Brian to be a member of the Music as Culture panel!

[Katie/Reflex]

Welcome to Un-convention, a series of regional, national and international music conferences and events for the grass roots of the industry.
Brian will be attending as a member of the Music as Culture panel on the 7/8/9 May.
Check out the link below and register for your chance to attend:

http://unconvention.wordpress.com

[bt/ub40]

In case any of you were wondering what I had written for the UN-CONVENTION program (what program you ask ?) here it is...altho you are probably bored stiff reading my 'war&peacers'

Greetings fellow un-conventionals...
Lets get straight down to it, its all about the music and the music has to be great. It has to get under the listeners skin and give them no choice but to love it. After that, word of mouth will take care of everything else. Thats the way it is, thats why its so hard and thats why not everyone can pull it off. We all know what great music is, so we should never confuse the ease by which we can now digitally compose, record and market direct to the listener with producing great music. Of course it doesn’t stop you producing great music but thats never been down to the tools. Great music has always been the sole result of great idea’s and if we are to fully exploit the artistic freedoms afforded us by this digital autonomy we have to keep a very close watch on what we send down the wire. Afterall, every one of us lives in the shadow of the expression that has come before us, the stuff that inspired us to believe we too could make art.
I think its worth recognizing that even though there have always been guardian’s at the gate of major label distribution, dictating what was good enough to actually release, there were still very few songs by comparison that made it into the collective soul. We could all argue about who makes the greatest records, its fair to say, we are, each and every one of us experts in the field of what moves us, but I think we can also agree when something is truly great regardless of personal taste or genre. The guardians famously made it difficult to get an audience with a record label, or at least a label prepared to spend the money needed to record and then promote your work. Word of mouth was always the catalyst that got the ball rolling and the A&R guys along to your gig, even then it wasn’t only you they were looking at, they may have been listening to your music but it was the audience and how you were moving them that they had really come to see. Its common knowledge the best recommendations come from someone else and an appreciative crowd magnifies that truth ten fold. When performed live our music is set free, it comes to life courtesy of the audience. They can’t be fooled and they can always tell if you mean it, their bullshit detectors are finely tuned instruments and thats just as true in this digital era as it ever was. We must always keep in mind exactly why we feel this need to make music and exactly what it was that ignited that spark inside us.
Time for some shameless name dropping, please forgive me but I think it will explain where I’m coming from. Some years ago while working at Air Studios UB40 were invited by Paul McCartney to listen to a mix of a new recording, a duet with Michael Jackson. George Martin turned up the volume and they both sat back, their gaze fixed upon us hungry for fresh feedback, y’know how it works. Of course it sounded incredibly accomplished, produced by Sir George, accompanied by a symphony orchestra with the cream of the worlds best session players as well as having a Beatle and a Jackson on the mic. Now even if it was a little too sweet for our tastes, its ambition was overwhelming and there wasn’t much you could say except,
“ Good demo Macca, when you doing the real thing ? ” Everyone laughed at which point Paul said “ Y’know something ? I never make demos, If I cant remember the song, how is anyone else supposed to remember it ? ” And thats precisely my point, great songs stay in our heads forever, they remind us of that precise moment in time when the tune grabbed our attention and became another movement in the soundtrack of our lives. If we aim to do that every time we pick up our music then this post label digital euphoria will be justified and something we can exploit for the benefit of our art. We have to remind ourselves we’re not dealing in commodities, no one’s life depends on hearing our latest opus, in fact no one has to listen to us. Music has always been driven by freedom of choice, passion and commitment. The listener can decide to turn the radio off, not buy the concert ticket and not download the song, but when the music is great we can’t get enough, we simply surrender to this most abstract of all art forms. We can’t see it or touch it, but we can feel it and when it touches us, it stays forever.
We stand, every last one of us at the threshold of unlimited access to a free distribution network encompassing the whole planet. Its pointless making your music then sitting back hoping everyone will get to hear it. There’s a lot of traffic out there, so you’ve got to promote, you’ve got to exploit every suitable avenue this digital freedom has made available.You’ve got to make mutually beneficial partnerships with like minded music heads and you’ve got to create direct online relationships with your audience. As Bob Lefsetz the American music industry pundit has pointed out
“ The biggest crisis facing the music business isn't pricing, of either music or concerts, but the lack of a filter telling people what to listen to “
Before I finish, please permit me one last shameless but self explanatory name drop. Chris Blackwell of Island records once said to Bob Marley when he was complaining about doing an interview to publicize his new album,

‘ Do you know what happens when you don’t promote your music ?………….NOTHING ! ‘




Brian Travers.

[bt/ub40]

ps.I wont be performing at this..it's strictly music business...its all about the young musicians getting some inside knowledge from the older guys from all areas of the business...

[Dutchess]

Nice read Brian. Very interesting hearing your point of view as musicians.

[FRANCY B]

Gracias nice read it.....
Thanks for keep contac with us........

[j59]

Good speech Brian.

love jx

[Waltjo]

Nice one I am sure they will learn a lot from you BT

We can’t see it or touch it, but we can feel it and when it touches us, it stays forever. This so true

[Nes B40]

Well spoken Mr,T

[<3 ub40 <3]

Nicely put BT

[champane]

Nice read gave me a little info of some things thanks although i have no conection to it music is a big part of me. I hope they listen to you I and anyone that knows you know what a very intelligent person you are.