Who are we? - UseYourEars.com

About Us	UseYourEars.com is a SW London based Music Portal aimed at musicians and music industry professionals. Its concept started in 2001 and has grown from a small internet experiment into a large worldwide members list. Our members range from songwriters, musicians, managers, producers, promoters, event organisers, teachers, composers etc.. right up to music listeners themselves. We then use our database to help network people together much like a contacts service. We also provide services to musicians via our network of contacts and have links to resources online. Our aim is to help Stimulate Music and assist Creativity.

Virgilio Fino	Virgilio Fino started playing guitar at the age of 10 and plays a variety of other musical instruments. He is a songwriter/composer and producer. His favourite bands are Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, The Beatles, Donovan, Santana, Traffic, Fiction Plane, The Storys, Fingertips... He has been networking music industry people and musicians for over 10 years and has been backstage with many bands and met many artists.. including, David Gilmour, Rick Wright, Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Sting (The Police), The Legendary Donovan Leitch, Kylie Minogue, Right Said Fred, Paul Rodgers (Free & Queen & Paul Rodgers), Boz Burrell (King Crimson), Chris Cornell (Soundgarden, Audioslave), Ben E. King (The Drifters/Stand By Me), Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull), Janie Hendrix (Jimi Hendrix's sister), Pete Brown (Cream/White Room/Sunshine of your Love, I feel free), Mick Taylor (John Mayall's Bluesbreaker/ Rolling Stones) to name a few. He speaks two languages (English & Portuguese), specializes in mobile technology, the Internet, Search engine optimization, fixing computers, working all night! :o) Occupations have included Price Waterhouse, The premium rate industry, web design, marketing & general technology consultancy.

Nathalie Plessis	Nathalie Plessis started playing Piano at the age of 4 in her native country of France. She speaks and writes in three languages (English, French & Portuguese) and has studied Business and Marketing. She has experience in various areas of the music industry. She has worked in music video production and commissioning with a wide range of artists including, David Morales, Honeyz, Paul Van Dyke and Another Level. At Rive Droite Music, she worked as A&R manager and as a song plugger. The company was involved in writing & producing worldwide hits for Cher, Kylie Minogue, Katherine Jenkins, Leann Rimes, Backstreet Boys, Clay Aiken and Faith Hill amongst many others. Her involvement in the songwriting/production process & her experience in publishing enabled her to develop further her creative skills & gain a good understanding of the music business. At Enable Music, she worked as a project manager alongside Mike Andrews former EMI Marketing Director. Nathalie also had the opportunity to work as an assistant to Nick Gatfield, former President at Island Records till he joined EMI as President of A&R for both UK & America. This enabled her to work with high profile artists, managers & senior music executives. More recently Nathalie has been working at Universal Music International in catalogue & TV marketing as a product manager. She coordinated simultaneous projects including U2's Remastered Boy/War/October worldwide release & has also been in charge of releasing artists and/or theme compilations, greatest hits & best of including the latest Status Quo, ‘Pictures’ 40 years of hits album. Her past & present experiences within the music industry in both UK independent & major structures has helped her to gain a good understanding of the business, develop her creative skills & knowledge of the music scene.

Our Associates	Precise Mastering - Sam John runs Precise Mastering based in South West London near Streatham Common. They are a professional Online CD and Vinyl Mastering service and Sam has worked with top names in the industry but is also keen to help up and coming artists achieve a professional sound. The Joint - Central London’s premier rehearsal facility at The Joint. Acoustically precise, air-conditioned ground floor studios all featuring natural light and custom-designed sound reinforcement. Also offering backline, storage, and pa hire. UseYourEars members qualify for a discount Tech Music Schools - Tech Music Schools provide courses and tuition in Keyboards, Drumming, Vocals, Bass and Guitar. Visit their websites at Drumtech Vocaltech Guitar-X Keyboardtech Will Wilson - Will is a video game programmer and contributes with his amazing photography. Check out his photos on the Featured Bands page. Elliot Chalmers - An independant music Lawyer who contributes to our News Portal. UseYourEars.com members qualify for a free initial consultancy. Check out his site here. Mike Andrews - Mike was Marketing Director at EMI and helps out with advice. He is also available for consultancy to UseYourEars.com members at a preferential rate. Visit EnableMusic Nick Feldman - Nick was the Director of A&R at Sony Europe and helps out with advice as well as being on the lookout for new talent. Annie Roseberry - Annie was Head of A&R for the commercial label division at SONY/BMG. Annie helps out with artist development & advice. Nina Naran - Nina runs Media Bitch which represents and promotes individuals in art, fashion, media & entertainnment. Her clients include Storm Thorgerson. Private and Confidential Music is based in the idyllic surroundings of Kingston-Upon-Thames. Their studio (Fairlight Mews Studio) is based around a Protools HD3 Accel rig and Logic Pro 7, and incorporates a large 30m2 live room with high ceilings and wooden floors along with a lovely Yamaha G2 Grand Piano (an acoustic piano that also transmits and receives midi). The studio is well suited towards Small Acoustic Ensembles, Vocal Sessions (including Small Choirs), Over-Dubs, and Mixing. Their normal rate for studio hire is £70 + VAT per hour, but as a special rate to ‘Use Your Ears’ members they are offering it for £50 + VAT per hour with the restriction that it must be a booking of a minimum 5 hours. Please quote ‘Use Your Ears’ to get these prices and an engineer is included in the cost. Producer available upon request (fee negotiable). Visit PnC Music. Alaska Studios in Waterloo (rehearsal & live rooms). Visit Alaska Studios Booking agent Neil O’Brien at Neil O’Brien Entertainment (Booking Agency & Promotion). Roster includes The Storys, Keren Ann, …Neil loves big melodies, folk/country music. Concorde International Agency (Booking Agency). Roster includes pop acts such as All Saints, Atomic Kitten, Will Young, Take That, Westlife, etc…. Visit CIA Aby offers illustration, graphic design & photography services. Her work ranges from designing logos, flyers, posters, websites, album sleeves, etc… Visit Aby's Site Jennifer Tolley is a music photographer based in the West Midlands. She works for Kerrang Radio & Magazine, Barfly Birmingham, Salvo Magazine, Birmingham Evening Mail & Post, Overplay, MTV2. She is available to shoot any artist or band promo live or on location. Visit JHT Photography Andy Fallon is a Music photographer based in London. His Clients include Sony/BMG, Virgin Music, Atlantic, Mercury, Universal records and many more. Andy's editorial work can been seen in MOJO, NME, Spin magazine and The Guardian. A complete Art Direction package is available including a team of hair/make up and prop department. Visit AndyFallon.co.uk If you would like to become an associate of UseYourEars then please contact us.

Thanks to	Paul at mavenit.com (for his technical knowledge), Roy and Mike, Tony Moore for the advice , David Stark at SongLink, Delphine at EMI, Stephen at PNC, Will Wilson and Richard Powell for photos, E.J.C.D. Oliveira for the video footage, Colin & Helen for all the help and all our members and everyone else who we forgot to name.. You know who you are!

Supporting Music by Networking Musicians & the Music Industry.