Recording of Gauntlet

If that headline doesn't rack up the hits, I don't know what will.

If you're looking for a professional recording of Gauntlet, go here.

One of the great things about having a blog with Blogger is that they provide their users with statistics of how many views their blogs receive, where the hits are coming from, what sites are referring the viewers, and what phrases people typed into search engines to get there.  And it can all be sorted by day, week, month, and all-time, to track trends.

The reason I started this post with the link to a recording of Gauntlet is because that's the number-one search engine query that leads them to my blog.  I get searches like this all the time:

Gauntlet recording
Gauntlet download free
Gauntlet Spata MP3

Sorry, but you won't find a free MP3 of Gauntlet online. Not that I make a ton of money from downloads – I really don't – but the best recording is the one from Alfred Publishing and, while you can listen for free, it costs $.99 USD to download.  That's just the way it is. 

There's also inordinate number of searches for "Gauntlet violin parts free."  Guess what?  You're not going to get free sheet music. You'll have to buy it like a responsible, law-abiding citizen.

I also get hits for information about myself and my music. Searches like this:

Doug Spata composer
Avatar Doug Spata music
Star of Valor orchestra

... and they're either led to this blog or to my website, which has all sorts of information.

Here's a weird one. After my trip to Los Angeles last summer, I wrote about my visit pilgrimage to Igor Stravinsky's house and to his star on the Walk of Fame. I titled the post "1260 North Weatherly Drive" and, consequently, I get tons of hits from people looking up that address.  One of the search results for my name in Google looks like this:

 

I think people click on it thinking that that's my address. Let me be clear – that's not my address.  I sincerely hope that the current residents of Igor's house aren't getting mail addressed  to me.

Another oddity: After I posted X-ray images of my broken shoulder last spring, I've had a lot of hits from people searching for "actual TSA scanner images."  Weird.

Blogger also tells me where, geographically, the hits are coming from. Most of them are from the United States and Canada, as expected, but I've been surprised by hits from Jordan, Australia, China, Argentina, Brazil, and the UK, among many other places. I can only assume that people from those countries either: a.) stumbled onto my blog by complete accident or b.) have heard of my music and sought me out on purpose.  I know it's the former but it's good for my ego to believe the latter.

So no matter how you got here, thanks for reading and I hope you come back.  As per my tradition, I'll be blogging about the Academy Awards all next month, so stay tuned for some good oscar speculation and movie-related posts!