Lots of great entries this week. I guess music is dear to most folks though. Great interpretations of the theme, but I'll make my comments in order of submission, with winners to follow.

atupdate - Tim, a great title for this shot. Music does tend to get kids moving and this little guy seems to enjoy what he's hearing. Well spotted and isolated from the rest of the crowd.

slowpez - Susan, an early and nice entry for this week's challenge. I like the desaturated look for this shot...appropriate and I feel adds to the detail. Sharp, yet soft at the same time due to the lighting.

sealonsf - The expression in the child's face tells the whole story. Great capture and nice conversion work to B/W.

Paleo Pete - Pete, we all have those days when we wished for a different lens, spot, etc. You made this work with the B/W conversion...I doubt it looked as good in color, so kudos. But, as you noted later in the thread, compared to some of the other entries... You did convey a "story" with this shot even without the words you chose to add, and that is one goal of photography.

charliezap - Charlie, interesting image, processed in-camera??? The pencil/brush strokes make for an interesting effect, and I like the angles and natural lighting, but I think the combination of the effect, with the zebra-print, and palm reflections makes it a little too distracting for me.

RollsUp - Nice B/W image which fits the theme. I'm not quite sure whether the musical portion is vocal or more percussive, or equally both.

lukulele - Lou, I really like this image. Not sure exactly what it is though...posterization, converted to B/W then colorized, the grainy/felt-like look, or just the passion in Dawn's face. Music at its best. I could see this as a poster outside the venue advertising the band.

SpecialK - Kyle, nice curves vs lines contrast going in the guitar section you chose to focus on. Very good range of tones, but it just doesn't evoke a strong feeling compared to some of the other images presented.

Bramela - Bruce, I like everything about this shot EXCEPT...there's something funky going on with the candle flame. I don't know whether it's oversharpened or something else, but it almost looks fake on my monitor. Otherwise, composition and the idea behind the shot was great.

Bill2849 - Bill, a pleasing shot of musicians which fits the theme well. From a photographic standpoint, there's a couple blown highlights (understandable under dappled lighting conditions), and skin tones are pleasing, You can see they like the music they're playing in this shot.

rbefly - Ron, great sharpness and isolation of the singer, which can be difficult in a live setting. The shot definitely conveys the passion she has for her work, and the B/W makes for a nice overall feel.

casil403 - Lisa, very bold! Great definition in the pipes and the lighting and look-up angle is fantastic. Composition is spot on with slightly off-center for the front pipe.

fotogaffer - Don, very interesting musical instrument, if you can call and entire tower an instrument. Nicely done B/W conversion and a very unique entry for the theme. Here's some more info on this Carillion.

jmschrei - Joe, nice angles and great conversion to B/W. Very sharp in the center, fading appropriately to the upper right. Though it may be your son's, "Mama's got a squeezebox, Daddy never sleeps at night."

smf - Stuart, very bold, high-contrast image. Reminiscent of BB King. Looks to have had a little posterization added to good effect also.

Jools - Great lighting and shadows! Neat collection of the old wax(?) rolls. A keeper.

Neville - Neville, a very happy and colorful shot of kids making music. Fits the theme very nicely, and interesting choice of keeping the front marcher's trumpet just about dead center in the frame.

StephenHampshire - Stephen, very nice effort here. The subject is easily seen with supporting sheet music. I like the differing angles between the flute and the page fold. Could perhaps be just a little lighter on the pages, but that's a nit.

noelcmn - Creative title! Fits the theme and I like the focus and DOF chosen. Would have been better w/o the bokeh car in the background. Though it adds a splash of color, it does detract a bit from the subject.

ramseybuckeye - Tom, I also like the lighting, and it's very appropriate to the theme. But the reflections and some distortion induced by the glass keep it out of the running compared to some others.

So, a tough choice all around as all the shots fit the theme and were well executed. This makes it come down to the visceral...which shots stoked the feelings for me:

3rd Place:
smf



2nd Place:
casil403



1st Place and Next week's judge/topic picker:
lukulele

[slowpez]

Great job jheu. Thanks for providing an interesting topic and commenting on all the entries. Congrats to smf, casil, and especially to lukulele for a wonderful photo and the first place honors.

[atupdate]

Nice job judging such a great bunch of entries. Congratulations to all of the winners.

Tim

[noelcmn]

Congratulations Lukulele, Casil403 and Smf. Tought one to judge, and I'm in agreement with the choices. Passion is an apt description. And I would also like to know a bit about the PP on this one. I thought it may have come from a different era like Motown. And I think that the seated musician at the back, admiring her singing (without music presumably) adds to the sense of her passion.
Thanks for hosting and judging Jheu02, tough one. Oh, and thanks for the link to the Carillon. Interesting-even if just to say to oneself-I learned something new today. Its fascinating.
Lukulele-what have you got up your sleeve?

[fotogaffer]

Congrats to lukulele on winning this challenge and with such a deserving photo. Also to casil403 and smf on their second and third place finishes. Special thanks to jheu02 for all the effort you put into hosting and judging this challenge. It was an interesting topic choice that elicited some nice interpretations. It was nice to see all your comments on each photo and I enjoyed the link to the Bok Tower Carillon you provided - it is an interesting place to visit if you get the chance.

[ramseybuckeye]

Congrats Luke, well done Lisa and Stu, and other for a great bunch of themed pics. John, excellent job, a lot of good honest comments and excellent choices to award.

[rbefly]

Congratulations to the winners, very worthy photos.
Thanks to jheu02 for running and judging this, so many good photos to choose from.
Ron

[lukulele]

Congratulations to the winners, very worthy photos.
Thanks to jheu02 for running and judging this, so many good photos to choose from.
Ron

Many thanks to everyone who participated in this challenge. Kudos to Lisa and Stuart for their excellent submissions.Special thanks for the detailed commentary by jheu02(John) for the subject and judging. This is an OMG moment for a wonderful 64th birthday present for me to share with our musicians Dawn, Kent, Chris, and Billy. We've worked together for almost a decade presenting relevant music for my students to tie in Human Injustice subjects for their first major research papers in middle school. Casil403 (Lisa) has graciously consented to present, judge, and host a neat "moving" subject for next week's challenge as two now retired teachers will be overseas for a hiking trip of a lifetime for most of September. Please continue to submit and support her with your interpretations and imagery.

Lou

[smf]

Congratulations, everyone! Thanks very much, jheu02, for the challenge, for your conscientious judging, and for your comments on my entry.
Lou, congratulations on your birthday and to both of you retirees! Bon voyage, too.
Stu

[Jools]

Congratulations to all for some great entries. Really enjoyed viewing them.
Kudos to lukulele, Lisa, and Stu. Fine work.
Of course, a thanks to jheu02 for the topic, judging and comments. Well done.

[Paleo Pete]

Congrats to the winners, and thanks for judging and commenting jheu02