Blue Bear School of Music

Happy Monday everyone! For this entry in our Local Band Spotlight, we're keeping it close to our hearts with a student from our Beat Making program at Bay View Family YMCA ! Eric is one of our amazing students, and he made this album under the moniker Cold Topic, and it's great! Congrats to him, and Andre and Jonathan (the instructors for the program) for the work put in! #localhiphop #makinbeats #youngproducer

Howdy! Here's another Music Mentors clip, and this one features another one of our great teachers, Michael Chulada. In this clip he tells me of the 1st music he bought and a lucid dream he had that corresponds to it all. To see more of these Music Mentors clips, hosted by Cole, or to take a class, click the link! https://bluebearmusic.org/community/music-mentors/

Hey.. Let's dance this morning out! Two legends of the microphone, Patti LaBelle and Mariah Carey give us the goods with Patti's classic, "Got to Be Real"... I hear you smilin'.. Enjoy that! :) #thiskitchenisfordancing #pattilabelleislegend

Welcome to the weekend! It's Cole Odin -Ownership, Blue Bear's outreach director with some new music for your Friday. In this installment in the Virtual Concert Series, I give you Damon McMahon and Amen Dunes, who's album "Freedom" was easily my favorite record of 2018. In this live clip from KEXP, they give us a cool take on one of the best songs on the record, "Miki Dora". It's a tale of the disgraced surfing guru of the same name, but also one of the dichotomy of humanity...... taking the bad with the good. The song's groove reminds me of the Grateful Dead if they teamed up with The Verve. Take a moment and enjoy one of the best "new" artists of recent times. #mikidora #coppinallmytricksbutyoudontdoitlikeme #rollaroundwithme #bringbacklivemusic

We're back with another episode of our Music Mentors series, where I (Cole Odin -Ownership, Blue Bear's outreach director) sit down with artists and teachers to talk about the joy of music. In this clip, I'm with BB teacher, Randy Clark, and we discuss his early beginnings and our mutual love for classic country. This rolls around to pop music and in general, ur love for GOOD music. #ween #classiccountrymusic

We're back for another Virtual Concert Series entry! This one is a fun one from the world of jazz fusion. Weather Report, featuring some of the greatest players in history, rock us through "Birdland". Check it... #jacopastoriusisgod #toesgetatappin #fingersgetasnappin

YES! These three amazing ladies, celebrating one amazing man, through this amazing take of the most amazing love song, is.... well, AMAZING. My only critique is that it's not longer. Please enjoy, "As" by the one and only Stevie Wonder, as sung by India Arie, Janelle Monáe, and Jill Scott . #tearsofjoyandjoyinsidemytears #triplethreatofvoice #steviewonderismyhero

https://docs.google.com//1FAIpQLSdh7Ci-KayljwzxSG/viewform

It's Music Mentors time again and for this one, we've got a special one. I was fortunate enough to sit down with the one and only Bob Weir of many amazing bands, the first of them being Grateful Dead. In this clip we talk about his pals Steve Earle , and Ramblin Jack Elliot, and he tells the story of sneaking in to see a show, where he met Jack. That leads to me telling the story of how I snuck into see TOOL disguised as an usher. Good times... :) To see more of these Music Mentors clips, hosted by Cole, or to take a class, click the link! https://bluebearmusic.org/community/music-mentors/

Shaun McGonegal Tribute When I met Shaun at his studio on February 1, 2011 for my first drum lesson, I had no idea he would be my teacher, mentor and dear friend for the next nine and a half years. I took for granted that we would have at least that many years of friendship ahead of us. It goes without saying that Shaun was a gifted teacher patient, detailed, a stickler for proper technique, passionate. After a year of lessons, he encouraged me to sign up for a Blue Bear ...band workshop and was my partner in crime for the next six years of workshops, helping me break down grooves and fills, find my own voice as a drummer and push beyond my comfort zone. However, it is Shaun, the friend, that I will miss the most. Growing up in Ontario province he was an accomplished hockey player until he chose drums over hockey and never looked back. He found his way to San Francisco so many years ago and one of his proudest moments was becoming a US citizen on April 16, 2014. Shaun always joked about what a poor student he was (compared to his older brother, whose academic shoes he couldn’t or wouldn’t fill) and it wasn’t until a student gave him the biography of a favorite musician that he discovered his love of reading. Shaun loved a good bourbon and watching the Warriors play. He was a good listener with a silly sense of humor. He and I attended Drum Corps International competitions at Stanford for several years and were like little kids - so jazzed to witness an amazing display of musical talent. Before COVID-19 brought all of our lives to a screeching halt he was excited about a new band he was putting together, reviving some original music from years past. I am sad that I will never get to see him play in person. Shaun will always hold a special place in my heart. One of his biggest thrills was taking lessons from Tony Williams. I believe they have reconnected out there somewhere in the universe and that makes me smile. Terry Boyer

Happy Saturday! It's time for another entry in the VCS, and for this one, we're gonna get purrrrdeee. James Blake performs one of his best tunes, "Retrograde" on Letterman. Listen for the "HIT" when he says, "Suddenly I'm hit"... Be sure to have the VOLUME UP and the BASS LOUD.... The tone is "next level", "raise the arm hairs" kinda badassery. SUDDENLY YER HOOKED. #RATTLETHEWALLS #shakethesystem... If you want to see more amazing performances, curated by Cole, or you want to take a class, please click the link! https://bluebearmusic.org/community/virtual-concert-series/

It's Virtual Concert Series time again and for this one, we're gonna funk! It's still kinda summer, at least in SF, so to celebrate this hot one, here's the inimitable SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE! doing "Hot Fun in the Summertime".... Dig the vocal interplay and the emotions they trade... It's a lovely slice of cool for a hellica hot day. <3 #gooutside #inthecountrysun #everythingiscoooooool... If you want to see more amazing performances, curated by Cole, or you want to take a class, please click the link! https://bluebearmusic.org/community/virtual-concert-series/