YouTube is bringing together the world’s first collaborative orchestra. And though it’s too late to enter to be considered for the project, it’s not too late to participate by voting on 3,000 audition videos from more than 70 countries and territories spanning six continents. Submissions came from Kazakhstan, Mauritania, Eritrea, Venezuela, Vietnam, Russia and the U.S., and included everything from the violin to the toy piano and even an audition on the musical saw.
The selected few will perform this spring at Carnegie Hall. You can now vote from the selected finalists who have been narrowed down by a panel of musical experts from the London Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra and other leading orchestras around the world. The final selections are based on such criteria as musicianship, vitality of performance and originality.
What a great idea to bring together musicians from around the world that otherwise would never have come together. It’s all a twist of fate and a whole bit of luck bringing together these amateurs and professionals alike to perform on one of the most coveted stages in the world.
This is a great example of social media bringing together a community of musicians from around the world to accomplish a task that couldn’t happen in a 1.0 world. Imagine the camaraderie that these musicians will enjoy… just because of simple videos and votes from strangers like myself that will bring them together for one night at Carnegie Hall. And social networks – whether it’s YouTube, Facebook or another crowd-gathering site – will keep them connected for years to come.
Had I known about this earlier, I may have tried to get a hold of a contra-bass clarinet and entered myself. There’s something about being a part of a group of people symphonizing to make music. It’s a beautiful thing, and I miss it a lot.
Read moreRule #1: Give credit via Twitter name. Examples: @SherryMain or @inculink.
Rule #2: Give credit via Twitter name. Examples: @rww or @AdamAinbinder.
When I read an article or blog post online, I like to see Twitter links to the people who are being mentioned. Why? Because if I’m interested in something they’ve said once, I want to know quickly if there’s more to them.
A Twitter profile is a great way of getting a quick snapshot of someone. In this day-in-age of information overflow, I can’t help judge a book by it’s cover. I have 10-seconds to find out whether someone is interesting or not. I can decide later if in fact that judgment was correct, as I get to know them via tweets. But if you lost me in those first 10 seconds, then you’ve lost me forever.
On the other hand, if you hook me with your Twitter profile, well then you’ve probably got my attention on your blog or website… and probably even Facebook, LinkedIn, or Tumblr.
I find that I learn a lot more by reading the first two pages of a Twitter profile, than I can get out of a personal blog or website. Just yesterday, I connected with @swannny because she is a “tech-crazy, opera-loving geek girl”!
Here’s what I find helps when it comes to general Tweeting habits:
Take advantage of the 160 character profile. Be selective in your words used to describe yourself – and take advantage of the 20 extra characters! What I’ve tried to do in my profile is to connect with others in higher education communications, entice conversations with people who share similar hobbies, and market a personal venture:
Comms Director @ UCIrvine. Business, political, technology and culinary junkie. Enjoy travel, outdoor adventures and photography. Also, co-founder of @inculink.
Diversify your tweets, often. If the entire first page of your Twitter profile are @ replies or purely about your state of mind, I can’t be convinced that I have a connection with you. But a useful business tip coupled with a personal misadventure, plus an intriguing conversation with another Twit will intrigue me enough to follow someone.
Twitter is still a very nascent tool, but its community and its power are growing exponentially. The ways and means in which Twitter can be used could never have been predicted by it’s founders (@ev, @biz and @jack). But online habits have changed the culture of information flow, and I think as content creators on the web, we need to be sure to provide quick links to readers and other creators alike!
Read more
I did my obligatory post on the randomness of me:
OK – I’ll end there. 25 Random Things is the only fad I’ll succumb to… Until the next one from a friend – who I may or may not be friends with in real life – tags me in Facebook and inspires me all over again.
Read moreCurious to revisit Wikimedia and see what photos of mine have been used or remixed under the CC-NC-SA license. There are a few new ones since last year, and others that aren’t listed on Wikimedia, but linked through Flickr’s own analytics tools:
I got an e-mail a short while back to use one of the black lab photo below for a travel magazine highlighting pet-friendly destinations in Orange County too.
The top Google Images Searches that yield traffic to my photos might be telling me that I missed some calling around red and white weddings (???):
The all-time best, but completely wrong use of one of my photos still goes to “Bride dies of heart disease on her wedding day“, which uses a photo of a good friend on her wedding day in Laguna Beach, CA.
Here the catalogue of remixed photos, as referenced in Wikimedia Commons to date:
“Wikipedia Loves Art” is a really cool campaign marrying Wikipedia with Art Museums. In short, this month-long event is a scavenger hunt and free content photography contest among museums and cultural institutions worldwide, and aimed at illustrating Wikipedia articles.
You can add your photographs, to the online Flickr group. Goal lists for LACMA and other museums across the country are listed on the Flickr group page (as well as on Wikipedia, but the Flickr page is easier to read). And each participating museum or cultural institution is giving away cool prizes too!
Wikipedia has become such a trusted resource over the past few years, and the opportunities to contribute to it are endless. Why not do it through something fun like a photographic scavenger hunt?
Here’s one of my photos that I took at the 2007 Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade that made it into Sarah Brightman’s Wikipedia entry (just simply by posting it on Flickr):
I REALLY wish I had the time to do the scavenger hunt! What a great way to promote art while harnessing the power of crowd-sourcing and providing a cultured venue for a very personal, real-life collaboration.
Expand this post for more on rules and participating museums.
Read more