AuthorSharon Eden-Smith (@sharonedensmith) is the entrepreneur who established Eden-Smith Music. She will be posting blog articles about the business of...   Local musicians are an integral part of their communities. They perform in places such as pubs, community centers, businesses, schools, churches, etc. They provide the music for weddings, funerals & local events. Some earn money. Others volunteer. Some are solo artists. Others are members of small groups, bands, orchestras or choirs. The genres & styles of music that they provide vary greatly, from classical & hymns to heavy metal. The training of these service providers also varies greatly, from university & conservatory training to self-taught. All have a passion & drive to share their gifts with those around them. These musicians are the first flowers of spring. They provide the nectar of live music for the celebrations of life within the community. They not only feed the community members, but help those members maintain their quality of life. If you enjoyed this article, let me know. Post a comment! Like it! Tweet it! "Follow" or "Like" Eden-Smith Music on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn. That way, you'll get the news as to when the next blog post is up! Subscribe to the Eden-Smith Music Youtube channel for the latest Eden-Smith Music videos. Click on a social media icon, below, to take you where you want to go! Click on the Button below if you want to go to the Eden-Smith Music Blog Index for more articles to read!
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AuthorSharon Eden-Smith (@sharonedensmith) is the entrepreneur who established Eden-Smith Music. She will be posting blog articles about the business of...
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On the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, there is a research & teaching facility called Bamfield Marine Station. There, they affectionately tell a story about an octopus who was a resident of the station. It lived in a tank on a table in one of the teaching labs. This octopus' home was located next to the saltwater fish tank.
The Bamfield staff began to notice that the number of saltwater fish was declining at the rate of 1 fish per day. This declining number was not the result of the fish dying due to disease; or there would have been 1 dead fish floating upside-down per day, but there was not. The decrease in the fish population also could not have been the result of one fish feeding off of the others; or there would have been part of a fish or "fish bits" suspended in the water. That did not occur either. At the same time, the octopus in the adjacent watery home was not hungry for its morning feeding. The staff began to suspect that this octopus was getting out of its enclosure in the middle of the night and enjoying a midnight entree of fish. To test their hypothesis, they set up a video camera to capture the night time activities within the lab. The camera revealed that this octopus would attach the suckers of a couple of its arms to the lid of its tank, gently push up on the lid & slide it carefully onto the table. With the remaining arms, this octopod would crawl out of its saltwater receptacle, sidle across the tabletop & glide up the glass of the fish tank. While staying attached to the glass, it removed the cover and crawled in. The octopus sat patiently, watching its menu items swim by, picked one & chowed down. When meal time was over, the whole process was reversed. The staff would find the octopus where it was supposed to be in the morning, with both tank lids firmly in place. The only evidence of the midnight shenanigans was the salt stains on the table next to the two dwellings. Researchers decided to study the learning ability of this octopus. They varied the types of lids on the octopus tank to see if it would learn how to remove them. The most memorable learning involved a screw-top, mesh cover. A number of nights passed as the octopus worked to figure out the best way to attach a couple of sucker arms to the screw-top cap. The video camera also revealed that this organism had incredible patience. It took the time to practice its techniques over & over again. With each succeeding night, the octopus got faster and faster at screwing the lid off & on. Only when this night time prowler had mastered the covering did it venture out to hit the all night buffet. In many ways, my students are like this clever octopus. They are capable of learning a plethora of new techniques. Those techniques, however, require patience & practice for mastery. And just as the octopus was able to enjoy a midnight meal after mastering the screw-top lid, my students, when they reach a given level of music mastery, are able to enjoy a beautiful musical buffet of sound.
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AuthorSharon Eden-Smith (@sharonedensmith) is the entrepreneur who established Eden-Smith Music. She will be posting blog articles about the business of...
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The town site of Banff, Alberta, Canada, exists within Banff National Park. This creates a unique environment where residents, tourists & wildlife coexist. The role of the Banff National Park Conservation Officers is crucial to balancing this existence.
One summer day, after swimming at the Sally Borden Fitness and Recreation Centre in Banff, the plan was to:
There were 3 of us. We were coming down a steep hill, heading to Banff Avenue. I was in the lead. I spotted a young black bear bounding through the trees on my right. At our current speeds & trajectories, the bear & I were destined to collide as soon as the bear stepped out onto the pavement. We locked eyes. I slammed on my brakes, causing the other 2 cyclists behind me to do the same. The three of us stopped just as the bear exited the trees, ran across the road directly in front of us & went sprinting through the forest on the other side. When I lost sight of it, I looked back from where the bear had come. A Banff National Park Conservation Officer was making his way through the trees. He had witnessed the entire scene as it unfolded. The officer stopped & spoke with us. He had been tracking the juvenile bear and was moving it out of the Banff town site. The road on which we were traveling was at the edge of the town site. That gave the officer a chance to stop & chat. He was giving the bear a bit of distance. That way, the bear's fear of him could be assuaged, making the situation safer for the bear & for humans. The Conservation Officer spent a few minutes explaining the techniques that are used in Banff National Park to move the bears that have strayed into human territory, back into the wild. He, effectively, calmed our fears while teaching us about animal conservation. When we parted, he continued tracking the young bear to ensure that it had left the town site. We cycled down to Banff Avenue. The fear that I saw in the bear's eyes that day was the same fear that I had felt. It is also the fear that my students have when I present them with new material, especially when they do not believe that they are capable of learning it. I use a number of techniques to assuage that fear so that they can feel safe and begin to learn. I become the Banff National Park Conservation Officer, using my skills & knowledge to keep all those involved safe, especially those young juvenile bears that are in my charge.
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AuthorSharon Eden-Smith (@sharonedensmith) is the entrepreneur who established Eden-Smith Music. She will be posting blog articles about the business of...
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November 2019
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