At 06:36 AM 9/19/03 -0400, David H. Bailey wrote: >University hiring committees are not stupid (no matter how that might >appear from some hiring/firing decisions) and they know what vanity >recordings are.
What recordings in the new nonpop world are *not* vanity recordings at some significant level? I'm not talking philosophy, but practice. If the CD is made to sell on its merits with capital at risk by the recording company, by and large that's not a vanity production, but follows the marketing model. But if it's composer funding; composer friend funding; composer fundraising; performer funding; performer fundraising; foundation grants; public grants; agency support; university sponsorship; student performance 'slaves'; and all the parts which include off-free-market capital (including the above used for scores and parts, production, artwork, engineering, etc.), then it's a vanity production. In that regard, even sponsored recordings on major labels of major composers (e.g., Reich/Glass) are vanity because of the number of grants required to get them recorded and distributed -- heck, orchestras and chamber ensembles themselves soothe somebody's vanity with all their grant-getting & foundation funding! Vanity makes up the majority of the new nonpop recording market (as well as many books). You can even look at it this way: if it's not, from the start, *intended* to make back 100% of its investment plus a profit, then it's either a loss leader (certainly not nonpop), a speculative investment (also not nonpop), or a vanity production. I'm not saying there's a moral or ethical judgment that should be made ... though some will, depending on how vain the production appears to be. :) To me, the free market is not a theocracy, and those of us who have spent the better portion of our lives as artists are familiar with the survival issues and sacrifices, and probably know somewhere inside that it's all about vanity anyway. >What they think about people who use them, though, is >anybody's guess -- they might think you are an energetic go-getter who >went that route as a stepping stone to get your music heard by more >people or they might just think you're an egotistical fool who will >waste good money simply to get your music recorded. You can't second >guess them, so make your decision on other points. I'm ignorant of the behavior in the academic world. Who knows what they know about the marketplace! >If you want your music to look good on CD, record it yourself (less >expensive and you get to keep ALL the royalties), have it printed by a >commercial printing house with a printed label on the CD (not a stick-on >label) and commercial quality liner notes. >Do a terrific, professional-quality job on the printing of the CD and >your intended audience will be just as impressed as if you have >vanity-press recordings, and you'll have more control over your image if >you do it yourself. I would agree with this completely if the goal is to record and distribute a very few titles as 'calling cards'. You won't get them into record stores without also buying the UPC (barcode) and putting them out there on consignment (for those that accept consignment, if you can reach their buyers), but you can do a marginal business at places such as CDBaby.com, etc. The one advantage to many higher-level vanity labels is their aggressive posture in marketing -- puny compared with pop labels, but still able to promote and place recordings. Making money back is another matter. My own single nonpop commercial recording, "Detritus of Mating" (not exactly a marketable title), was released in 1997. I did all the prep work myself, including mastering, artwork (digital files press-ready for booklet and label), UPC, etc. Because it was electroacoustic, I was the only performer. It took four years to make back the outlay cost ($2100) by selling them at concerts, via my website, via other websites (Emusic and CDBaby), through Tower Records (consignment; I *did* get through to the buyer), international distributors (France's Crystal Records, for example), along with getting airplay (confirmed on 21 radio stations) and a review in several publications (such as the Village Voice), etc. I mention outlay cost because my time was never paid for; now I use them as calling cards, and my compulsive record-keeping shows 191 sold at full price ($15) and 343 comp copies. (The apparent $800 profit went into phone calls, postage, etc.) Here is the info page: http://maltedmedia.com/detritus.html But, to return to my comment about very few titles: I would love a few more commercial recordings, but I much prefer special collections or releases. Since they're going to be calling cards anyway, I follow the Kyle Gann model of limited editions -- which also gives them a kind of artwork cachet, as the provenance is clearly with the artist and not a publishing company. >Do it yourself or not at all, in my opinion. I'd go with that. Dennis _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
