For anyone interested in checking out some great music, I can only recommend listening to the work of Austrian guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel. I have included an amazing session he recorded with Brian Blade below, followed by a Spotify link for some of his other work – including solo albums.
Please check him out wolfgang muthspiel
Open Letter to Lord Mandelson, First Secretary of State, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation & Skills (UK)
The Digital Music License (DML) – why and how a new public license for the legal consumption of music on the Internet would provide a solid alternative to the proposed ‘3 strikes’ legislation
Update: Greek Translation here
Dear Lord Mandelson,
The proposed “3 Strikes” legislation is flawed in many more ways than I could hope to outline in this letter, and many of these issues have already been addressed in many other places. Therefore I shall provide only a quick summary of some of the key issues, and then move on to describe what a fruitful, realistic and decidedly more pragmatic alternative could look like.
Share this cow gerd Unauthorized use of music on the Internet is not a technical problem but a business issue. The reasons why the global ‘free’ sharing of music via the Internet (whether streamed or downloaded) is growing exponentially cannot be nullified by technological means. Rather, the digital music (r)evolution clearly poses a myriad of business and socio-cultural problems that require us to devise a new social contract that legalizes what people actually do, and then build new business models around it.
To read the rest of this excellent post, go to MediaFuturist: Open letter to Lord Mandelson: here is how to solve the Internet Music Problem – Legalize It!.
There was a time when songs were songs. When there were the albums that you owned and those that you did not. When there was a distinct difference between the music that you liked and the artists that you didn’t care for at all.There was a time when the music you that collected was actually a physical thing; it represented your identity and served as a mirror of your taste. When the albums you had access to, beyond those that you owned, were limited to that of your friend’s and family’s. When the only way you could expand your collection was to purchase more music or temporarily borrow a copy of theirs.There was a time — one I barely remember — where these boundaries defined my music experience, but those days are gone now, and we can never get them back. Once the album format fractured and individual songs became the focal point of music consumption, companies like Pandora, iLike, Last.FM, iMeem, and others began the process of discerning the unique characteristics of each song, and building recommendation engines around them.
To check out the rest of this post go to The Barriers of Music Consumption: Past & Present – hypebot.
Here is a visual podcast of the paper I am giving in Bristol later this month. It concerns Zappa’s relationship with Politics, and although it has the occasional mispronunciation – it is hopefully of interest. It is essentially a amended version of the word version I published a while back, but also includes some visuals and the occasional audio clip.
Two years ago, the ‘Roland Music Academy’s’ launch took place at the ATRiuM in Cardiff. It was a great event, so here are some pictures of the day, most which document Roland Founder Mr Kakahashi’s professorship.
Britain has the chance to leapfrog America as the world’s biggest music producer over the next decade, but it needs government help to realise this ambition, according to UK Music, the umbrella group which represents UK labels, artists and managers.
It is calling for the government to form a “creative industries cabinet committee” to bring the numerous departments that deal with Britain’s creative industries together with entrepreneurs and executives, and to report directly to the prime minister.
To read the rest of the article click below
Sharkey calls for musical backing from ministers | Business | The Guardian.
Here is an interesting but alarming post regarding the impact that the Digital Economy Bill could have on piracy. The French seem to be at a similar stage – but the ‘three strikes and out’ proposal looks like it is not working – with piracy going up!! Read an interesting post by clicking on the link below.
Record industry: ignore that French piracy study!.
I am considering writing an academic paper on the Metheny Orchestration concept for a music technology conference in the UK. Here is a range of links that I still need to explore myself – but interesting information.
http://www.eqmag.com/article/number-5-alive/April-2010/110739
http://www.eqmag.com/default.aspx
http://www.keijzerfotografie.nl/item-x.php?itemId=222076
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/apr10/articles/orchestrion.htm
http://www.rhein-main.net/sixcms/detail.php/rmn01.c.7407635.de
http://jazztimes.com/articles/25846-pat-metheny-welcome-to-the-machine
http://jazzinsidemagazine.com/publications/guide/march-2010
http://www.nmz.de/online/pat-metheny-und-sein-retro-futuristisches-solo-orchester
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/10053/1037275-388.stm#ixzz0gH10X7w9
My last post on Pat Metheny has made me think about a book chapter I had published recently on the impact of jazz guitarists on the Jazz canon. Out of all electric guitarists, I would suggest that Metheny has done more than anyone to redefine the jazz aesthetic. Almost from his first album in the mid 1970’s, his music not only portrayed a totally identifiable and original guitar style, but also an open mindedness regarding what jazz can be. I have always been fascinated about the way that he (and other musicians) uses technology to formulate his music both in the studio and live, but his ‘Orchestration’ album takes this process to a new level’. Not only is he able to perform alongside himself in the ‘virtual’ manner he achieved on Watercolours (1977) New Chautauqua (1979), but this time alongside a more embodied version of himself. Building on the work of guitarists such as John Mclaughlin and Larry Coryell, Metheny’s music and image has created not only a new definition for what jazz can sound like, but also the processes regarding its construction and visuals. To my mind he has to be considered one of the most influential jazz musicians of all time, and I can only plead with the people who consider and construct the histories of jazz to give him the great respect he deserves. If anyone is interested in my book chapter let me know – I will forward a copy or upload it.
Professor Paul Carr Music Consultancy 