The affordability of getting into music

[Phait]

This is something I wrote some time ago, thought it'd be fitting to share here.

 

In case you're unaware, it's the 21st century.

 

I'm not sure that I consider myself very adaptable when it comes to the times. The 90's was a great decade growing up. I found some of the my most favorite bands that became influences. There is some nostalgia for the general pop culture of the 90s. There's nothing to be ashamed of there, that I can remember - as opposed to say the 70s or 80s. Move on to the 21st century - frankly, I don't like where it's headed. We are becoming too dependent on technology, and no longer just out of convenience - but because we must. Times change, and likewise we change along with it. Almost transparently.

 

Though, if there's one thing that I am grateful for in the 21st century - it's that the abundance of technology has likewise made technology more affordable for the average person. First things first: I realise the words "affordable" and "expensive" are relative, but... the other day I added up the sum cost of my home studio and it came to a little over $5,000 (if you include the Powerbook I had for almost 4 years). To me, this is a bargain for what I own: a desktop system, the previously owned laptop (although I admit I truly spent more on that than I had to, but I had my reasons), the Fantom workstation, my Strat, my Ibanez acoustic-electric, etc. I have everything I ever needed, to make a lifelong dream a reality - to create music.

 

Anyone with a decently powerful computer can purchase consumer-tier music production software for under $500 and use synth instruments to start sequencing music. Or they could toss in a MIDI keyboard controller for $100 or so and add a little performance along with it. One can spend considerably less than I have, provided they have less needs than I do and just want to jump in. I have been using $100 software for video editing (Sony Vegas Movie Studio Platinum 7). It's just as robust and capable as I need it to be, and it's been fun using it.

 

My point is, it's plainly evident how (relatively) little I have spent on tools to express my creativity, apply my imagination - in a variety of mediums. It is truly amazing. That I have my own little studio I can sit down at and just create... it's such a comfort. Not only that, but the immediate accessibility of the internet. Once you create something, you can toss it out there for the world to see for free. Myspace, YouTube... seriously, what is next?

 

Kids growing up in the 21st century are extremely privileged and I hope they realise this. Everything I am doing now, I could only dream of doing growing up. It seemed impossible, like a whole other world - when truly, that world was only several years away... and it's here now.

[Dreabfly]

Completely true. The only caveat is that it is certainly a never-ending cycle. I started with a simple setup and have gradually upgraded to equipment that has cost me well over $40,000. Add in the cost of indie record production and there's another $50,000. I often wonder what else I would have done with that money over the years. Don't get me wrong - I love music. But it did end up costing a whole more than I ever planned.

 

I think the real issue with all this comes with the loss of quality that our world has experienced. Back when only "professionals" could make records, there was some semblance of a respect for the art. Now anyone can make a record and even professionals can't get paid.

 

This is the ironic part of living in our world right now: things that used to cost a fortune are well in reach of the everyman. But somehow we have traded a lot for it. Sometimes I think we will all end up just being glorified factory workers because of it. When musicians are no more - will people miss them - or will they just be happy they can go out and buy the Musicman 4000 - "Just hit one button and your event or party is complete with any kind of music you could possible need!"

 

As a musician, I would say - I would take the old days in a heartbeat. Making my own records and being ignored, I think, would not compare with the opportunity to be recognized for what I actually do well.

 

However - I will thank technology for making my scuba gear dirt cheap. In 1950, I would have never been able to afford to troll the bottom of the ocean and witness the splendor of fish, octopus, sharks and other sealife firsthand. Thanks to modern economics, I have.

 

It's just a good thing I didn't need music to pay for it.