Category: music

Critics charge that Napster is killing the recorded music business. But the company says it actually promotes sales of recorded music. So who’s right? – Wired

Turns out the symphony orchestras – not rock bands – are the greatest threat to keeping your hearing.  “I have measured levels in excess of 126 decibels on the right shoulder of the piccolo player at the National Ballet. Given that human conversation registers 60 decibels and a vacuum cleaner approximately 80 decibels, those sitting to the right of piccolo players are at obvious risk.” – The Globe and Mail (Canada)

The classical music world has sunk so low that it’s pandering to whatever gimmicks it thinks will sell recordings. Pavarotti is bad enough, but when the Berlin Philharmonic defaces itself… – The Telegraph (UK)

“For once, we’re ahead of the technological curve instead of behind it, which is interesting for an 18th century art form.” – San Francisco Chronicle

Herbert von Karajan made and sold more records than any other conductor in history, he changed the way people listened to music, and changed the public’s expectations of a concert. But he was also a problematic figure – autocratic and politically suspect. A new biography attempts to wade through a sea of charged conceptions about the man. – Boston Globe

• Recording industry has filed briefs in court to shut down Napster. The industry will use internal Napster e-mail and memos “in which Napster executives, primarily co-principals Shawn Fanning, 19, and Sean Parker, 20, openly discuss the use of their service as a tool facilitating the exchange of copyrighted material by established recording artists, statements the RIAA says are proof that the service represents a haven for music piracy and should be closed immediately.” – Inside.com

Sixty-six American orchestras make a net deal. “Under the tentative agreement announced Tuesday, orchestras would make two kinds of performances available on the Internet: live and unrecordable streaming audio or prerecorded music to be downloaded. It would be up to a local committee of musicians and managers from each orchestra to decide what concerts to put online and whether to make them available as live webcasts or as online recordings that listeners can download.” – MSNBC (AP)

Why are there so few women conductors? “Why has no woman secured a major principal’s post in the UK? Why have only Anne Manson and Marin Alsop achieved this with minor orchestras in America? Is the persistent, archetypal image of the controlling male power figure really too strong for managements to cast aside?” Says Alsop: “Gestures are interpreted differently – if a man is delicate, he’s sensitive. If I’m delicate, I’m too girly.” – The Times (UK)

• Fifty American orchestras have put together a deal that will allow them to bypass traditional recording companies and bring their music streaming directly to the internet. “In the classical field we read daily about classical sections of recording companies closing down, so we have to find a way that we can distribute and keep our presence alive in the commercial world.” – Philadelphia Inquirer

Two of the five recording companies suing MP3.com for copyright violation of music downloaded over the internet have settled with the company. The labels will license their music to the site. – Variety