An Excellent New Read: "A Brief History Of Why Artists Are No Longer Making A Living..."

Go see The Struts. $20. One of the best shows I've seen. Going to see them twice in May. A real rock show.

However, looked into Gary Clark, Jr and Leon Bridges as well. Around $100 and neither one of them are household names. I'd pay that, but not more.

Then again, how many of these artists dictate their prices vs. having a set fee and the venue dictating the prices to recoup that fee plus expenses?

Thanks for the interesting article. I learned a lot. 

Best,
gary

Whart, I thank you very much for your extremely informative post.

(As you stated in regard to earning a living in the beginning, it has never been easy, but it's almost impossible now)
That, of course, was the key- to be able to make enough money from songwriting or performing to be able to devote full time to the art without having to work a "straight" job to put food on the table and cover the rent, kid’s needs, etc.


When there were nightclubs in St. Louis and East St. Louis, Ill, I saw many good bands and musicians who were unknown. Since I've been an avid jazz fan all of my life, I think I'm qualified to judge what's really good in comparison to all the jazz greats that have gone before now. I saw a band at a club in E. St. Louis that was truly unforgettable; one of the instruments they used was an "African finger piano", and they incorporated it in a fashion that I've never heard, nor can I find anything that resembles their music, but it was so intoxicating that the place was packed whenever they played.

That group was unique and original; they played music that set them apart from anything I've ever heard before or since, and that's not easy. Now, the places for new musicians to begin no longer exist in numbers. Believe me, I've seen and heard fantastic unknown musicians all over this country in clubs that I don't even remember; but some of them could have become household names, they were just that talented.

If you're going to raise chickens, you have to have a breeding ground, if you're going to raise musicians, you have to have nightclubs (or other venues) where they can perform live in front of audiences.

I did read the article. Thank you.

For me there are two parallel points raised in the article: the difficulty of making a living as an artist in the contemporary music business and, the loss of craft in the music industry. The latter is of interest to me and was not resolved by the article.

There was a time, "the golden ages" when craft and artistry were inseparable. Take photography for instance- a parallel but overlapping universe. Technical craft and artistic content were appreciated by a consuming public. Ansel Adams was the gold standard for both. As photographic technology changed with instant picture taking and then digital picture taking and the internet, the taste of the general public has shifted away from technical excellence and is totally focused on "cultural content". Very few people care about lenses, cameras, metering, depth of field and "pre-visualization" etc... It’s all about grabbing the shot, quickly adding some post-processing with an app. and then hitting the send button.

The same has happened to music. Technical excellence is just not appreciated beyond the few aging audiophiles who still care about all that front-end craft. It’s all about getting and sharing a feeling within the context of urgency and need for a shot of dopamine. The general market just does not care if the music is well-recorded, well-produced, well-mastered and well pressed. There are no sit-down listening sessions.

The post-war generation took pride in their interests. Audio, and photography, as well as others like woodworking, fly-fishing etc.., were part technical pursuits that people aspired to master. This is simply no longer true for the majority of the public.

As much as I enjoy many of the benefits of the digital age, and I do see small pockets of interest in "craft", the arc of craft is trending towards convenience- and with it will be the demise of appreciation for technical excellence.

Audiophiles who pursue and enjoy technical excellence as inseparable with artistic excellence are on the decline. The current resurgence in interest in analog vinyl is, IMHO, a revolt against convenience but it is also an anomaly and will not survive the relentless advances in technology and the cultural shifts that it will bring.