The New Music Industry

by Ed Sein on September 1, 2017

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Music and art have long been easy targets of school curricula in an effort to maximize ever more limited resources, leaving it up to parents to fill the void. Music programs are increasingly an integral part of successful musical instrument retail business models and private music instruction is the part of the industry that is seeing growth today.

Quincy Jones recently said, “Honey, we have no music industry” in a Fortune magazine interview, http://fortune.com/2015/07/01/quincy-jones-music-qa/ . The legendary producer is currently raising funds for an online music-learning program called Playground Sessions, a market-based educational outreach tool to expose young people to music and teach them how to enjoy learning to play the piano. With the focus on STEM subjects at the sacrifice of the Arts in education today, the demand for music instruction outside of competition-centered school marching band programs in public schools is being filled by the private sector.

Quincy Jones is not alone in the using his star and branding power to fill this void. Guitar legend, Steve Vai, launched Vai Academy, and MI industry titan, Fender, is getting into the education business.. It’s understandable that Fortune, a business magazine, conducted this interview with Mr. Jones which, while informative, reads like a commercial.

The music industry, Fortune acknowledges, is the growth of private music instruction programs like Mr. Jones’ start-up. The headline worked as click-bait because many of us have a stake in the state of affairs in THE music industry as it’s conventionally known. While there is an incredible amount of creative output reflective of the exchange of ideas and culture in The Information Age, creators aren’t seeing fair compensation for their work. On this point, Mr. Jones is absolutely correct: the pronoun “we” in his quote about the music industry refers to the artists, composers and songwriters; the creators of music. Pharell Williams made a pittance for the millions of times his song “Happy” was streamed online and Donald Fagan of Steely Dan is touring at 69 years of age because there’s no income from record sales. For all the grief and ill will Metallica earned at the time by standing up to pioneering file-sharing service Napster back in the day, they’ve been proven to be right.

Quincy Jones mentions a 90% piracy rate and the days when 4.5 million in record sales was a weekly occurrence. He recalls an era when record companies nurtured and developed artists with A&R departments, studios could be locked out for months at a time and artists could earn a living from the recordings they produced. For those of us of a certain age, the change is drastic and disheartening. The last generation to have two feet firmly planted in the pre-internet and post-internet age has born witness to a tectonic shift in the way people consume media. Increasing media consolidation, corporate ownership and the impact of online streaming of music has been both subtle and blatant. Popular music is far more formulaic in terms of sound and production and theft of intellectual property has been normalized in our society.

The impact of this status-quo is far reaching and has yet to be fully felt. Quincy Jones’ career included a point in history when music made a real cultural impact. Music was the voice of a generation, the soundtrack to a counter-cultural revolution. Far and few in between are instances of social commentary heard in popular music these days. Very few songs calling for social justice and change make it to mainstream audiences. The protest song, once a part of the American songwriting tradition is noticeably absent and it’s not because of a lack of feeling, awareness and social consciousness among artists today. Calling attention to socio-economic inequities is antithetical to the unquestioning consumerism that drives the economic engine of corporations. By acting as cultural gatekeepers, music that is insipid, banal and devoid of real meaning is over-represented and artists with a true voice struggle to be heard.

Mr. Jones’ point about America being the only country without a cultural minister and his frustration about it speaks to a larger issue. The intersection of art and commerce and the argument that there is a societal benefit to the support of the arts and culture as an expression of national identity is a perennial one.  One could argue that because America is such a melting pot it makes uniform expressions of cultural identity problematic. Despite Jones’ mention of Jazz and the Blues, even these idioms draw from earlier influences and indeed characterize the mash-up melting pot cultural gumbo that is America. Rather than this being problematic in terms of national identity it could be celebrated. This vision of America that Jones’ cultural minister would project based on the multicultural influences music reflects may be at odds with some people’s idea of what is indeed “American.” However, our nation’s motto, E Pluribus Unum, defines this nation and perhaps not coincidently the music Americans produce.

This new music industry that Quincy Jones, Fender, and independents like Moore Music’s Evansville Music Academy, and now Guitar Center provide a response to a demand. We should all hope to benefit from this new music industry from the manufacturing, retail, marketing end to the educational and cultural one.  The very nature of music instruction and education generally is one of nurturing and growth. “Out of many, one” is our nation’s motto and the new music industry is an opportunity for all of us to grow and succeed, buoyed by the understanding that a rising tide lifts all boats.

The study of music forces one to confront the fact that it is a medium that evolves over time and has influenced composers throughout history. From the notes of a shepherd’s flute upon Beethoven to the call-and-response work songs recorded by Alan Lomax in early 20th century America’s influence upon the Blues, R&B, Soul and Rock and Roll. The realization that all music is a reflection of the diverse, variegated and yes, multi-cultural nature of civilization itself is inescapable. This awareness and its impact upon students of all ages, but especially children, is a powerful lesson indeed. Where public education is failing in this area, the private sector is seeing an opportunity. Beyond the basic instruction of technique and mechanical proficiency to play an instrument, the lessons music education teaches can extend far beyond the interests of the hobbyist, reverberate throughout one’s life, uplift, inspire, and help realize the true goal of education generally which is wisdom. We should all hope that this burst of entrepreneurialism by Quincy Jones and the rest contributes to a new dialogue about the role of music education in our country, how it can positively influence the minds of our children, and open the minds of adults. 

Topics: music lessons