Re: Klezmer "bootlegs"?

[Seth Austen <klezmusic...>]

on 1/27/01 9:53 PM, Brian Dichter at dbrian (at) enteract(dot)com wrote:


> I have contacted many Klezmer artists and have posted to the list a few
> times about authorized live recordings. Unfortunately, Klezmer artists seem
> to be opposed to allowing any recordings of their performances mainly due to
> contract agreements with recording labels and for fear that they will "lose
> money" by allowing a few free recordings to circulate. It's really too bad
> because bands who authorize live recordings enjoy the benefit of having
> their music circulated to a large audience of serious music fans. This kind
> of word of mouth advertising/sharing helps to sell more CDs and concert
> tickets.


I can certainly understand your wish for high quality live recordings of
great klezmer musicians. I will not make any judgements on musicians who
allow taping of their gigs, or for that matter, musicians who don't allow
this. It is the musicians' choice, and in my opinion, not an easy choice
either way. In my opinion and experience however, mostly what freebies beget
are yet more freebies.

I for one, have often wanted to have a high quality document of my
performances, simply for my own archives as an artist, and also for those
moments where I "get the perfect take" so to speak, inj front of an audience
that might not have happened in a studio environment. I am also a recording
engineer and have the equipment to haul around with me to "tape my own
gigs", however, wearing the extra hats to do this properly, plus the extra
schlepping of all that gear, along with my instruments and sometimes sound
system would be too many things to deal with.

What I'd like to especially address here is the statement regarding free
music as a type of word of mouth to get more people to buy the musicians'
product, in both recordings and more performances of the musician. I give
away a few clips of my music on my website. I figure this to be a
promotional tool, perhaps it gets someone to come to one of my gigs, and
perhaps it even stimulates the interest in the listener into buying one of
my CDs. I sure hope so. The unfortunate bottom line here is, that even if a
significant percentage of mp3 and realaudio listeners/downloaders and live
show tapers, etc were to buy my CDs, it's still a losing proposition. Let me
explain why.

On average, an independent music release will cost $10,000 out of the
artists' pocket to produce. Most likely we will spend even more by the time
we've paid the recording engineer, mastered the tape professionally, had the
CD artwork designed, pressed 1000 CDs, and so on. We will likely send out
hundreds of free copies to esteemed music reviewers and radio programmers
such as post on this list, and many more free copies will be given away in
the pursuit of concert tours. If we're really frugal, we might break even
when/if we sell out that first pressing. Nothing more.

These days, a new cost of doing business as a recording artist includes
having a website and domain name of the artist/band. And this isn't the nice
little free 5MB website that comes with many ISPs. The terms for many of
these free websites is that they are personal, absolutely nothing can be
sold. So the artist must use a business webhosting account. Let's say that
this costs an average of $25 per month, that's another $300 per year
advertising, and cost of giving you some free downloads.

A few years ago I read in Billboard, that less than 5% of ANY albums
released in a given year will EVER sell more than a thousand. This includes
all the product released and mass marketed by the major labels. Somewhere in
that 95% live many of your favorite klezmer, and for that matter, other
music type bands. 

And here's where we get into the nitty gritty, so to speak. I am a full
time, professional musician, and I didn't just show up on the scene. I've
logged 1000s of miles touring in my ancient vehicles, have recorded over 30
albums in the last 20 years, and I expect to keep doing this as long as the
truck will hold out and the RSI doesn't keep me from playing. Most of my
friends are musicians too. And I don't know a one whose website brings in
enough sales to pay for the maintenance of the site and the cost of the
merchandise sold. 

So, I'm not saying to tape or not to tape, or to trade MP3s on napster or
not (I just noticed another email come in regarding computer equipment for
napster downloads while writing this). I just want you to be aware of the
musicians' reality when they tell you that they don't permit taping at their
shows. 

Thanks for listening, and taking the time to be an educated music listener.
Hope to see you at one of my shows sometime. And if you ask, I might even
let you tape for personal use.

All the best,

Seth
 
-- 
Seth Austen

http://www.sethausten.com
emails: seth (at) sethausten(dot)com
klezmusic (at) earthlink(dot)net

"...you start out wanting to make the greatest movie ever made,
                and you end up just wanting to live through it."
      -Truffaut


---------------------- jewish-music (at) shamash(dot)org ---------------------+