax. £95 for the Alto
2. Try a Yanagisawa Crook on your Sax. £175 for the Alto, £195 for the Tenor.
Simple really.............
(These prices for stock items only)
Tuesday, 13 March 2012
Now that we’re so used to the high quality of some of the stringed instruments coming from China, it came as a surprise to find decent hand-made violins made in England for less than one might expect.
The Wessex Violin Co. aims to offer young musicians going to University or Conservatoire the opportunity to own a handmade modern interpretation of the English school of Violin making. The company is building on a tradition of English workshop craftsmanship, lost since the middle of the last century, and reinvigorated by the excellent tradition of the Newark school.
The instruments are nmade to the highest standards using Balkan maple and Bavarian spruce, and they are finished with a traditional chestnut-brown oil-based varnish that is intended to recreate the look of the great English makers Kennedy and Hill.
We have a pair in stock at the moment. They would be eligible for the Take it Away scheme if purchased for a young person under the age of 18.
I've been spending the last few days getting to know the viola music of Rebecca Clarke, which I first heard "blind" so to speak, not knowing who the composer was.
She was born in 1886, and as far as I can see, must have been one of the first really professional female musicians, working as a violist first in London, where she'd been taught composition by Stanford, and then in the USA. She must have been hot stuff, because she appeared with the likes of Heifetz.
Her most famous composition was the Viola Sonata of 1919 - which was considered too good to have been composed by a "mere woman" - but there are other absolute gems in her admittedly rather small output. Try "Morpheus" or "Lullaby on an Ancient Irish Tune". Each one is a real pleasure.
Try them all - there's a good CD of her compositions on Naxos, played by Philip Dukes and Sonia Rahman, along with Daniel Hope, and our one-time customer Robert Plane (he bought his first wooden clarinet here.)
Ironically in this week of International Womens Day, Rebecca Clarke appears to have been ignored by BBC Radio 3. But her work is so good it doesn't need special pleading.
The entire UK music industry is celebrating after the Live Music Bill passed its third reading and report stage in the House of Commons. The Bill, introduced by Lib Dem Peer Tim Clement-Jones and promoted in the Commons by Bath MP Don Foster, should now proceed to Royal Assent.
As a result, small venues wanting to host live music events will no longer need a local authority entertainment licence – cutting bureaucracy and expense, and making it easier for pubs and clubs to host live performances.
The current Licensing Act has created an excess of bureaucracy - making it almost prohibitive for pubs and other small venues to host live gigs. Good to see politicians now doing something constructive, even though a lot of pubs amd small venues have already been closed down for good.
You may like to know that Janet Myatt is planning a Memorial Concert for her late husband John. It is planned to take place on February 4th at Blythburgh Church. The programme is to include Mahler Symphony No 5, Strauss Serenade for Wind Instruments and Bach Orhestral Suite in C
Accomplished string players are welcome to come and play - rehearse on the day and concert in the evening.
It should be a memorable event in a wonderful setting - Blythburgh Church is worth a visit itself!
Further details from Janet on janet@windchambermusic.org.uk
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