It was October 2009, on a cold autumn evening in New York. It was not in my plans to be dancing between the seats of an old theatre on Broadway. I had flown a few days earlier from Madrid, to do some commercial research on the participation of American wedding dress companies in trade fairs. Since I had some free time, when I finished interviewing designers at the Waldforf Astoria, I immersed myself in the skyscrapers of that city, soaking up the culture of the world’s capital. I visited the MOMA and the Chrysler Building; I walked through Central Park and took the orange ferry to Staten Island to see the city through the eyes of an immigrant on the way back; I crossed the first bridge to Brooklyn, admired the design of the Guggenheim and prayed at St. Patrick’s Church. I had foreseen all of this in my travel plans, except for dancing.

ABBA: the soundtrack of my whole life Why is ABBA suddenly appearing in our lives now? My sister-in-law asked me in a family reunion when I told her that I was writing a case of ABBA. Many people will think that the main reason is because I am an ABBA freak. Nothing could be further from the truth. The main reason is because it seems to me that we do have a lot to learn from Björn and Benny’s career. One of the longest-lived and most productive creative couples in the history of music. They met on 5th June 1966 and, and they are still active and successful today. However, my sister-in-law’s question remained in my teacher’s mind. In class I jokingly say that this is the question of José Mourinho, a famous football coach: Why? It is also the question of the researcher, the journalist, the academic, the businessperson. It is the question that drives us forward as human beings. Man seeks explanations. There are many businesses from which many things can be learned, but why ABBA? It was then that I realized ABBA was the soundtrack that had been with me all my life. I was born in Galicia, in the Northwest of Spain, in the early sixties of the last century. From there, when I was just a child, I watched them, live and in black and white, win the Eurovision Song Contest. It was 1974. At that moment, ABBA was born. The group, designed by Stig Anderson, was formed after that triumph, to manage the success. For the next eight years they swept the world. They went as far as Australia where, when a special TV program about their visit to the country was broadcast, it had a 54% audience share, beating the record set by the broadcast of the man landing on the moon a few years earlier. I saw them born. [...]

This comprehensive collection of 38 cases selected from Ivey Publishing helps students understand the complex issues that marketing professionals deal with on a regular basis. The cases were chosen to help students apply conceptual, strategic thinking to issues in marketing management, as well as provide them with more practical operational ideas and methods. Cases were chosen from around the world, from small and large corporations, and include household names such as Twitter, Best Buy, Ruth's Chris, and Kraft Foods. The majority of the cases are very recent (from 2009 or later). Each chapter begins with an introductory review of the topic area prior to the set of cases, and questions are included after each case to help students to think critically about the material. Cases in Marketing Management is edited by Kenneth E. Clow and Donald Baack, and follows the structure and goals of their textbook Marketing Management: A Customer-Oriented Approach. It can also be used as a stand-alone text, or as a supplement to any other marketing management textbook, for instructors who want to more clearly connect theory and practice to actual cases.

The Little Black Book Of 3-Chord Songs is a collection of over 80 songs, all of which use no more than 3 chords! From favourites that have stood the test of time, such as Jolene (Dolly Parton) and Three Little Birds (Bob Marley), to contemporary hits like Paper Planes (M.I.A.) and Best Song Ever (One Direction), this varied selection is sure to include something for everyone. Perfect for any feldgling guitarist looking to quickly add some classic songs to their repertoire, each piece is arranged in the same keys as the original recordings with chord symbols, Guitar chord diagrams and complete lyrics.

Seminar paper from the year 2012 in the subject American Studies - Miscellaneous, grade: 1,3, University of Göttingen (Philosophische Fakultät), course: The American Musical, language: English, abstract: When Mamma Mia! opened in theaters in the summer of 2008, many reviewers were less than enthusiastic about the film adaptation of the popular stage musical. While the storyline of 20-year old Sophie living on a Greek island with her single parent mother and embarking on a quest to find her father was declared to be flat and incoherent, the cinematic realization of the stage version has similarly been regarded as unsatisfactory. In spite of critics’ dismay, however, Mamma Mia! achieved great box office success. The discrepancy between reviewers’ predictions and the actual perception of audiences raises the question of the origin of Mamma Mia!’s popularity. Ashley Elaine York categorizes Mamma Mia!, amongst others, as a “new breed of women’s giants [...] best be described as `women’s blockbusters ́ and touted as the newest conglomerate trend”. While this relatively broad definition of the woman’s blockbuster and its keys for success is applied by York to different genres and will also be considered, this paper mainly sets out to look at several of its aspects from the point of view of musical studies. Particular emphasis will be put on the use of the well-known ABBA music and its function within the movie and for audience’s reception and involvement as the categorization of the film as a so called jukebox musical will be discussed. Thus, the following questions will be investigated in the course of this paper: Can Mamma Mia! be classified as a jukebox musical, deriving its success from its nostalgic representation of the much loved ABBA music, or does it go beyond this classification to reinterpret the songs in an innovative fashion?

Includes music.