1 Jun
2010
1 Jun
'10
1:43 p.m.
Completely impossible if you are a studio artist, and your
music can't
really be performed. You could still set up a con show, but
that will
reflect badly on you in the long run.
I've playing on stage a few times before but I do spend all my time in my studio
nowadays. I am not even sure the music I am composing will ever be played live (some of it
can though). But to me, the whole project described in the OP lies on a few assumptions:
- one can make a decent living out of music production
- it is desirable to make such a living
- ppl will support artistic efforts if only the artist can be convincing enough
- I may forget other things ...
While point one is true in some cases, I am not sure it is a good thing in the long run as
it fuels point 2, which will prevent a shift from the "capitalist" paradigm
(shift that is sorely needed, but that's just my opinion, no need to jump on this as
it is a vast and off-topic debate).
I would say that one can make a living doing whatever but considering the societal
fundamentals we currently bathe in, I find it extremely hard to make music composition fit
in. I personally gave up on the principle myself, too much stress and uncertainty
regarding paying bills, etc. You either have to have jumped on the train 30 years ago or
boost your ego to some insane extent in order to "make it" (cf. lady gaga for
example). This is simply too crazy and I see no reason to emulate such a
"success".
The music I compose does not have to compete with any other work or even spread to every
corner of the world. What for ? I do not want to judge the artistic value on how much
money I derive from my work. Some will say that the money is a consequence of the high
artistic value ... I am not sure, I tend to think that involving financial aspects in such
a project will bias it one way or another, or at least the way the artist will continue
his / her work. This is how I see it, and I end up creating my own stuff without asking
for money. At least, I am really on my own, using what I have, and thus not tied to anyone
else in any fashion. The drawback is that it takes more time ... but it may not be a
problem since my ideas have more time to mature, as long as I keep the artistic thread
alive in me.
OK, maybe that was not really well formulated or thought and I don't want to sound
negative about the OP's project :)
Cheers!
J.