Steve Jobs' Music Vision

After the digital revolution took place, many people, artists and the music industry labels became outraged at music peer-to-peer sharing networks such as Napster. Steve Jobs took it upon himself to put an end to this 'madness' with the creation of the iTunes Music Store.

The vision that Jobs sketched ended up redefining the future of music. From 2003, Apple sold 300 million iPods and 10 billion tracks via the iTunes Store. These figures were superior to that of Wal-Mart and Best Buy, who previously were the top music retailers.

As such a visionary he can be seen as a world leader. In most of my classes in the management program he is brought up and studied as an inspiration on how to run a company, and inspire change.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/steve-jobs-music-vision-20111007

Online Music Festival

It is shocking the ways in which technology has changed the way people are able to enjoy music. Recently I read an article that described an "online music festival." Normally, a music festival would take place in a large grass field or a stadium, but now it is possible for one to take place in a social media site.

This virtual festival will take place on a site callead: Turntabl.fm. This website is a place for mashup DJ's to display their music and connect with others interested in the same music. During the festival more than 20 mashup artists will gather in three different Turntable rooms in hopes to give the audience something they have never been exposed to before.

http://www.wired.com/underwire/2011/12/turntablefm-mashup-festival/

Album Leaks

Since technology is advancing at such a rapid pace, it is extremely difficult to prevent certain events from taking place, such as album leaks. It is common now for artists to expect that their album will be leaked previous to the date of their album release. Recently, Toronto based rapper, Drake, experienced this with his most recent album. The set release date was November 15, 2011, yet on the night of November 6, as he was debuting one of the songs, the album was leaked on the Internet.

Before reading this article I was positive that any artist would be very angry if this happened to them. However, I found it very interesting how Drake reacted in such a positive manner. Minutes after he was informed of the leak, he posted a tweet saying, "Listen enjoy it, buy it if you like it.... and take care until next time." When an album is leaked it allows the listener to judge the music before they purchase it, which can either benefit or hinder the sales of the album.

http://www.billboard.com/column/the-juice/exclusive-drake-addresses-album-leaks-1005484582.story#/column/the-juice/exclusive-drake-addresses-album-leaks-1005484582.story

Music Needs Weirdos

Kate bush became a pop star as a teenager, then turned into somewhat of a musical recluse. In this rare interview, she talks about "the death of the album," saying a worst case scenario would be when people cannot "afford to make what they want to make creatively." I think that her recent almost twenty-year hiatus has caused her to miss a few things.

Radios do not play albums anymore, Kate, as mainstream music is dominated by singles. Yes, quality albums get noticed and recognized, but on a much smaller scale than they used to. The singles from even the best all-around albums are what make the money, and in turn get the written, audio, and visual publicity. For example, upon the release of The Black Keys album entitled "Brothers" earlier this year, despite well deserved rave reviews of the album itself, the single "Tighten Up" overshadowed the album as it blew up on the internet, radio, and even as background music to the most branded commercials.

I also think Kate might be a bit out of the loop with relation to technology and its ability to eliminate financial barriers to music. She doesn't elaborate on this point much, making it hard to know what she means exactly, but with computer-generated instruments built into most new laptops (ex- Garage Band), I don't see how musical production is getting anything but cheaper for the little-guy.

Anyways, her new album is a "concept album" with each song themed around snow. I listened to it. It's weird. So why did I like it so much? Because the music industry needs reclusive weirdos like Kate Bush. Who else would challenge old topics like albums, reminding us of how the industry grew? I believe that the music industry holds arguably more niche markets than any other, and the best part is that the smallest niches are driven by musical passion and personal exploration, not financial gain. If people like Kate Bush stop appearing, we'll be left with top 40, and nobody wants that.

Future of Advertising Music

The presentation by Group 4 today got me to thinking about advertising of music in the future. Group 4 suggested the use of personalized ads which would respond to RFID tags carried by people.

Recently, I read an article about outdoor billboard advertising that would follow the line of sight of passers by. The really cool thing about this technology was that it was equipped with a camera, and facial (expression) recognition software. The add would switch its content in response to the facial expression of the passer by. Changing to a different ad, or tactic, if the expression was negative; and offering more info if the expression is positive. Sending messages to personal electronics was also a factor. The ad would search out blue-tooth connectivity and would send ads to devices with happy, intrigued, customers.

In relation to music advertising. A record store, an elevator, or really anywhere applicable, could alter the music it is turning out in relation to the reaction of consumers. This technology could also provide incredible research into what types of music, or techniques, are popular. The selection of music could be done on a consensus basis, of all the persons in the camera sight line; or individually to customers personal electronics.

The possibilities for personal advertising and market research are very exciting.

Napster sold again

Napster, the peer to peer online music service was sold to Rhapsody for an undetermined amount. Napster was resurrected in 2003 when Roxio inc bought it for 5 million in bankruptcy court. It was then sold to Best Buy for 121 million in 2008 and now finally sold to rhapsody. The move will shut down Napster and incorporate it into Rhapsody.

Rhapsody's main competition is Spotify and this move should help Rhapsody compete in the market. It's interesting to note that Shawn Parker, a member of the board of Spotify now competes against a rival company Rhapsody.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57335330-93/rip-napster-again/

http://money.cnn.com/2011/11/30/technology/napster_rhapsody/?source=cnn_bin

Grooveshark sued by Universal Music

Grooveshark - an online music streaming service similar to Napster and Limewire is being sued by Universal Music for 17 billion. The lawsuit is regarding "bulk uploading" copy right infringement. Universal claims that Grooveshark employees would receive bonuses for sending music files to Grooveshark servers and as a result is asking for 150,000 for each transaction that was made.

Grooveshark plans to fight the lawsuit. It will be interesting to see what happens as it could be the end of another online music streaming service.

http://www.calgaryherald.com/entertainment/move-guide/Grooveshark+faces+music+industry+copyright+wrath/5765679/story.html

Did the Internet kill the music business?

In this article, the author questions whether the internet has really "destroyed the music business" or not. He brings light to the fact that successful music artists who became popular in the past, such as Stevie Nicks or Prince, would obviously make this argument because it used to be an exclusive club at the top, and now there is room for more people to shine. The internet has not killed the music business, it has created a new one, where exceedingly talented artists who might not have been noticed by massive record labels in the past, now are able to establish a name and fan base. I like the point at the end of this article where he says "Use the new technology to your advantage, because it’s not going anywhere." Most people are scared of change, yet it is inevitable, so the best way to deal with it is to accept it.

http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/2010/08/has-the-internet-really-destroyed-the-music-business/

iPod

There is no question that the iPod has completely changed the world of music. One of the main reasons is the convenience and the actual tangible product itself. While the Sony walkman dramatically changed how users listened to music, it was the iPod that took it to the next level and revitalized how users listen to music. With the Sony Walkman, users were able to listen to music everywhere but the users still needed to carry around cassette tapes. Comparing this with the iPod, it allows users to listen to their entire music library without the inconvenience of having to change the cassette tapes in order to listen to a new artist. As the iPod simultaneously works in conjunction with iTunes, this application syncs and organizes your songs. iTunes also significantly changed the music industry as this was a new way of storing and organizing music.

In a more creative sense, the iPod also changed how users listen to music, as Apple introduced “shuffling”. “Shuffling” allows users to randomly listen to songs that are selected from their library. This was a new concept, that brought an entirely new dimension as individuals were able to listen to songs that fate has chosen for them.

These are just two of the main ways that the iPod has dramatically changed the world of music. Below is the full article that goes into more detail. A very interesting read overall.

http://www.macworld.com/article/163179/2011/10/how_the_ipod_changed_the_world_of_music.html

7 % Increase

It is expected that global online music revenue is believed to rise by approximately 7% this year, with overall $6.3 billion dollars. As digital music services such as iTunes, Spotify, legal sounds.com continue to increase this number will only rise faster. As a pure result of this occurring, CD and record sales continue to decline and overall consumer behaviour has shifted. By 2015, it is estimated that online music spending will rise to about $7.7 billion. During this period, spending on CDs as well as other tangible music forms and products is going to fall by about $10-$15 billion dollars. “The music industry was the first media sector to feel the full impact of two major forces — the Internet and technology-empowered consumers,” Gartner analyst Mark McGuire said in a report. The convenience of legal purchasing from digital music stores is one of the major factors that is increasing the digital music industry as CD sales fall simultaneously

Occupy Wall Street and Musicians

An interesting trend recently is popular musicians in support of the occupy movement. Katy Perry, Russell Simmons and other influential artists have voiced their opinion in favor the occupy movement.

The American Music Awards after party probably brought about the most traction in terms of celebrities participating in an occupy movement. David DeGraw, an occupy Wall street organizer, invited various artists to his after party at the Villa Lounge in Hollywood to engage in discussion and promote the cause to the celebrity scene. This is probably a smart idea from an occupy perspective as the movement will grow with celebrity support.

I wonder who will be next to endorse the movement?

http://www.kovideo.net/more-support-for-occupy-wall-street-from-music-industry-news-katy-perry-4464.html

Burma music scene

Burma, officially titled as Myanmar, currently has a thriving pop music scene. You wouldn't expect this as you usually associate Burma with political oppression and civil rights issues. Because of censorship and possible legalities, artists are forced to create songs based love, happiness and family rather than taking a pro-democracy stand. It also doesn't have many copyright laws and as a result a lot of the songs are mere imitations of American and British pop hits, with Burmese lyrics and cultural influences.

Some of the hottest Burmese versions of top western songs include the following artists: Snoop Dogg, Shakira and Celine Dion.

I found the article interesting mainly of the unexpected success of the music industry. It was fascinating to see a thriving music scene in an oppressive country.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/even-under-oppressive-military-rule-myanmar-produces-thriving-pop-music-industry-2011-11-21

Google Music

Google Music was officially launched on November 26th, 2011. In my opinion it is the first real competition that itunes will face.

Some interesting facts about Google music:

- Partnership with Universal and Sony

- Efficient music management makes it easier and accessible to listen to music

- Storage space - 20 000 songs on Google servers.

- Supports many file types - MP3, AAC, WMA, OGG, FLAC

- Mainly targeted to the android market.

- Prices: Free up to $1.29.

- Used with Google +

- Artists can create their own page to market the brand.

I Think this is a great new product as it increases competition with apple and allows for another legitimate music distribution site.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2396598,00.asp

http://technorati.com/business/article/hot-business-news-google-the-newest/

Modernized Church

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-15811721

With the help of light shows and live music, a church in Nottingham, UK has seen a dramatic increase in attendance. Instead of a regular altar/congregation layout, the church has one main stage with concert-style seating. One way to describe the motivation behind this modern approach is that "church is about the people, not the building," as said by Debby Wright, who founded the church with her husband John Wright in 1996. I consider myself an agnostic atheist; however, if I were religious I would strongly support this idea! Do you think this is good for the Church? Is it appropriate? This is more of an open ended post, I want to see what everyone thinks.

Social Media in the Music Industry

In today’s society social media has established itself as a norm and has become apart of our everyday lives. This is no different in the music industry, as musicians and artists are using methods of social media to connect with fans, other individuals, increase exposure, generate revenue and to overall use it as a tool. Examples of uses of social media include, Twitter, personal websites, interviews, exclusive giveaways, and many more. Twitter has become a hot commodity with celebrities and it seems as though everyone now has begun “tweeting”. Twitter is one of the more common methods of social media, as the individual can use posts to update us with anything that they may desire whether it is launching an update on a song, or actually anything they chose to put. Facebook fan pages is also a popular way of using social media to increase exposure, and to overall connect fans to artists and musicians. Many musicians and artists often hold question periods that allows fans to send in questions that they want answered, this is a great and common way that connects fans to their favourite artists and allows the fans to get to know the individual on a more personal basis. No matter what the labels, corporations and record companies are doing, musicians and artists are taking it upon themselves to use social media to connect with fans, users, and overall create a new discovered relationship.

Google music store challenges Apple

This Wednesday, Google launched its digital music store, in direct competition with Apple. Apple has such a hold on the market that I think it is going to be extremely difficult for Google to come close to competition, but the future will tell all. One main difference that Google is promoting from Apple is that they are allowing sharing of purchased songs over its social network, Google Plus. The perk is that friends within this network will be able to listen to one another's songs once for free. Google also offers an appealing system to independent artists, not affiliated with record labels, who release their own music. They can pay a one-time $25 fee, which allows them to upload songs, add a bio and artwork to the store, and they are allowed to keep 70% of all sales. For more on this Google music service read this article:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/arts/story/2011/11/16/google-music.html

I found this in an article about a talk given by Sean Parker, co founder of Napster. The author boiled down the conversation to what thinks were "five interesting things Parker said Yesterday". The talk was mainly about the future of the music industry, the future of web company's. Point number 3 absolutely sums up our presentation.

3. He thinks the music industry is harming itself by resisting Spotify (Parker's an investor) and other new music models.

"I've watched in the last ten years as the four, soon to be three, major record labels have failed to embrace any new models," said Parker. "They have maintained a storefront mentality, a unit sales approach. You walk into a [virtual] store and buy music as you always did, with a limited ability to sample. You can't listen to what you're friends are listing to, you have to buy it...The record business is in a slump due to the lack of distribution models that encourage more consumption. Now we have it with Spotify, with Pandora. I think that iTunes will eventually adopt licenses something like what we have at Spotify. We've presided over the largest destruction of value ever in the music industry over the last ten years. If we can get them back to where they were ten years ago we will have presided over the largest increase in value."

I agree with all of what Parker said.

As Mark commented, the music industry now only has 3 major players; really 2. If each competitor continues with old models they will end up left out in the cold while many smaller labels capitalize of new trends. They will be left in competition with merely each other and will ultimately loose due to the death of the old market.

Hype Machine

Hype Machine is a website that keeps track of what music bloggers are writing about. Everyday, countless people all over the world are writing about music and through it all, it ends up on here on this website. Hype Machine strives to create a method of empowering individuals, independent voices while coming together. The main focus of the company is to create and make the most of a cultural music discovery experience on the internet and well as to connect different networks of music lovers all over the world. This is a very unique way of being able to read and share other people’s blogs while at the same time discovering new songs, and information that you may not have otherwise come across.

http://hypem.com/#!/

Three Ways YouTube Has Changed the Music Industry:

In 2005 when Chad Hurley, Steve Chen and Jawad Karim founded YouTube, there’s no way that the three of them could have predicted that they would change the music industry and ultimately the world. YouTube has revolutionized the entertainment and music world and as a result has brought the entire world together.

1.YouTube Has Made The World Smaller

With a single click, YouTube has given us the power to travel around the world and explore distant countries, and cultures. This not only pertains to music, but literally with everything in general. With a simple search we can see and listen to the native music of India, or learn about the culture of Brazil.

2.YouTube Helps People Get Discovered

YouTube has opened the doors for talent discovery. Prior to YouTube there has never been any easier time for talented singers, dancers and artists to achieve instant fame. Today anybody can post a video online, and as we’ve learned if the right person discovers you, then the potential to reach stardom could even happen over night. A prime example of this is Justin Bieber. When Justin Bieber’s mom uploaded some videos to YouTube so their family and friends could see, she had no idea that Justin would become the person he has become today.

3. The Convenience

With the access to the internet, anyone can go on YouTube, and from there the possibilities seem endless. YouTube offers countless musical and artistic material that can pertain to every individual. Whether it is listening to your new favourite song, watching an instructional video, learning from a dance and many more. YouTube makes it easy and convenient for users to be able to access the countless material that is displayed.

Artists switching to smaller venues

I read an article recently discussing a change in the way artists perform. Some artists are now replacing arena shows with smaller venues such as theaters and clubs. The main reasons seem to be the bad economy and music distribution changes.

some artists who are switching to smaller venues for their tours include sting and Paul Simon, Janet Jackson and Kidrock.

Personally, i love it as it allows for a close up and more engaging experience with the artists. I don't think all artists will change to a smaller format especially the big names who receive lots of money for a larger audience, but it is definitely something to look forward to to the artists who do use a smaller venue.

http://www.lohud.com/article/20111112/ENTERTAINMENT/111120311/As-music-business-changes-more-top-acts-choosing-smaller-venues

EMI sold for $4.1 billion

On November 11th, 2011 EMI was sold for $4.1 billion. The music operating division was sold to Univeral music for $1.9 billion and the publishing division was sold to a group of investors led by Sony for $2.2 billion. The importance of this sale within the music industry is that EMI was one of the four major record labels. the others being Universal, Sony and Warner. This deal reflects the trend toward consolidating the music industry to two main labels - Universal and Sony - Warner has a very small market share.

How do you see the music industry moving in future years from an ownership and control perspective?

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/12/business/media/emi-is-sold-for-4-1-billion-consolidating-the-music-industry.html

Music is a form of expression that can’t always be defined by labels and genres

How music makes us feel is purely individual. Different situations can elicit different moods and make us relate to specific songs. One of the most gratifying aspects of music is the ability it has to connect to individuals no matter where they are. Even though the internet can unleash an abundance of information to anyone, and allows individuals to download songs, sometimes all it really takes is an instrument, a piece of paper and your thoughts to get your message across. Music can be extremely personal to individuals and can hold a lot of meaning. Music is a living entity, it reflects the way we feel, act and react.

Hi Everyone.

Recently Google released a series of information title the "Google Transparency Report". This document contains the data which Google collects about various information based concepts. The two areas currently addressed by this document are: historic information about traffic, and the reporting of national government requests to remove content, or block access of specific content, for users in a given country.

The information about national government requests is VERY interesting because it details each and every request which a government has made to prohibit content. It will tell you, what, when, and the outcome of nearly every such request.

We all know that Google records data on countless parameters related to our own personal internet and search usage, as well as the acts of nations, and general on-line trends. So far most types of this sort of information have been kept private to Google, for what is believed to be internal development. With actions like this, and Google Add Words, Google is handing the power of their data collection procedures back tot he public. They hope that the information is used for academic research , as well as the enlightenment of the common internet user.

This has nothing to do with the music industry; but I kinda bored of that stuff.

Check it out. Very Scary, but VERY cool.

http://www.google.com/transparencyreport/

Alexander

Music Labels ditching CD's

Theinsider.com recently published an article saying record labels will stop selling CD's by 2012. This is mainly because of declining CD sales and the shift to digital outlets. Record labels would prefer to sell their music through intermediary's such as itunes and amazon and any other legal mp3 distributing websites.

Personally, this change to digitization makes the most sense economically, and shows that record labels have finally endorsed this new format of selling music rather than fighting online outlets. What do you think about the record labels ditching CD's?

http://www.theinsider.com/music/45746_Music_Industry_To_Abandon_CDs_in_2012/

iTunes U

Currently iTunes has expanded into iTunes U. iTunes U brings the power of the iTunes store to education with the intentions of making it simple to distribute information to students and faculty. iTunes U consists of everything from lectures, language lessons, films, labs, audio books and video. Approximately 800+ universities and colleges have active iTunes U sites (Yale, MIT, Oxford, UC Berkeley)(Apple Inc., 2011).

In my opinion, I believe that this is an interesting idea that iTunes has established. My first instinct would be that the company would branch into the education sector, and would stick to their primary focus which is media and technology. However iTunes has proven to be an application that has connected countless amounts of different people and networks together. A large part of education is brining different people and networks together so when you think of it this way the two go hand in hand quite nicely.

Court Shuts Down LimeWire

I found this article interesting in the Rolling Stone because it really related to the topics that we discuss in class. In 2006, thirteen record companies sued Lime Wire for hosting as many as 11,000 of their copyrighted sound recordings. Last year, the labels scored their first major win in the case when the judge agreed that Lime Wire indirectly infringed on their copyrights by inducing users to download pirated content. The network was ultimately shut down on October 26, 2010.

A quote that drew my attention was from the Lime Wire CEO, George Searle, “Naturally, we’re disappointed with this turn of events. We are extremely proud of our pioneering history and have, for years, worked hard to bridge the gap between technology and content rights holders. However, at this time, we have no option but to cease further distribution and support of our software. It’s a sad occasion for our team, and for you – the hundreds of millions of people who have used Lime Wire to discover new things.” This just shows how these various peer-to-peer networks have really pioneered a new way of accessing information.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/court-shuts-down-limewire-20101027

Hey everyone.

I have found another article which holds excellent information about our topic. This one deals with the concept of music developing into a sort of utility, comparable to water or electricity. The authors believe that due to progressive changes in the music industry, productions of music will become a service, distributed for a fee. In reality this system is not dissimilar to to current models. The differences become apparent in the notion of universal availability, and a pre-set fee for connectivity without bandwidth limit.

The article touches on allot of really cool points, apart from their service based conclusion. It mainly focuses on prospective events and ramifications in the future of the music industry. I was very impressed with this piece; it mirrors allot of my ideas for our project.

http://law.suffolk.edu/highlights/stuorgs/jhtl/book_reviews/2006_2007/Ron_Giambalvo_Book_Review.pdf

Steve Jobs impact on the music industry

The Recent passing of Steve Jobs really got me thinking about his influence on Apple and the success of itunes. Apple products in general have changed my life and i'm sure they've changed yours. I can't imagine listening the music without my ipod. I remember When the Ipod first came out and it was such a novelty, now everyone has one.

Apple, and itunes in particular changed the revenue models for record companies. It provided an online distribution platform for individuals to buy songs to listen to rather than using illegal file sharing websites such as napster, Kazaa and Limewire. Record companies were forced to use itunes, selling mp3's for $0.99 each. You could even say that itunes saved the record industry because with the decline of CD sales and the increase in illegal files haring websites, Apple was able to present something that gave record companies a way to still gain profit.

Therapeutic Benefits

There are many therapeutic benefits to music, that we may not have truly realized. As claimed by the American Music Therapy Association, “ music is curative and restorative for a wide variety of conditions, even as aid to help with physical rehabilitation and assisting those with disabilities”. Music therapy can help induce emotional pain, lower anxiety, lift spirits and help individuals sleep better. According to the American Cancer Society, music can help relieve aches, symptoms, while augmenting a patient’s joy and overall well being. With music widely recognized today as a medical tool, colleges throughout North America are now offering bachelor degrees in the field, as many people are interested in pursuing careers in music thanatology. While there is a significant portion of people who do not go as far studying music as a career in terms of pratical terms, there are definitely techniques that you don’t need a degree for. Enjoying music, discussing lyrics, writing music, playing and cherishing all contribute to therapeutic benefits and overall well being. (Sherman, 2007)

A cool article I found on our subject. It is a little dated for my purposes, the future, but is an excellent piece on information.

http://www.technologyreview.com/web/13000/

U.S Supreme Court rules down on music downloading case.

This is a follow up to Alex's blog regarding the future of profitability in the music industry. The U.S supreme court recently rejected a case involving internet music downloading. ASCAP (American society of composers, artists and publishers) which represents 390,000 individuals, appealed to the US supreme court to restrict downloading by saying that downloading the works of their clients is a violation of their performances. In essence, it tried to connect downloading music to an actual performance. The court ruled that recorded music that has been downloaded does not constitute an actual performance.

The music industry has been forced to come up with new ways to be profitable ever since Napster was created. An example of this includes Vevo - a video sharing website - which is a partnership between Sony, Universal and EMI record labels. Many of us have seen Vevo on youtube.

In closing, the music industry, and in particular Record labels, have been forced to come up with new ways to gain future profit. How do you see the music industry growing in the future?

http://www.calgaryherald.com/entertainment/court+rejects+Internet+music+download+case/5494147/story.html

The Future of Profitability

In this day and age there are many emerging threats to the contemporary structure of profitability within the music production industry. Most of these threats exist in the form of pirated music, and free file sharing. Historically record labels had made the majority of their profits from record sales. Currently record sales are dropping due to consumer's desire for individual tracks, instead of the more drawn out collection found on albums. In reaction to this trend, some upstart companies have capitalized upon selling individual tracks; meeting the unique demands. Companies such as Apple and upstarts like Beatport recognized the imminent shift in consumer demand. It can be seen that the switch was heralded, and continues to be witnessed, through advancements in communications technology.

The important element of this new conceptualization for music production is, that a change was necessary. Instead of focusing on the technology of holding information; as has been prominent in the vinyl records, the cassette tape and the CD-ROM, companies are now concentrating on the security and licencing involved with directly sharing content. It is my opinion that further advancements in both communications technology, as well as the capabilities of computerized mass data storage, will continue to usher in hurtles for the production industry to address. It is open to discussion: which technologies will expand, and the significance of those developments.

Music Throughout our Lives:

For as long as humans have been on planet earth, music as always been a part of our lives whether we may realize it or not. Music is embedded in our culture, education, lifestyle, collective memory and just in our everyday lives. This is something that will most likely stay with us throughout our lives. Since we have been young there are some songs that have stayed with us such as singing happy birthday, holiday songs or even standing up and listening to Oh Canada every morning. We learn many different songs throughout elementary school, for education purposes or for our enjoyment. As we get older and move throughout our lives, music can also play more a sentimental role, if individuals decide to get married, a special wedding song will be picked, or songs can be used to honour people presently with us or not. A piece of music heard once might be forever joined to a personal sense of a place or powerful sense of memories. Whether we realize it or not music will always be apart of our lives directly or indirectly.

Shazam

Last week while watching a movie, I loved a song I heard in the background, so my friend held up her iPhone for 10 seconds and the artist and song title was instantly presented to me. The application which was used is called Shazam. It can identify nearly any song within 10 seconds, no matter how obscure it may be, or even if it is a strange remix. It can be used anywhere, including a store or a restaurant with background noise.

This is an example of how technology is constantly making life easier and more convenient for us. In the past, if you wanted to know the name of a song you had to wait for it to be announced on the radio, now you can be anywhere in the world and the music can be identified within seconds. This application adds to the networked world by instantly connecting people with music found in all locations and exposing people to new artists they may have never been aware of before.

http://gizmodo.com/5647458/how-shazam-works-to-identify-nearly-every-song-you-throw-at-it

Networking Through Music

As we all know, Twitter is a newfound place in order to find out the latest and most up-to-date information. More and more people whether it is celebrities, athletes, companies or everyday people are joining and beginning to tweet. One of the main reasons why people enjoy Twitter so much is the fact that it allows you to stay connected to various different things that pertain to your interests.

This article that I’ve found below is interesting because this website called Blip.fm is essentially Twitter but all about music. This website is allowing users to be connected to others through the love and interest of music. A new way of networking through music seems to be the purpose of this website.

There are a lot of features on Blip that are different to Twitter in the sense that it all pertains to options that you can use with music. Once you create an account, in the search bar you can type any song or artist and a scrollable list of songs will come up. Once the list is generated, it allows the user to preview all the different songs by that artist, then you can click to “Blip” it.

I’ve attached the two websites below, when you get a chance definitely check the sites out and if it interests you enough perhaps you can all create a Blip account.

http://createbusinessgrowth.com/networking/networking-through-music

http://blip.fm/all

Western Classical Music in India

In the height of the British Empire, India was under British control, and many aspects of British culture seeped into Indian culture. Western music, however, did not make it, simply because British occupation did not foster an environment in which information on Western classical music could be spread across India's overwhelming population.

The most notable popular musical styles in India are Bollywood and vibrato-laden vocals. Western musical artists have tried to breach the barriers of Indian culture before, most notably and recently Lady Gaga, yet nothing seems to hook the audience. In a new attempt to start with the classics, Khushroo Suntook founded the Symphony Orchestra of India (SOI) in 2006.

"It's not that people are resistant to this music, they just don't know about it,” said Leanne Pereira, a Cellist with the SOI. For those who do know about the music, a lack of practice and rehearsal venues limits musical development. On another note, many Indians who know about classical music show a "huge lack of emotion" towards the genre. 

With only 16 of the 100 players in the SOI being Indian, Western classical music has a long way to go. It is an interesting culture clash that China has around 200 symphony orchestras, yet the SOI stands alone. Will India see an explosion of Western musical progression, or will traditional genre's stay strong? Time will tell!


Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-south-asia-15035703