xricci
November 11th, 2002, 01:22 PM
Eric J. Iannelli, on the benefits of MP3 sharing...
Because "Jazz MP3" is in its infancy, I can't say with any accuracy where it will be in six months or even six weeks. I would hope it thrives. However, its mission is quite clear: to encourage the discussion and exchange of jazz music via the Internet.
I sense that many jazz industry professionals are skeptical about how MP3 sharing benefits the jazz artist and the jazz record label. With pop music, one might be able to argue that it's taking a financial toll on the big labels (to which the solution is quite simple: drop the exorbitant CD prices). But jazz has always had a dedicated following with an enduring concern for the musicians as individuals as well as the future of the music itself, and few, if any, jazz fans would exchange music files if it were to prove a threat to the music in any way. Much to the contrary, MP3 sharing creates a forum through which lesser-known artists have a chance to be heard, particularly those on indie labels that lack extravagant promotional budgets. And once these artists are discovered by a new audience, the issue of CD burning is nugatory. Have you ever known a jazz fan who didn't have to have the original liner notes, special edition packaging, and the like? Or would they ever pass up a chance to see them live (the best source of income for small acts)?
To put it quite plainly and without too much oversimplification, MP3 sharing got its bad name from the major labels who panicked when they saw the profits from their latest Top 40 chart entry disappearing. Kids indifferent to the artist but fond of the latest catchy tune were downloading the album to have it on hand and listen to it for the three months that it's in the public eye. Why should they buy a $15 CD if it's going to be gathering dust within a few weeks? In other words, pop music's inherent ephemerality is coming back to bite the major labels in the ass. To think that jazz is at risk for the same reason is an erroneous parallel and a misappraisal of the fans of the genre.
Furthermore, "Jazz MP3" promotes a discussion of the music that would be all but impossible to attain by other means. Rarities and outtakes that have long been ignored come to light through free and open exchange, cultivating a deeper appreciation of the music. Using “Classical MP3” as an example, Leonard Bernstein's long-forgotten TV lectures for the BBC were recently ripped into MP3 format and distributed among the group to universal acclaim. Allow me to emphasize the nature of this: six two-part hour-long lectures that would otherwise have remained lost among the BBC archives were exhumed, dusted off and are now in the hands (or hard drives) of delighted aficionados. This is hardly the activity of spendthrift opportunists who would passively watch small labels fold, just because they managed to save a buck or two.
I hope that this explains the philosophy behind "Jazz MP3" and most (though admittedly not all) file-sharing in general.
Personally, I would not take part in anything of this kind if I thought it a detriment to the music I love; rather, I do it because I hope to see jazz music continue and flourish.
--Eric J. Iannelli (http://groups.msn.com/jazzmp3)
Because "Jazz MP3" is in its infancy, I can't say with any accuracy where it will be in six months or even six weeks. I would hope it thrives. However, its mission is quite clear: to encourage the discussion and exchange of jazz music via the Internet.
I sense that many jazz industry professionals are skeptical about how MP3 sharing benefits the jazz artist and the jazz record label. With pop music, one might be able to argue that it's taking a financial toll on the big labels (to which the solution is quite simple: drop the exorbitant CD prices). But jazz has always had a dedicated following with an enduring concern for the musicians as individuals as well as the future of the music itself, and few, if any, jazz fans would exchange music files if it were to prove a threat to the music in any way. Much to the contrary, MP3 sharing creates a forum through which lesser-known artists have a chance to be heard, particularly those on indie labels that lack extravagant promotional budgets. And once these artists are discovered by a new audience, the issue of CD burning is nugatory. Have you ever known a jazz fan who didn't have to have the original liner notes, special edition packaging, and the like? Or would they ever pass up a chance to see them live (the best source of income for small acts)?
To put it quite plainly and without too much oversimplification, MP3 sharing got its bad name from the major labels who panicked when they saw the profits from their latest Top 40 chart entry disappearing. Kids indifferent to the artist but fond of the latest catchy tune were downloading the album to have it on hand and listen to it for the three months that it's in the public eye. Why should they buy a $15 CD if it's going to be gathering dust within a few weeks? In other words, pop music's inherent ephemerality is coming back to bite the major labels in the ass. To think that jazz is at risk for the same reason is an erroneous parallel and a misappraisal of the fans of the genre.
Furthermore, "Jazz MP3" promotes a discussion of the music that would be all but impossible to attain by other means. Rarities and outtakes that have long been ignored come to light through free and open exchange, cultivating a deeper appreciation of the music. Using “Classical MP3” as an example, Leonard Bernstein's long-forgotten TV lectures for the BBC were recently ripped into MP3 format and distributed among the group to universal acclaim. Allow me to emphasize the nature of this: six two-part hour-long lectures that would otherwise have remained lost among the BBC archives were exhumed, dusted off and are now in the hands (or hard drives) of delighted aficionados. This is hardly the activity of spendthrift opportunists who would passively watch small labels fold, just because they managed to save a buck or two.
I hope that this explains the philosophy behind "Jazz MP3" and most (though admittedly not all) file-sharing in general.
Personally, I would not take part in anything of this kind if I thought it a detriment to the music I love; rather, I do it because I hope to see jazz music continue and flourish.
--Eric J. Iannelli (http://groups.msn.com/jazzmp3)