My friend Matt wrote about a book he read by Albert Borgmann on technology. In it, there was a discussion on how we lose a little bit with most of our musical experiences being recorded, which is something that did not happen that much until after world war two.
It got me to thinking.
One of the things that is different about Jennifer and I is that Jen likes live music and live recordings, where I have much less interest in either, especially recordings of live performances. I like my music to be relationally distanced from the performer. I like to be able to listen to something while reading a book, and have the music help me write well. I like to listen to music that leads me to prayer while I am alone. For me, musical stuff is rarely a social event.
Jen and her friend Hollie almost glow when they talk about going to a Dave Matthews concert. They love the community experience. The chance to experience music live. The chance to be connected to the artist in that way. Jen and Hollie love the uniqueness of each concert experience, and will hear someone live more than once.
I would like to hear a few folks live in concert. The reason is different. Mainly, at some point, I would like to say, for example, that I saw U2 in concert. Or Van Morrison. Having said that, there are people that I was not a fan of until I saw them in concert. This is especially true of Christian musicians, and most true of Jennifer Knapp (a 90s Christian musician). To be honest, I had a celeb crush on Jennifer Knapp for a while.
So, my question is, are you a "live" person, or do you prefer music on a CD in your easy chair to being at a concert?
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7 comments:
I love all music - LOVE LOVE LOVE my ipod, but there is nothing like a Live concert! I would see people I like more than once for sure! I have fallen in love with music because of a concert for sure!
I think I'm a live music person. I don't get to as many shows as I used to but I love the energy of live music. Many times when I'm introduced to a band live and enjoy them I go buy the cd and wonder what the heck happened. Studio music usually just isn't as dynamic. On the other hand, some acts should stick to the studio! I saw Sixpence live and was bored out of my head, but I love their cds.
There are other options such as playing the music or singing or dancing to it. Perhaps you can add Guitar Hero/Rock Band to the list.
To me music has mostly been background noise or my least favorite part of church. But there have been times either alone or with close friends where I've enjoyed spontaneous singing and these are probably my favorite experiences with music.
Thanks for the reference to my blog and all your encouraging comments.
I would say that I like both, but for different reasons. I like listening to truly talented musicians perform live, because there's nothing like the connection you get between performer and audience during a live concert. And hearing someone with real talent is always worth the money, to me.
On the other hand, very few performers have the talent to really pull off onstage what they do in the studio. In fact, most of the live events I've been to have been empty, talentless experiences compared to their studio-quality music (which has been mixed and retaken enough that it's usually relatively perfect).
The one exception for me is classical music. There is nothing in the experience of listening to classical music recorded that even remotely compares to the experience of hearing it live, assuming that the caliber of performance is the same. I certainly would rather listen to a produced copy of Joshua Bell play Mendelssohn in the comfort of my living room than listen to a semi-talented amateur play anything live. And I'm generally not a big Mendelssohn fan.
So I guess for me it comes down to quality. Whichever is the more quality musical experience, that's the one I would prefer to have. Come to think of it, that explains a lot about me...
LIVE! I have seen my favorite artists numerous times in concert and I still get just as excited each time. There is something about sharing that energy with hundreds of people. You can't get that on a CD. Oh, and Hi!!!
both. and.
:-)
I agree with you. Seems like the music is better when recorded.I have seen the Beach Boys and the Oakridge Boys in an outdoor concert. It was difficult to hear and way to many people.
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