bblackwood wrote on Sat, 24 April 2004 21:04 |
neil wilkes wrote on Sat, 24 April 2004 06:22 | Unfortunately that will never happen as there will always be people around to whom the money is more important than either quality or principles.
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Ahh, were it so simple...
For many of us, pleasing the client is the bottom line, not the dollar. I tend to start low in level (comparatively speaking) and can add level as needed. It's rarely requested. But frankly, to tell a client to walk because I don't share their vision for their art seems a bit pretentious...
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In this brave new and friendly forum, it seems rude and presumptous to call him out as "pretentious" for having standards and principles.
One could easiy say that "the customer is always right" is prostitution and to please others as a guiding principle, is to be a whore. Pleasing the customer is at root about dollars, although it looks and feels better at the time.
In any field there is Service and there is Slavery. We can still be in business doing Service. We see that everyday.
The interesting questions are thus:
Are there such things as standards? Or is it all subjective?
If there are standards, somewhere out there in the great pool of subjectivity, is anyone going to stand for them ?
If so, is Mastering the place to do it?
That Moment-of-Principle is why I have 3 jobs, so I can say no on occasion, or aim to educate, or piss off someone on occasion, and always respect music and it's needs.
It's hardly pretentious to look at a musician in the heat of their moment: ambitious, technically uneducated, often tired, selfish perspective on the whole, and tell them what's up if they are wanting to go too far based on bad ideas. There are some bad ideas out there are there not?
And if there are no bad ideas, what does that mean for music, politics, everything?
Fact is, the best music is not owned by the artist, it's chaneled by them. Musician as vehicle, not dogmatist. Any musician with real skills will tell you this. Even Barry Manilow, whose music I don't like, he get's it. "I write the songs" is about the spirit of Music, not him as you might think. I did.
With training and experience there is a time and a place to see music on it's own terms, not just as
theirmusic, but as
the music.
In 5 years the artist might just thank you for the input.
Practically, face to face, it's all about negotiation.
Most of life is negotiation and this is no different, yet only if we stand up for music and principle. Or it's moving widgets in sound.
And if that's the case, if we're just in it to move widgets, please the customer (and get their money and recommendation) we might as well make some real money in another business field.
Music needs friends of principle ... just listen, and look around.