July 2024

Professional Musician And Recording Studio Expert Rick Beato Speaks
Music lovers, audiophiles, and the world need to realize the music business....
Editorial By Steven R. Rochlin / Videos By Rick Beato

  As a classically-trained musician since the early 1970s (at the age of 8), over the decades questions about why I walked away from the music scene decades ago occasionally pop up. During high school there was a touch of studio time, and here is where my eyes were open to the reality of recording music. As a percussionist and drummer, yes my set was a bit more expansive than the average, yet within my head were tones, textures, and sounds... upon seeing my percussion/drum set was immediately bumping up against recording studio effort and time (and their desire to properly mic up such a kit). Sadly, the apparent lack of concern, with one studio then saying I should just use their kit within a small boxed room and dead / lifeless drum heads.

Am recalling this story not for any ego or other overly-inflated.... Yet to let musicians nowadays know, am talking about true musical artists who have a vision... you intrinsically know who you are. The music BUSINESS today is, imho, far away much, much, much, much worse than what I had to deal with decades ago imho.

Maybe it is time for musicians to stop relying on major recording labels?

Perhaps music lovers need to realize they are, in a sense, being 'lied to' by the music BUSINESS?

Whatever the case, here are two very enlightening videos by Rick Beato. Am sure many reading this, who are also musicians, are very familiar with Rick's immense, incredible, and passionate efforts concerning humankind's love of music.

There are musical artists, you know, they are the very talented humans inventing and creating lyrics, sounds, and (hopefully) having the ability and vision on how their art is transported to their fans and newfound listeners alike. Then we have the highly profitable 'performer(s)' who are there to play a part in BUSINESS. Artists create, invent, and have a deep passion for the 'language' they 'speak' via musical instruments and associated gear that create a verse, song, album, etc. A 'performer' is (usually, but not always) someone who does not write lyrics or music, they are basically 'paid actors' who are hired by their handler / agent / record label to perform in front of an audience.

But Wait, There's More!
We know that ____ labels and ____ streaming service are actively publishing, pushing, and/or trying their hand at Artificial Intelligence. Remember when we musicians ___'ed about Pro Tools and fixing it in the mix? Humans are now optional for creating approximately 3 to 4 minutes of Re-Costructed Amalgamated Audio that will achieve the highest monetary benefit to ____ record label.

Is Human-Made Art Doomed?
Perhaps the question is: Is the music BUSINESS dooming truly brilliant music creators and artists while promoting 'performers' (?actors?) and computer-optimized drums beats / sound and such that seem to 'work' time and again, while keeping overhead costs down to a singer and sound backing track so the record label can reap the highest profit for their CEO, CFO... and shareholders.

Love Of, And For, Music
I love music in its many forms. From back in the day when we had to hand write, compose, arrange, and transpose physical sheet music and used a bit of math skills (nod to Zappa and Happy The Man). My value is not just the obvious things such as sound quality, it also includes the ability to musically create and freely express without constraints. This includes not just legacy stereo; for over three decades have invested time and effort into understanding human hearing (via audiologists, technical books, etc) in how we humans organically process sound(s) in a very holographic way, which is how we have evolved our ability to not just hear but in how we listen (ask your wife, hearing and listening are two different things  :)  ).

Non-musicians and music creators might not fully comprehend the modern capabilities in recording and playback, aided by technical evolution, though we do know that:

"Who controls the past controls the future
Who controls the present controls the past"
-- George Orwell

Wait until you hear what Ted says about....

Enjoy the Music,

Steven R. Rochlin

 

Learn More About Rick Beato And Ted Gioia
Please visit Rick Beato's YouTube channel.
Please visit Ted Gioia's web page.

Musicianship And Talent....

I see the hand of man arise
With hungry mind
And open eyes!