by John | May 27, 2014 | Music
Wikipedia image
Some of the profiles we provide our ICI/PRO members become instant classics. Case in point… Chrispins' (Chris Hawthorne) Four Corners (Two Ways) class profile.
Many Instructors have commented that they (and their classes) enjoy the simplicity and effectiveness of this profile. Many have added it to their portfolio of go-to profiles – which is awesome, except after a few classes the playlist maybe getting a bit tired.
Well Chris has published two new playlists you can use!
Chris has some additional cuing notes and Deezer links at her post here.
by John | Jun 13, 2013 | Instructor Training, Master Instructor Blog, Music
We all rely on music as a tool. Tools are used for building things and it's common to describe our practice of creating profiles as; “I'm building my class”. Most of us put a bunch of effort into; “building our playlist”. Track selection is often by BPM or song length. We categorize and file/store our music in ways designed make the selection quicker and easier, i.e. flats, climbs, etc…
In my workshop at home I do the same thing. I have a big tool box with a bunch of drawers. Each drawer has a specific type of tool (sockets, wrenches, screwdrivers), many are arranged by size (1/4″, 1/2″, 10mm, 14mm), or purpose (Phillips Head, Straight Blade, Allen Head).
I'm a self-professed “Tool Guy” – Tim Taylor was one of my favorite TV characters of all time. Tim understood it's “all about the tools”. My Grandfather was often accused (by his wife) of “spending 5 hours to design and build a tool that would save him 2 minutes, on a job he'd only do once.” So I come by this naturally 🙂 Whenever I need to build/fix/repair or create something the first thing I do is find the tools I'll need for the job. And no, I'm not beyond spending an afternoon/day/month designing a tool to solve some problem I'm having. Case in point is my Red Pedal Tool for studios using the red Schwinn triple link pedals. That took about a year from start, to a finished product.
My class preparation probably isn't much different from yours [wlm_firstname]. I start with a basic “plan” and then I select different tracks based on their value as a tool; “I need a 6 minute song @ 150 BPM for this climb I have planned” isn't any different from; “I need a 14mm end-wrench to remove the lawnmower blade, so I can sharpen it”.
The resulting playlist is very functional, very Indoor Cycling 2.0. But I'm learning can also be a bit sterile – dare I say soulless?
This morning a long-time member said hello to me, as I was leaving the club after my 6:00 am class. Her comment stopped me in my tracks; “I so wish I had taken your class this morning John… everyone was saying how great the music was”.
That's not something I hear very often, to be truthful, almost never. What was different this morning? I didn't use a playlist of my own creation. In fact the playlist I used didn't even fit what I had planned. The BPM was all wrong, efforts started in the middle of the songs – and often continued through track changes. There was nothing right about any of it (Rick Springfield?) – the musical equivalent of using a butter knife instead of a proper screwdriver… and yet they loved it.
This morning I used Team ICG Master Trainer Missy Crosson's playlist from her ICI/PRO Podcast # 263 — Rolling to the Classics Audio PROfile.
So, Is it wrong to rely on music as a tool? I'm seeing how it could be for me.
by John | May 16, 2013 | Music, Spotify
ICI/PRO member question:
When I click on the links nothing happens as I try to bring the playlists into Spotify. I also clicked on each person's name/profile but Spotify says they are unknown user?
Please help, I think I'm way off. I'm still trying to learn this app. Also, in order to take advantage in my class, I have to get a Premium account to stream through my iPhone right?
Thanks!
My response:
Hi – I'll try to help.
Yes you need a Spotify premium account to use your iPhone. You can
get a free 30 day trial to see if Spotify is right for you.
There's a setting in Spotify that maybe preventing this.
Open Spotify – Up at the top go to Edit > Preferences > and then scroll down to Open Spotify automatically and check the Allow Spotify to be started from the web box.
Let me know if that solves it 🙂
John
P.S. You'll notice that I have the Don't Open Automatically box ticked. That setting prevents Spotify from opening on computer startup, but doesn't prevent Spotify from opening if you click a track or playlist link.
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Do you ever Shazam a track and then forget about it… only to be pleasantly surprised to find it later in our tagged lists?
I remembered to check this morning and here's what I found:
by Christine Hawthorne | Apr 30, 2013 | Instructor Training, iTunes & Spotify Training, Music, Spotify
When I joined Spotify Premium almost a year ago, I just loved the ease of using it to create and share playlists so much that I was able to overlook some of the problems I had with it’s cluttered look and lack of social features. Now, with Spotify’s newest updates, many of those problems have been fixed, making it even easier to find and follow other people and artists.
If you haven’t already taken advantage of the update, I highly recommend it. While there is one major drawback (I’ll get to that.), I’m finding the advantages to be worth it.
The first thing you will notice with the new update is the less cluttered look. Now it is much easier to navigate your profile page, playlists and activity sections. On the right side of your desktop screen, there is no longer a ‘favorites’ list. It has been replaced with a larger activity bar. Above the activity bar, you will find a handy ‘Who To Follow’ box. This box highlights people or artists that other people you follow are connected to-a great way to find new people to follow! Here’s a tip: If you don’t like Spotify’s current suggestion, click the ‘x’ on the top right of the box and a new suggestion will pop up.
You might also notice that the ‘Share’ and ‘Start Radio’ buttons are just above your playlist now for quick access. Tip: When you click ‘Share’, and then ‘Post To Feed’, you can add a little message that will show up on your follower’s feed. This would be a great place to share something about your playlist or a specific song in your playlist.
One of my favorite things about the newest update is the social section, with it’s emphasis on following others and viewing their activity. Click on a user and go to their profile page. You can view their published and followed playlists just like before AND you can now see their most recent activity and their ‘following’ activity-another great way to find new people to follow!
With all of these great new updates comes one little glitch. This one has caused instructors quite a bit of frustration. They took away the playlist timer. I can’t think of a good reason why they would do it, but they did. To get around this, I use on online timer which you can find here. It adds an extra step to my playlist preparation, and it’s kind of an inconvenience, but it really doesn't take too much longer once you get used to it.
These changes in Spotify are a step in the right direction, and I hope to see more updates and changes from them in the future. Great job on this update Spotify!
What do you think? Do you like the new updates? Is there anything you would like to see Spotify add to make your job as an instructor easier?
by Barbara | Feb 6, 2013 | Music
Sorry, wrong type of cycling track.
Cycling music is like none other — it has nutritional value and feeds your soul. But it takes time and effort to find extraordinary tracks, and instructors often become stagnant, relying on the same music they taught years ago.
Back by popular demand, ICI/PRO is collecting a list of your favorite tracks for 2013! While all the songs may not represent your style of teaching, I encourage you to learn the “language” of a different genre — be it the sheer intensity of an instrumental, the verbal play and urban rootedness of mainstream hip-hop, or the beautiful vocals of new Indie artists. In the words of Frank Zappa, “Your mind is like a parachute….it works best when open.”
Join the party and post your favorite track! Click here to subscribe at our free PRO-Visitor level and add your's below.
Feel free to incorporate tips on how you teach each song, including terrain, rpm’s or inspirational cues. As a subscriber to the ICI/PRO newsletter, you’ll receive this highly coveted list once the tracks are compiled and alphabetized. And for you Spotify fans, we'll create a playlist just for you.
Below are 3 of my favorites — Enjoy!
Jaytech/Steve Smith — Stranger (Kyau and Albert Remix)
Beautiful piano just before midpoint is perfect teaching moment…buildup…add gear until legs begin to bog down then powerful standing climb for remainder of song.
Sultan & Ned Shepard featuring Sia/Usher/Martin Solveig — Walls (3LAU Vocal Edit)
Uplifting finish line track with two 30-sec intervals/sprints
I'm not sure if this is the correct version, but it's pretty good – John
ATB – Believe in Me (A&T Remix)
These and more are compiled on our 404 Top Indoor Cycling Tracks list. Grab it by joining as a free PRO-Visitor ICI/PRO Member.
