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Monday, April 30, 2007

LAST FM PARTNERS

Last.fm, the online social music networking site and intelligent music recommendation engine, and IODA, the Independent Online Distribution Alliance, the global leader in digital distribution, marketing and technology, has announced a licensing and promotional partnership.

"By partnering with one of the most respected and eclectic digital music distributors, Last.fm is giving music lovers around the globe access to the world's most comprehensive library for online streaming radio and the latest free downloads," said Last.fm co-founder Martin Stiksel. "Music discovery is quickly becoming an essential commercial area for the new music industry. This latest partnership with IODA gives the Last.fm community full access to more than three million music tracks on the streaming radio player."

Read the article here.

[Resource http://digital50.com/news/items/BW/2001/07/14/20070416005389/last-fm-and-ioda-partner-to-bring-iodas-extensive-independent-music-catalogue-to-las.html]
at 3:08 pm 0 comments
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Sunday, April 29, 2007

BLOGGING FOR EFFECTIVE MARKETING

Blogs are emerging as powerful marketing tools, particularly for small businesses. They are relatively inexpensive to start and maintain, and yet can be very effective at bringing potential customers to your Web site and keeping current customers in contact with your company

Rather than making a sales pitch or a misdirected endorsement, try tailoring information and services to your target market's lifestyle.

This article is about the effectiveness of blogging for marketing is from Business Week.

[Resource http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/apr2007/sb20070423_465239.htm]
at 7:09 pm 0 comments
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Tuesday, April 24, 2007

BANDS GET BREAK SINGING JINGLES

It is believed to be the first ad campaign of its kind where a local company is tapping into the area's vibrant original music scene showcasing local bands to sing about their product.

And the winner of the jingle competition...

"in the two weeks their radio commercial has been running, he has, indeed, felt "almost famous," hearing more reaction from friends and fans than from playing a month of Starbucks gigs.
"It's great publicity for the local music scene," Taylor said. "I can't tell you how many people have e-mailed us back. There is some validation being in a commercial. I'm spending more time than I usually would cruising commercial radio trying to hear it just for my own fragile ego."

Read more here.

[Resource http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070419/LIFE/704190344/1005]
at 11:39 am 0 comments
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Monday, April 23, 2007

KNOW THY CUSTOMER

Although this piece comes from an article about traditional music retail stores, it also relates to selling music in the digital distribution age.

"If your favorite local record store is going to survive, says Billboard magazine’s Ed Christman, it’s going to have to get to know its customers inside and out, something he says Massachusetts chain Newbury Comics has perfected: “You have to find out who your audience is. If you’re somebody who’s selling to the masses, there’s no way you can compete with Circuit City and Best Buy, but if you have a niche store that specializes in whatever genre or whatever lifestyle, or in Tower’s case, the extensive collection, that’s the game you have to play.”

Read the entire article here.


[Resourcehttp://www.pastemagazine.com/action/article/4088/minding_the_store ]
at 2:23 pm 0 comments
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CONTACT A CELEBRITY

Need to contact a celebrity? Contact Hollywood

I thought I'd include this website out of curiosity, just to blog from a different and lighthearted angle. I don't know if it could be a handy tool for an independent musician but there's no harm in trying.

Through Contact Hollywood, you can find a fan club or contact a musician and so much more. So they say, I haven't tried it myself.

[Resource http://www.contacthollywood.com/]
at 7:16 am 0 comments
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Sunday, April 22, 2007

PROMOTE YOUR MUSIC WITH A POSTCARD

Here's how to create and send your own postcard without leaving your computer.

A nice way to contact your fans or people in the industry to tell them about a special event or even send them to yourself to use as little bio's for your band.

Vertical Response is a website where you can create your own personalised postcard in a few minutes using one of over 800,000 images or by uploading your own.

You choose the size, type in some text and you'll then get a PDF proof to see what it will look like when it's printed. Even printing and posting is taken care of.

For more details head to VerticalResponse.
at 9:43 am 0 comments
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Saturday, April 21, 2007

CALLING QUEENSLAND BASED SONGWRITERS

QMusic is holding a competition for songwriters. If you live in Queensland, Australia you're eligible to enter. It cost $30 for up to 3 entries.

Categories include rock, pop, jazz, blues, hip-hop, electronic, alternative, country, indigenous and world music.

Entries close May 21st. Go to Q Song for the entry details.

[Resource http://www.qsong.com.au/]
at 11:14 am 0 comments
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Friday, April 20, 2007

REAL LIFE SCHOOL OF ROCK

In a career that started in a kind of 'School of Rock' way, US singer-songwriter Corey Smith now makes his full time living as a musician.

Read the full story from the Huntsville Times, Alabama.


[Resource http://www.al.com/entertainment/huntsvilletimes/index.ssf?/base/entertainment/1176369306289300.xml&coll=1]
at 9:00 am 0 comments
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Thursday, April 19, 2007

WORLD'S FIRST FOLDING GUITAR

A folding guitar has been invented and designed by an airline pilot who's also a keen guitarist.

These guitars are available through DeVillain Guitar Company.

The guitars, which are handmade in Sweden, slip into a small backpack which will have no trouble fitting into an overhead luggage bin. The neck folds down with strings still attached, and if it's in tune when you fold it, it will be in tune when you unfold it. The neck and body are connected with an airplane aluminium bolt that ensures maximal connection. Lefty versions aren't currently available, and DeVillain will only produce 300 guitars this year, for a direct to consumer price of EUR 2,600 or USD 3,370. A folding electric bass is in the works.

Now if only someone could do the same with a drum kit!

[Resource http://www.springwise.com/weekly/2007-04-12.htm]
at 11:02 am 0 comments
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Wednesday, April 18, 2007

ALTERNATIVE REVENUE SEARCHING

Will this be the way of the future for record labels?

Music companies are now under pressure to look for alternative revenue streams. One area the record labels have been exploring is to share revenues from tours, performances on television and in films and merchandising.

"You'll see more of this happening. It will be primarily in the area of new artists and new acts," says Adam White at Universal Music Group International.


[Resource http://www.gulfnews.com/business/Technology/10117358.html]
at 6:30 pm 0 comments
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11TH ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL WEB AWARDS

The 2007 11th annual international WebAward competition for Web site development is calling for entries. The deadline for music web sites is May 31st.

Judging is based on design, innovation, content, technology, interactivity, copy writing and ease of use. Winners will be announced in September.


[Resource http://top40-charts.com/news.php?nid=31890]
at 2:20 pm 0 comments
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Tuesday, April 17, 2007

ROOM FOR ONLINE MUSIC

Interesting story here. Here's some highlights:

"There's no evidence that MySpace can be the cornerstone of music industry success," warns Glenn Peoples, the editor of the music business blog Coolfer.com. "Same with YouTube. It's one thing to sign up friends and get people to watch your videos at no charge. It's another to navigate the worlds of digital and physical retail, publicity, promotion and marketing successfully, and then motivate consumers to actually purchase your music."

In Britain, the regulations changed earlier this year to allow chart entries on download sales alone, making it possible to have a hit with just some basic recording equipment and an internet connection.

Soon after, unsigned Colchester-based punk trio Koopa were catapulted into the UK top 40 with their song Blag, Steal and Borrow. It cost the band £120 to register their track at indiestore.com, an online platform where bands can sell their music.

In contrast, it costs a label at least £30,000 to distribute a physical single, and that's before one even gets to the six-figure marketing sums.

"Almost every musician's aim is still to get signed and sites such as MySpace are just a springboard to that. Arctic Monkeys and Lily Allen used such sites to build a fan base. All are now signed.''

Reports of the death of the major label have been exaggerated, it seems.

Read the full article here


[Resource http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/04/09/cnmusic09.xml]
at 9:42 am 0 comments
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Monday, April 16, 2007

WHY THE STARBUCKS DEAL WITH MCCARTNEY CHANGES EVERYTHING

So say the ContraCostaTimes. In a shift that indicates a change in the way people buy and sell their music since the Internet, new non music retail outlets are becoming the new record store.

Read here why the Starbucks case is different.

[Resource http://www.contracostatimes.com/entertainment/ci_5622161]
at 5:26 pm 0 comments
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Friday, April 13, 2007

DO YOU WANT TO SELL MORE CD'S AT YOUR GIGS?

I thought so.

Here's a neat little item that can help you do that. The CD Seller is a CD display stand with a cash box that allows your audience to purchase your CD even while you're performing.
at 10:50 am 0 comments
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Thursday, April 12, 2007

3 STEPS TO A DIY MUSIC VIDEO

DIY Music Video: Do It Yourself! By Jason Cole

With the falling price of digital video cameras and the rise of PC video editing software, producing your own music video is definitely something most every musician can afford to do these days. All you need is a DV (Digital Video) camera, DV tapes, a location to shoot at, a PC, editing software (ala Adobe Premiere), and well, a band! Here’s some info and tips regarding the important pieces of equipment you’ll need.

1. Camera: You’ll be better off buying a DV (Digital Video) camera, they’re best for digital editing, later on. Decent DV cameras go for anything between $400 and $1200, and the tapes are around $8 a piece. One camera that I have used personally is the Canon GL2 MiniDV Digital Camcorder. I had nothing but good experiences with this camera. There are preset settings for the novice user, and at the same time it was very fine tuneable, for the experts out there. Make sure that your camera will shoot in progressive scan mode. Progressive scan is a particular method for displaying images, in which the lines of each frame are drawn in sequence. This will reduce the amount of flickering and increases resolution of the video you are recording. Most cameras come with microphones attached to them, but you probably don’t want to use the audio that will be recorded by the on-board mic as it will be pretty low quality. I suggest picking up a minidisc recorder, run all your instruments into a mixer that is plugged into said mindisc recorder.

2. Shooting: You can shoot your video anywhere, and hopefully you will take advantage of that fact! When editing your video, you will be telling a story. So varied locations would be excellent. If you can, storyboard your video out before you begin scouting locations or shooting. It makes thing 1,000,000 times easier, trust me. One other thing I would recommend would be to make sure that you have adequate lighting. Normal indoor lighting is not picked up by the camera the same way your eye picks it up. I would suggest picking up a book about the basics of video lighting, if you can. But if that is not a possibility, remember one thing, more is better.

3. Editing: You’re going to need to pull your video footage off of your camera onto your computer. Most DV cameras come with a USB cord which will allow you to do just that. You can use the proprietary software that comes with your computer to do that, or you can buy editing software which will do the same thing. Most PCs that have Window XP installed come with Windows Movie Maker. This is a great program for beginners, it allows you to pull footage off of your camera, and then edit said footage. But it doesn’t come with very many editing features. So the more advanced editors might want to plunk down some cash and buy Adobe Premiere, which is a super flexible video editing program with a very steep learning curve. The advanced Mac users out there might want to check out Final Cut Pro.

Now that you have your edited footage, you’ll want to output it onto tape or disc. The easiest thing to do is to burn it to DVD, which most editing programs will have a feature to do this. Once you have your video on DVD, the possibilities are limitless! I hope this article helped understand that music videos are now not just for the pros, anyone can do it yourself!

Jason Cole and DiskFaktory Jams offer free MP3 downloads and music lyrics. Get the information you are seeking now by visiting DFJams.com.

This helpful article was written by Jason Cole and was published at Ezine Articles
at 9:04 am 0 comments
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Wednesday, April 11, 2007

BEFORE THE MUSIC DIES

Here are some interesting thoughts about the the music industry from Kate Pierson of the quirky alternative band the B-52's.

Kate talks about the issues presented in the movie "Before the Music Dies"



“They talked a lot about branding in the movie and you’ve just never heard that term that much before. The band as a brand. It’s just a weird way that musicians have to be partly business-people now. You have to be aware of what’s going on, and I think that’s a good thing because before musicians were like, ‘Oh, we just wanna play music’ and let someone else take care of it. Musicians now, especially older musicians, realize we’ve gotta know what’s going on. A lot of it’s positive.”


[Resource http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070406/ENTERTAIN/70406018]
at 6:46 pm 0 comments
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EMI GOES DRM FREE

EMI's entire music catalog will be available DRM free next month.

This means that from May 2007, you will be able to purchase any EMI song from Apple's iTunes store DRM free and in a higher quality format (256 kbps).

For a fee of 30 cents per song, you can upgrade any previously purchased DRM encoded EMI song you already have which you would have been purchased in a 128 kbps format.



[Resource http://www.techliberation.com/archives/042239.php]
at 10:35 am 0 comments
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Tuesday, April 10, 2007

THINGS THAT GO WRONG ARE THE BEST THINGS

I thought this story of (US) country recording artist Kevin Sharp highlighted a good point that is often overlooked.

Sometimes we cling too tightly to what is our idea of an outcome. This doesn't mean we shouldn't have dreams or aspirations, it just means that we shouldn't get so attached to the outcome that we don't see opportunities. There are many ways to have a 'successful' music career and many opportunities to use music to enhance our lives and the lives of others.


[Resource http://www.austindailyherald.com/articles/2007/04/06/news/news2.txt]
at 11:35 pm 0 comments
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GOOD BUSINESS ADVICE FOR ARTISTS

I thought I'd first share some of my thoughts on these good business tips for artists.

You can't be everything to everyone and in fact being specific about your music, your style and the type of audience you want to attract will help you market your music far more effectively than just aiming to please everyone.

Start where you are with what you have, take the first step and that will lead you to the next one ~ You don't have to be great to start but you have to start to be great :-)

Be authentic to yourself and be the wonderful person you were born to be. You may as well be yourself because everyone else is taken.

Fake it 'til you make it. Act as if you already know what to do and how to do it and then start doing it.

Did you know that the subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between something it's vividly thought and something it's actually done? Well it's true, that's why visualisation is such a useful tool. The more vivid you can 'imagine' something, the more likely it is that it will show up in your real life.

Your life is always heading in the direction of your focus. So, what are you focusing on? Is it where you want your life to be heading?

1 - Learn how to say no.This is the first one because it’s the biggest one. If it’s not an absolute yes, it’s a no. So many people are fueled by the desire for money or the need to please everyone
that they say yes to everything. Read more here.

2 - People don’t need to know how you feel about everything.Lots of times, emotional types think that they have to let everyone around them know how they feel because otherwise they’re being inauthentic. Read more here.

3 - Most people assume you know what you’re doing. Let them.Many young performers will get on stage and start apologizing for their mistakes or for their next song or for the fact that they messed up in the last song. Here’s a secret: The audience wants you to succeed, and they want you to be confident because they don’t want to feel sorry for you. That’s just plain uncomfortable. Read more here.

4 - Find your values and live by them. A lot of people ask themselves what they want before they even get clear about what they value. This can compel people to do things they never really wanted to do. For instance, I value time, silence, and space. I absolutely must work that into my schedule. Read more here.

5 - Segment intend. This technique is from Ask and It is Given. I’ve been practicing “segment intending” for months now, and I’m amazed at the results. If you’re an artist and you’re about to do your art, then intend that the next 3 hours (or whatever) is dedicated solely to that. And that it’s fun and creative and productive and you love it. Read more here.

6 - Bathe in Seth Godin. Then rinse. And repeat.If you feel like “there’s no use” or “I’ll never be huge” or “Wal-Mart rules everything so why bother,” you need Seth Godin. If you ridicule yourself because your success is only tiny, and your sister-in-law has made millions as a consultant for BigExpensiveThings-R-Us, then you need Seth Godin. If you conjure up the same lame ideas over and over again, you need Seth Godin. I recommend that you listen to him because he’s a GREAT reader. Read more here.

7 - Create a business alter ego.Make up a name. Then make up an identity for that name. (Pamela R. Stinson. MBA from Wharton. Valedictorian at Columbia, 1993. Great business mind, sexual preference undetermined, doesn’t take no for an answer.) Read more here.

8 - Grok good customer service. Go to Nordstrom. Buy something. Watch how you’re treated. Then, go to Macy’s. Do the same thing. Witness the difference. Apply that lesson in whatever way you can to your own customer service. Read more here.

9 - Learn how to think. Emotional people believe that their feelings are the facts. This will always get you in trouble. Learn how to think about your career. Take two hours every Sunday to drive and think. Or just to sit in the office and think. At first, you might feel totally stupid, but you’ll start to get it soon enough. Experiment, analyze and don’t go into massive drama when something doesn’t work. Just think again. Read more here.

10 - Never send an email when you are emotional.Email is a volatile communication form. I have received (and probably sent) some of the most damaging messages from people who had gotten my intentions all wrong, and then fired off a response filled with venom and vitriol. The danger (and the advantage) of email is that it’s immediate. If someone emails you something that triggers you, wait AT LEAST 24 HOURS before responding. Read more here.

11 - Never do ANYTHING when you are emotional. See above. And say to yourself often, “I respond. I don’t react.”

12 - Be clear up front with anyone you hire Is this you?“Oh my GOD! I met the COOLEST graphic designer and we’re going to do a trade! And we just totally clicked, and we laughed a lot, and we’re both Leo with Aries rising! I can just tell it’s a great match!” Expectations, desired outcome, hourly wage, estimates — these are things that emotional people forget to be clear about right up front. They want to have that “cool connection!” And then it all falls apart because neither person expressed her true expectations. This isn’t to say that cool connections can’t happen. They can. But boundaries are essential up front. Read more here.

13 - Focus on what you want. This may seem obvious. But I’m amazed at how easy it is for the sensitive artist types in the world to fall prey to the hardship stories. And there are lots of them going around. In my line of work, there are people out there begging for gigs. They’ll do anything. They’ll play for free. They say, “It’s so hard to be a musician.” Here’s my advice “Step AWAY from the stories!” Focus on what you want. And stay with that. Read more here.

14 - Get very very very clear before you do your finances If finances are ever scary for you, here’s what to do before you log on to your on-line account, before you open your bills, before you open Quicken�ĶPray over your checkbook. Know that you are abundant. See your dreams coming true. Make up an amount that’s in your account. Say thank you for all that is perfect and wonderful in your life. Say thank you for the tiniest progress you have made.Then proceed with your finances. Read more here.

15 - Only YOU get to decide if “You’ll Never Work in this Town Again!” Everyone has an opinion about who’s through, who has had it, who’s washed up, etc. This kind of talk can run through your head and keep you in a constant state of anxiety about “the end of the line.” I had a dramatic experience when I broke up with someone who was also in the music business. The break up was not a good one. And in an apparent rage that lasted, oh, about eight months, this former partner of mine called clubs, bars, record labels, agents, and, from what I hear, did his best to encourage them never to book me or work with me. Whereas I’m sure some of them took his advice, and whereas I was really dumb and believed he could “ruin” me (this was even before I had gotten my office in order), I kept “minding my own business.” And guess what? I wasn’t ruined. My end did not come. You know why? Because I didn’t agree that it could or would. You have the power. Yes, the obstacles may seem insurmountable at times. But only you get to decide when to call it quits. Your emotions may scream at you that you’re ruined. But that’s just your emotions. And if it weren’t for all of those emotions, you wouldn’t have to be reading this post in the first place! Read more here.


[Resource http://jshahin.blogspot.com/2007/04/publication-tip-18-15-tips-for-artists.html]
at 12:51 pm 1 comments
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Monday, April 09, 2007

WEB STRATEGIES

With free music freely available P2P networks, the value of a recording seems to have slipped away. More and more artists are using their recordings as promotional tools to sell live shows and merchandise.

Below are some ideas I came across on a Web Strategy blog.

Web and Media Strategies for the Music Industry Music is free, trying to control it will always be a challenge going forward, the internet has dropped many of the barriers, and any speedbump is just a slowdown for the savvy consumer. I would suggest for artists and labels to figure out to embed monetization and market value into the song, some ideas:

1) Product Placement within the song: this has been done by many rap artists since the 1990s. The most popular drink, clothing, and car is mentioned in these songs, spurring a culture shift in consumerism. This is a sponsorship model which could lead towards monetization.

2) Many music artists know that the money is not made from CD sales, but from the tour, merchandise, and other auxiliaries and accessories. Bear with me, here comes the Web Marketing angle:

3) Viral Web Marketing play: Artists could deploy a viral widget that web users can place on their social network or blog sites. For every play, artists could give money to the site owner or blogger, in return for advertising sales of the two points mentioned above.

4) Is DRM a completely viable solution? One bootlegged copy on a college campus, and it’s completely gone.

[Resource http://www.web-strategist.com/blog/2007/04/06/internet-disruptive-to-music-sales-and-a-few-ideas-of-what-they-could-do-about-it/]
at 7:30 am 0 comments
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Sunday, April 08, 2007

2 GREAT MARKETING QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF

Before you attempt to market your music, here's a couple of important questions to ask yourself.
Who did you write the song for. And. Who is your music targeted to?

Marketing is all about knowing your market. Chances are your music isn't suited to everyone so it makes no sense to be trying to market your music to everyone.

A great way to get free market ideas from is to find similar music styles to yours and pay attention to what radio stations those songs are being played on, what magazines or publications are being used for advertising and promoting. And importantly, who is the market these are aimed at and where else can you find a similar market?

Here's one Australian radio show that accepts Roots, Indie, Acoustic, Folk, Rock, Country Rock and Blues.

The Mystery Train - Thursday 9.30 to midnight, Announcer/Producer Rob Marcs

Featuring new music & music not necessarily heard on mainstream radio. I will introduce new artists & profile their progress. If you would like to submit music (current or not current release) to this show please forward it to the address above. You must include a bio and contact details. If you want the music to be returned, a stamped, self addressed envelope must be provided. YBHaVmanagement@bigpond.com


[Resource http://www.hotsource.com.au/news/viewarticle.aspx?articleID=534]
at 8:21 pm 0 comments
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INDIE RING TONES

Get your free ringtone software from BETA Records and make your own customised ringtones for your fans!

[Resource http://musicindustrynewswire.com/2007/03/02/min155_180826]
at 9:28 am 0 comments
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Saturday, April 07, 2007

IDOL ANNOUNCES SONGWRITING CONTEST

After just posting that the American Idol songwriting contest is on the 'backburner', I now announce that American Idol are taking submissions up until April 17th.

You may only submit one song and it must be accompanied by a US$10 entry fee.

They are looking for songs between 2 and a half minutes to 4 minutes long that would different singers.

Submit your entry to Songwriter American Idol.



[Resource http://songwriter.americanidol.com/]
at 11:48 am 0 comments
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BAND AND MUSIC MERCHANDISE

Here's an interesting read on band merchandise.

Find out what those in the 'know' have to say about band merchandise and why the future of band merchandise is assured. Band and Music Merchandise.

[Resource http://www.largemart.com/read-music/article/band-and-music-merchandise.htm]
at 11:07 am 0 comments
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AMERICAN IDOL SONGWRITING UPDATE

Back in January I made this post Songwriting Competition to Produce "Instant Hits"

Here's an update on the progress of the songwriting contest. American Idol producer says although its on the 'backburner" he believes it will still happen.



[Resource http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/american-idol-producer-believes-songwriting-contest-will-still-happen-4909.php]
at 10:42 am 0 comments
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Friday, April 06, 2007

SUBMIT YOUR HOME RECORDINGS

Have you made an exceptional sounding recording in your home studio?

Home Recording @ About.com are calling for submissions. Send an email to homerecording.guide@about.com with a link to your song (no attachments) and a little background on the recording and band. List what you think makes it unique and any special tricks you used. Your song may get featured at About.com

[Resource http://homerecording.about.com/]
at 10:33 am 0 comments
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Thursday, April 05, 2007

GARAGE BAND RECORDING

This post comes along very timely after talking about "GarageBand" in the last post.

Here's an introduction to one of the most powerful music production tools available for home recording.

GarageBand - An introduction

More steps are included at the same page.

[Resource http://homerecording.about.com/od/garagebandtutorials/ss/getting_started.htm]
at 11:06 am 0 comments
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Wednesday, April 04, 2007

NEW RECORDING IDEAS

How Pete Townsend, Trent Reznor and Peter Gabriel can help you write and remix.

Pete Townsend has launched Lifehouse Method which is a real life realization from Lifehouse, a fiction he wrote in 1971. According to Townsend "It takes data you input and turns it into music."

Trent Reznor is making tracks off his forthcoming album available in files that anyone can edit and re-mix using software such as Apple's GarageBand and Sony's ACID.

and

Peter Gabriel is taking steps in to software with his involvement in The Filter, an intelligent playlist generator for the shuffle generation. This is a free download that works with Apple's iTunes and Nokia mobile phones. This software will allow you to hear more of the neglected music files.



[Resource http://technology.guardian.co.uk/weekly/story/0,,2044599,00.html]
at 4:30 pm 0 comments
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FESTIVAL NETWORK ONLINE

Looking for a US or Canadian festival to perform at? Look no further than:

Festival Network Online - US and Canadian music festivals, craft shows, art festivals & fairs
at 11:03 am 0 comments
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Tuesday, April 03, 2007

IS THE FUTURE OF THE ALBUM OVER?

With ringtones and ipod singles taking over, it's hard to believe that vinyl albums were once king of music. So the question remains. Can the album survive in the digital world?

Below are some highlights of an article that talks about the evolution of the album.

As far back as 1997, the advent of digital downloading threw the music industry into a tailspin from which it has yet to emerge — all concerning the album and its future. As technology began allowing for the sharing of digital files across the Internet, the iPod has taken over the industry as consumers sidestep the retail aspect of music distribution.

Today, anyone with a computer can cherry-pick, download, burn a disc, or create personal playlists on an MP3 player. With the iPod taking over, conventional modes of music-making and distribution seem suddenly antiquated.

What effect does this have on the album?

Is it now just an artifact of a bygone era? Or is the personal playlist craze another in a long line of passing fads in popular music? And what effect has all of this had on the quality of the music itself?

The key to a successful music industry is to create a marketplace of engaged listeners, surely. For some, the iPod culture has offered an avenue of such engagement.

"The renaissance, if there is to be one, will take an awful lot of work," says Bordowitz. "It will take someone from the new generation to come up with their own generation's 'Dark Side of the Moon' or 'Nevermind.' Something that captures the zeitgeist, something that can't be ignored, that tickles the imaginations of those who hear it enough to inspire them to imitate it.
"I remain cautiously optimistic that this will happen."

This is a great article that's worth a look at. Click here to read all of the article.


[Resource http://www.buffalonews.com/197/story/39697.html]
at 5:48 pm 0 comments
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MORE LAWS

In the last 50 years or so, the size of computers have been reduced significantly. But how far can we reduce the physical size of computers whilst add more memory.

Here's an article I read recently that talks about a 'law' of physics (Moore's Law) that says that physical storage components for memory is almost as small as is possible to go.

Whether this will have any major effect (positive or negative) on the music industry, remains to be seen.

As with all technological advances, right from the stone age, things that had never been thought of before could be just around the corner. Possible alternatives like molecular memory and carbon nanotubes could bring new technology that we don't yet know about.

[Resource http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?alias=moores-law-hits-physics-i&chanId=sa003]
at 9:32 am 0 comments
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Monday, April 02, 2007

DESTINATION VIRAL

This is an interesting marketing concept. Get creative and find interesting marketing concepts that you can use.

Here are two tourism destination websites, Stockholm (Sweden) and Virginia (USA) that have used music for online viral marketing campaigns.

Virginia Tourism's new site promotes the sights and sounds of Virginia's Heritage Music Trail, The Crooked Road with the use of "sing back" technology. In just a few clicks, visitors to CrookedRoadVirginia.com can chose from more than 500 names, occupations, hobbies and relationships to build personalized bluegrass lyrics. Users can then send their new bluegrass hit to anyone's email or phone number, including cell phones.

Stockholm in partnership with Visit Sweden created the Stockholm Musical site, where visitors can put in their name and will hear and see their own musical performed just for them - which they can share with a friend.

[Resource http://jensthraenhart.com/cblog/exit.php?url=aHR0cDovL3d3dy5zdG9ja2hvbG10aGVtdXNpY2FsLmNvbS8=&entry_id=182]
at 10:26 am 0 comments
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Sunday, April 01, 2007

HOW TO SHOWCASE AND BE NOTICED

Here is an excerpt from an article I found at CellHandsets.com

You know me. I know you. You know someone else. I know someone different. We all know each other. These are our networks and communities.

In a band or music sense, network and community is essentially what it's all about, when it comes time to share your music around.

You or your band writes, performs, and records music true, but unless you're a real purist, and enjoy your music for yourself, for the music, for your own CD rack at home alone then, at some point in time you may want to let others know about your band, your performances, and your music.

We know we are a band, and we know that we want to share our music. What you need next is Exposure.

You have to expose yourself to people that are receptive to what your exposing them to.

Get your own community. It's not as hard as it may sound, especially these days with the abundance of communication power at your finger tips in the Internet. You can use the internet to reach out and communicate with millions upon millions of people all over the planet with the click of a button.

There are plenty of web based community sites out there well worth exploring, and you should join more than one! This is because there is not just one single community web site out there that will reach everyone. Your best chances in exposure is to have your presence, music and community groups all happening in a few of them. Once you have done that then you can link them all up together to get the best coverage.

In all of these existing web based communities, the best potentials for maximum exposure take time. You have to build your name and community size.

To get maximum exposure you have to be involved in a few community sites, then link them all together. Here is a short list in my opinion of a few worth while web based contenders to start with, to network in, and to check out.

http://www.myspace.com/

http://www.mobzing.com/

http://www.friendster.com/


[Resource http://www.cellhandsets.com/2007/03/19/community-and-music-how-to-showcase-and-get-noticed/]
at 1:17 pm 0 comments
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