The Market Outfit

Astrology can be a very complex science. There are a great deal
of aspects to consider when determining compatibility between
two signs. One of the best, easiest, and often overlooked way to
see if two signs are compatible is by simply understanding the
elements.

There are four elements, and each one is attributed to three
specific signs. They are as follows:

Fire: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius

Air: Gemini, Libra, Aquarius

Earth: Taurus, Virgo, Capricorn

Water: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces

Now each of the elements have certain characteristics, and I’ll
give you a brief summary of what those are.

Fire: Positive, Assertive, Determined, Active

Air: Social, Intelligent, Doers, Communicators

Earth: Stable, Enduring, Structured, Introverted

Water: Passive, Receptive, Reactive, Intuitive

It’s possible that you are beginning to understand which
elements are the most likely to blend well together. As a
“general” rule, when dealing with the elements, Fire mixes with
Air, and Earth mixes with Water. I know it seems far too
general, and much too simple to be taken seriously, but in my
experience this has been a solid foundation in considering
compatibility time, and time again. If your a casual Astrology
fan, and calculating planetary aspects between two people’s
charts is not your bag, then this is an much simpler formula you
can incorporate. You’ll find that it sells itself in the end.
You can also get insights as to why you are most attracted to
certain types of people, when the “general” rule does not seem
to apply to you specifically. Of course, a chart would most
definitely compliment this, because you would be able to see
just why you might find yourself leaning towards a certain type.
For instance, my personal chart does not contain a single earth
element, and therefore, I often find myself drawn to the earthy
signs. There are many ways to use this knowledge, and you just
might get a better understanding of who your attracted to and
why.

This article gives the essential basics for how to play the violin. Generally violins are quite commonly available instruments and it is reasonably easy to rent or buy a violin. Children may need smaller violins (from an eighth, quarter, half, three-quarters, seven-eighths up to full size) to accommodate smaller hands if they are going to be learning over an extended period.

The Basics

The bow is held in the right hand with the thumb bent underneath the frog to support it and the other hands loosely gripping the wood. There are many different holds and it its important to find one that suits your hand size and strength. The violin is held with the left hand, with the chin on the chin rest supporting most of the weight, and the fingers loosely coiled around the neck of the violin. The thumb should be relaxed but firm. The left elbow should be curved under the violin. The violin should be roughly horizontal and the right arm held high. The main methods of playing the violin are bowed and pizzicato.

Bowed

The bow should be drawn swiftly and smoothly across the strings, about halfway between the fingerboard and the bridge. A down bow starts with the hand close to the strings pulling across the string from left to right, and is generally used on strong beats. An up bow goes the opposite way, right to left, and is used on weaker beats and upbeats. However with practice down bows and up bows should be fairly difficult to distinguish. Slurs in music indicate that all notes within a slur should be played in the same bow movement. To play loud notes, the bow is pressed down harder on the string using the index finger or the bow is drawn across the string faster. To play more quietly use less pressure or draw the bow across the string slower. In classical music bowed music is indicated by the Italian term arco.

Pizzicato

To play pizzicato (often abbreviated to pizz.) the right thumb should be placed under the fingerboard and the index finger used to pull the string quickly upwards and across. For faster passages, the bow can be held while playing pizzicato, still using the index finger but without the support of the thumb. In more complex and advanced pieces, a small cross above the stave indicates the fingers of the left hand plucking the strings.

Fingering and positions

As there are no physical aids such as frets for violinists as there are for guitarists, accurate tuning comes with immense practice. On a full size violin, the tones are roughly two centimeters apart, but this is difficult to judge when playing since you are seeing from a different perspective. To aid tuning, it is very helpful to have a piano or other keyboard instrument when practicing.

The fingers of the left hand are conventionally named first (index finger) to fourth (little finger). When playing notes other than open strings (G, A, D and E), these fingers must press down hard, so that the string is shortened convincingly for a higher pitch. The standard intervals taught to beginners is tone, tone, semitone, tone (ie. G-A-B-C-D, D-E-F#-G-A, A-B-C#-D-E, and E-F#-G#-A-B). Of course the notes in between can be played by rearranging the hand position.

This is known as first position, where the first finger plays up to a tone above the open string. The next position usually taught is third position, where the first finger plays the note a perfect fourth above the open string (so, for example, third position on the A string would start on the D). All positions from first up to anywhere around tenth can be thus played, and two octaves on one string are considered fairly standard.

About the Author

Looking for information about the violin?
Go to: http://www.mrviolin.com ‘Mr Violin’ is published by Helen Baxter -
The Complete A to Z Of Violin Resources!
Check out more violin articles at: http://www.mrviolin.com/archive

Survivor the show that started the reality TV craze is back with its latest installment, Survivor Season 11 the Maya Empire. CBS will be keeping with its tested and proven formula of abandoning contestants in remote locations where they will live, work, and compete together for 39 days to win the 1 million dollar prize.

For this season contestants will be sent to Yaxh-Nakum-Naranjo National Park in the jungles of Guatemala. The site is an ancient Maya city complete with Mayan pyramids. Contestants will be split into two tribes the named Nakum and Yaxha who will compete against each other in weekly challenges. Producer Mark Burnett and SEG Entertainment will be returning along with popular host Jeff Probst. They have promised to keep the show interesting this season with not just one surprise but two.

The choice of the shows location was not without some controversy, originally set to be filmed in the South Pacific producers had to change the venue after the tsunami at the end of 2004. The producers eventually decided the offer from Guatemala was the best. The Guatemalan government and board of tourism are hoping for a boost in travel to for the country as result of the show.

Recently there has been a trend among reality TV shows to find ways to cast famous or popular celebrities, and Survivor is trying this as well. The most well known of all the contestants is ex Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Gary Hogeboom. Many fans wonder if his notoriety will work against him on the show. Another popular contestant is sports radio talk show host Danni Boatwright. In addition to being a broadcaster Ms. Boatwright is the ex-wife of Country Music Star Wade Hayes and was Miss USA Contestant and was Miss Kansas in 1996. Many longtime fans of the show are concerned that the shows popularity has attracted aspiring actors, actresses, and models to the cast who the show as way to help their careers.

About The Author

Gary Mitchell

To help you keep up with all the tribal council meetings, immunity idol winners, and latest news from Survivor Guatemala be sure to visit http://www.SurvivorScoop.com. This article was written by Gary Mitchell who runs SurvivorScoop and several other entertainment based websites.

NOTE: You’re welcome to “reprint” this article online as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the “about the author” info at the end).