Digital Distribution and the Evolving Publishing Marketplace

Personal media consumption has exploded in the last few years as a direct result of digital distribution.  Nearly all of our content that we consume is online, whether it be academic, news, research, or entertainment in purpose.  Publishing and distribution have made it much easier for creative professionals of all types to publish their works without having to go through an agent or company to do much of the work. 

These trends also result in greater convenience for the end user.  Single tracks can be downloaded rather than only an entire album.  This is largely because the manufacturing cost to produce a physical single and a cost to produce a physical album are the same, but the profit margin is much higher on albums since they carry a higher retail value.  Digital downloads require no manufacturing cost, so profit margin remains high whether the sales are focused on high-volume small dollar value sales (singles) or small-volume large dollar value sales (such as albums and compilations.)

Already we see many companies moving away from physical distribution entirely.  Netflix’s streaming plan is now the norm, and they have made their physical distribution plans for DVD’s more expensive as the cost to mail physical DVD’s, carry hard-copy inventory, and process the materials is much higher than streaming content delivery.  (Gemstone Equity Research, 2013.) Thus, I think that while there is no replacement for physical albums (sic. vinyl is still around, but not for the every-day end-user) largely this trend will continue and perhaps new methods of digital distribution will emerge as technology continues to evolve.

Reference:

Gemstone Equity Research.  Netflix Right Move at the Right Time.  November 19, 2013.  Accessed on Wednesday, March 26, 2014 at http://seekingalpha.com/article/1848321-netflix-right-move-at-the-right-time.

Musical Instrument Choice by Difficulty and Employability

Many choose a musical instrument based on what sound they like most, but perhaps we shouldn’t use that as our main reason for choosing a musical instrument.  Below I’ve categorized instruments and talk about their choice in regards to difficulty learning them and employability for those seeking careers in music.

Flute, Clarinet and Saxophone:

            These instruments are fairly easy to learn, though hard to play well.  Fingering requires dexterity on all of these instruments, but if you learn one of the three, the other two will come pretty easily; the fingerings are similar on all three.  There is always demand for these instruments, but there are so many players that there is lots of competition for work.  Fortunately, there are many venues and genres for these instruments: theatre, classical, jazz, pop, rock, world music and more.

Oboe and Bassoon:

            These instruments are challenging to learn.  Their fingering systems are much more complicated and it is difficult to get the quintessential beautiful double reed sound that everyone loves.  However, if you can overcome those challenges, these instruments are in extremely high demand and you’ll always find places to play.  However, you’ll be limited mostly to classical music.

Trumpet, Trombone, Euphonium, Tuba:

            These instruments have relatively simple fingerings/slide positions.   However, they require great lip flexibility to make moving between partials clean and beautiful.  Trumpet and Trombone have similar employability level to flute and clarinet, and are used more in jazz ensembles.  The euphonium and tuba are more limited and you may have to do some work carving out your own niche as a player here.

French Horn:

            The horn is difficult to learn, but if you have good relative pitch or sight-singing ability, your job is much easier.  The horn is relatively employable and often in high demand for good players, but at the advanced level there is a decent amount of competition and the instrument is largely limited to classical music.

Violin, Viola, Cello and String Bass:

            These instruments require a great deal of finger, elbow, and arm strength and flexibility, but you don’t have to do a darned thing with your mouth or breath.  It is easy to play these instruments, but very challenging to master them.  They are highly employable, though the string bass may have the same issues as tuba and euphonium, and all but violin are largely limited to classical music.

Percussion:

            This instrument requires no breath control but does require an exquisite sense of beat and rhythm and requires more technique to play correctly than many other instruments.  Notation is generally easier to read with the exception of mallet percussion.  Percussion is in high demand, however, and nearly every genre of music uses percussion in some degree.

BRFB’S 2014 Spring Concert Also Celebrates 10 Years!

The Blazing River Freedom Band  (BRFB) will be presenting  their next concert entitled Fantasy Magic at 3pm, April 6, 2014. The concert will be held at Pilgrim Congregational Church located on 2592 W. 14th in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood.  This concert is of particular importance because it will mark 10 years of being a community group of LGBT and straight -ally musicians coming together to perform concerts, join Cleveland Pride Parade and other similar venues across the country in making a defiant yet joyful noise, and taking part in the larger LGBT band movement as whole.

From Harry Potter to Disney, Fantasy Magic is a beautiful collection of magic-related selections. The Blazing River Freedom Band’s Flag Corps will also perform original choreography as well. Fantasy Magic will be conducted by BRFB Artistic Director Brandyn Metzko and Assistant Conductor Tommy Casarona.   During the concert  there will be several gift baskets raffled off as well as two pairs of tickets to the August 12th Gay Games Concert Band performance later this summer. We encourage one and all to bring friends and family of any age to attend this fun and family-friendly concert.

If you would like more information about this event, please contact Karl Kimpo at info@blazingriverband.org or opmik75@gmail.com .  You may also call 216-744-3907.

A-Cappella Vocal Ensembles

            I’ve recently become the director of a new a-cappella ensemble in Cleveland, Ohio.  A-cappella groups are vocal groups that use no instruments, only the voice.  Most often a-cappella groups perform covers of existing songs that do include instruments, and use the human voice to imitate the sounds that the instruments would normally produce through the use of varying syllables and vowel sounds.  Some groups include vocal percussion, which is effectively specialized beat-boxing in an a-cappella arrangement that emulates drum set, electronic percussion and other percussive sounds and/or remixing effects.  While a-cappella groups can cover songs in any genre, most often they cover barbershop, do-wop, rock, r&b, pop, gospel, dance and top-40.

            There are a lot of cool features of a-cappella groups over other groups.  A-cappella ensembles may be any size, may be mixed-gender or standard gender, may allow for soloists (‘leads’), and music for the group may be more easily tailored to fit the level of the singers than many other ensemble configurations.  A-cappella can be sung anywhere at any time, since no equipment is required.

            A-cappella teaches many different skills to singers.  It requires a high level of careful listening and teaches singers to react carefully to what they hear from the other singers to create a cohesive sound—much more than they would in a standard choir.  Often a-cappella groups have four or less people on a part, so there is nowhere to hide.  Thus, singers become stronger and more confident as they get used to singing independently rather in a large choral section.  Furthermore, a-cappella develops rhythm in singers much more than other vocal ensembles.  There is no accompaniment or percussion to keep the beat, so the group members rely upon each other to keep the beat steady.

            With that being said, I’m really excited about this new ensemble.  If you are a singer in the Cleveland area and interested in singing a-cappella music, please do consider joining us.  More information can be found on the group’s facebook page.

Entertainment Law Podcasts

            Podcasts are a great way to keep abreast of current topics and news and learn about the subjects you are interested in.  I regularly listen to podcasts via Apple’s iTunes, where many shows may be found for free.  Today I will talk about two Entertainment Law podcasts that I like.

           

            Joe Escalante is a entertaining Entertainment Law reviewer.  His blog, Barely Legal is one of the more exciting and accessible regular Entertainment Law blogs.  I listened to the February 7, 2014 episode, which featured issues such as being able to sue the Red Hot Chili Peppers for going acoustic, whether Justin Beiber can be deported, a J.K. Rowlings defamation case, whether artwork made from a copyrighted trademark could be resold, and what type of entity your band should be.

            One of the things I learned is that in order for defamation to occur by a celebrity, actual malice must be shown as celebrities are talked about in many ways all the time.  Interestingly, this is not the case in the United Kingdom, and thus many defamation cases are filed in the UK rather than the Unites States.  However, the recent J. K. Rowlings defamation case led the courts to decide defamation law much more closely to what the United States courts have decided.

Another blog that I find interesting is Gordon Firemark and Tamara Bennett’s Entertainment Law Podcast.  I listened to episode 43: “No Copyright, Sherlock?” and episode 39: “Fair Use, etc.”

In episode 43, they discuss Faulkner Literary Rights Group’s copyright lawsuit against Sony Pictures Classic over the use of a Faulkner quote from “A Requiem for a Nun” in a Woody Allen film.  However, the lines are not identical and the line is only nine words.  The fair use test shows that it was deminimous, meaning that it is not detrimental to the work and is not damaging the marketplace for the original work.  Perhaps in opposition, it may have inspired people to actually read Faulkner.

In episode 39 one of the topics discussed is Paparrazzi.  Justin Bieber recently experienced having one of his crew hit by a car during Paparrazzi trying to take photographs of Bieber, and Bieber is now calling for stronger legislation regarding the topic.  California’s strong 2010 Paparrazzi law was struck down recently in the case of California vs. Rafe, which is now in appeal.  One of the issues is that it could include wedding photographers going into the street to get a better shot, etc.; thus the law may be too vague.  Hawaii’s new laws extend photography restrictions for privacy beyond celebrity into anyone having familial privacy and personal time.

I recommend these podcasts highly, and encourage you to check out podcasts on these topics and other topics that intrigue you.

Work Cited:

Barely Legal Entertainment Law Podcast 2-7-14

http://barelylegalradio.podbean.com/feed/

Entertainment Law Podcast Episode 43: No Copyright, Sherlock?

http://feeds2.feedburner.com/entertainmentlawupdate

Entertainment Law Podcast Episode 39: Fair Use, etc.

http://feeds2.feedburner.com/entertainmentlawupdate

Private music teacher accepting new students: winds, brass, voice

(Also posted at http://cleveland.craigslist.org/lss/4327744538.html )

I am a professional private music teacher with over two decades of experience. I give lessons on flute, clarinet, saxophone, oboe, bassoon, trumpet, french horn, trombone, tuba, ensemble conducting and classical and popular voice to students from ages 3 to 90. My studio is at Marrell Music Instrument Repair in Lakewood, Ohio. This means that sheet music, accessories, instruments and expert repair technicians are all accessible when you come to your lessons. Current rates are $18/half hour or $35/hour. Daytime, evening, and weekend lesson times are all available. Give me a call and let's set up a couple lessons to get you started.

My bio:

Brandyn Metzko, composer-conductor-teacher-musician, obtained his Bachelor's degree in music at Cleveland State University in 2006, where he studied flute with Sean Gabriel, voice with William Dempsey, and conducting with Betsy Burleigh. He is about to graduate with a Master of Science Degree in Entertainment Business at Full Sail University, and is now working on his Juris Doctorate with focus on Arts Industry copyright and contract law at Concord Law School.

Brandyn has had a thriving private teaching studio in Northeast Ohio, Central Florida, New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles, preparing students for milestones ranging from Conservatory and Opera auditions to American Idol performances. His students study a variety of genres including Classical Music, Opera, Jazz, Baroque/Early Music and Popular/Broadway.

Brandyn helped to found the QUO Orchestra New York City in 2009, the Bay Area Rainbow Symphony in San Francisco in 2007 and the Blazing River Freedom Band in Cleveland in 2003, and has served on the board of the L/G Band Association as Membership Services Chair. Brandyn was Artistic Director of the Blazing River Freedom Band from 2003 until 2007, co-artistic director of the Queer Urban Orchestra in 2009-2010, and served as the Assistant Music Director with the Central Florida Sounds of Freedom Band.

Brandyn has also arranged countless works for concert band and chamber ensembles and has composed a number of original works. Brandyn's performance credits include solo and chamber works; studio recording; sacred, operatic, Broadway and popular vocal music; wind band, orchestral and flute choir ensemble work; and concert and marching band direction and performance. He resumed his post as Artistic Director of the Blazing River Freedom Band's concert band program in Winter 2012 and now records and composes from his home studio when he is not teaching or performing.

Read my blog at http://musicbrandyn.blogspot.com or visit me on Facebook at http://facebook.com/musicbrandyn

Copyright Infringement Cases in Recent News

Copyright infringement is a hot issue in the music industry today.  There are countless cases in which similarities between musical compositions can result in lawsuits.  I’m going to take a look at three recent issues as examples.

Robin Thick’s Blurred Lines is similar to Gaye’s “Got to Give it Up” and “Sexy Ways.”  However, the music is not sampled or copied exactly.  The case here is whether or not music inspired by other music is actually copyright infringement.  To date copyright law has been used to protect the expression of ideas but not necessarily the ideas themselves.  This case has the potential to change that.  (Forbes, 2013.)

In 2012, Alicia Keys faced a lawsuit because her song “Girl on Fire” included some couplets that were reminiscent of Eddie Holman’s classic, “Hey There, Lonely Girl.”  However, for it to be considered copying by sequence of notes, the sequence must be six or more notes in succession.  (Mann, 2012.) 

In 2009, Coldplay was accused by Santriani that their song “Viva La Vida” contained portions of Santriani’s instrumental work, “If I Could Fly.”  Coldplay argued that they did not know Santriani’s song and any similarities were coincidental.  Ultimately they settled out of court, perhaps indicating that there was replication between the two songs even if not resulting from intentional copying.

Forbes, Inc.   The Blurred Lines of Copyright Law.  August 20, 2013.  Accessed at http://www.forbes.com/sites/oliverherzfeld/2013/08/20/the-blurred-lines-of-copyright-law-robin-thicke-v-marvin-gayes-estate/ on Thursday, February 6, 2014.

Kafman, Gil.  Coldplay, Joe Satriani Settle Copyright Infringement Case.  MTV News.  September 16, 2009. Accessed at http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1621614/coldplay-settle-with-joe-satriani.jhtml on Thursday, February 6, 2014.

Mann, Camille.  Alicia Keys Accused of Copyright Infringement for “Girl on Fire”.  CBS News.  December 19, 2012.  Accessed at http://www.cbsnews.com/news/alicia-keys-accused-of-copyright-infringement-for-girl-on-fire/ on Thursday, February 6, 2014.

New Work: Chaos Overcome

Check out my latest work available from my publisher!http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/chaos-overcome-digital-sheet-music/19934337 

Chaos Overcome by Brandyn Metzko. For Piano, Flute, Horn, Cello, Drums. 20th Century. Advanced. Set of Parts, Score. Published by Brandyn Metzko (S0.11545).

Chaos Overcome, commissioned by Michael Wiltse in Reno, Nevada is a piece about overcoming addiction and the joy of life.

Fixing a "fuzzy" woodwind/brass tone in beginners

In teaching beginning woodwind and brass students, I often come across the same basic problems in students’ playing. A lack of a good tone is common and here I give some solutions for remedying it.

The student should be sure they are using a correct embouchure. In brass students, this is often incorrect placement.  With the mouthpiece alone, have the student first make an “ah” shape with their throat.  Then, close the lips as if to say “mmm”.  Finally the student should allow air to puff through the lips making a “puh” sound.  This is the basic brass embouchure and articulation.

Often a fuzzy sound is a result of not enough air.  Using long tones can help this issue in the long run.  I often ask the student to play twice as loud to see if that makes a difference.  This makes the student naturally use more air and will help diagnose the problem.

On clarinet and saxophone students, one should be sure the reed is the proper strength.  If little air is passing, the reed may be too hard.  If the tone is flat sounding, the reed may be too soft.  A 2 ½ reed strength is a good hardness to start with, though they should move up to a 3 as soon as their embouchure strength allows it.  One must also check that the reed is in good condition with no nicks or cracks, and that the reed is placed properly on the mouthpiece.  Even a small deviation in reed placement can affect sound negatively.  Ensure that enough but not too much of the mouthpiece is in the student’s mouth.  Saxophone players should have about half of the mouthpiece in their mouth.  Clarinet players should have less.

For flute students, check that the embouchure is centered and air is passing across the lip hole properly.  The student may want to “roll out” the head joint slightly— beginners tend to focus the air down into the head joint to ensure a sound coming out but this technique creates a hollow fuzzy tone. Rolling the head joint out allows for a more full tone as the air passes above the lip plate to cause greater resonance.

I hope you find these tips helpful, and if you have questions regarding this or other playing problems, don’t hesitate to contact me at webguybrandyn@gmail.com 

Programming Concert Repertory

Programming repertory for a community instrumental ensemble can be a challenge for new directors.  Here are some things you may want to think about as you begin to program your first concert sets.

Overall level: Many works are graded, meaning they have a number assigned to them based on their difficulty.  In the United States, a 1-5 scale is used, where 1 is absolute beginner bands/orchestras and 5 is collegiate wind ensembles/orchestras.  Understanding where your band/orchestra fits in is important.  If you program too many difficult pieces, your players may become frustrated and you may not have enough rehearsal time to cover all of the issues in the pieces.  if you program material that is too easy, your musicians may not grow significantly by rehearsing the pieces and may become bored.

Instrumentation: Did you program a beautiful piece at the right level only to discover later it requires six horn players to pull off or has a beautiful exposed English Horn solo and you have no English Horn player?  What percussion is required— do you own all of the instruments required to cover the percussion parts?  Do you have enough players?  These are important considerations.  Sometimes you can make alterations or adjustments to make a piece work or some of the parts will be doubles of others, but a quick browse through the score will help you to decide which are vital.

Contrast and Content: Having a theme can really tie the pieces together.  I’ve seen some very creative themes, such as “Gods and Monsters”, “Fire”, “Fairytale Endings”, etc.  However, ensure that your theme allows for enough contrast.  I once went to a concert of nothing but Sousa marches.  I love Sousa, but the marches all have the same form and structure, and stay in the same few keys.  The result was an hour and a half of monotony that bored the audience.  Also, be sure the music is accessible.  If your audience is a normal “popular” community band audience, don’t program an hour of twentieth-century avant-guard works.  

There is much more that can be said about repertory planning, but this gives you a few good basic guidelines.  Best of luck in writing your first concert programs!