Bytes and backbeats
Subtitle: repurposing music in the digital age
By: Steve Savage
Series: Tracking pop
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
Published: 2011
Place of publication: Ann Arbor, Mich
Language: eng
Number of pages: 251
ISBN-13: 9780472117857; 9780472027736
Subjects: Production and direction; Popular music; Sound recordings
Description: "From Attali's 'cold social silence' to Baudrillard's hallucinatory reality, reproduced music has long been the target of critical attack. In Bytes and Backbeats, however, Steve Savage deploys an innovative combination of designed recording projects, ethnographic studies of contemporary music practice, and critical analysis to challenge many of these traditional attitudes about the creation and reception of music. Savage adopts the notion of 'repurposing' as central to understanding how every aspect of musical activity, from creation to reception, has been transformed, arguing that the tension within production between a naturalizing 'art' and a self-conscious 'artifice' reflects and feeds into our evolving notions of creativity, authenticity, and community. At the core of the book are three original audio projects, drawing from rock & roll, jazz, and traditional African music. Through these projects--and with the aid of newly imagined techniques of computer-based recording--Savage is able to target areas of contemporary practice that are particularly significant in the cultural evolution of the musical experience, from the perspective of composers, musicians, and listeners. Each audio project includes a studio study providing context for the social and cultural analysis that follows. This work stems from Savage's experience as a professional recording engineer and record producer."--Jacket.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Repurposing presentation. Application study : rock band ; Studio study : lipsmacks, mouth noises, and heavy breathing ; Art or artifice?; title: Repurposing performance. Application study : jazz piano trio ; Studio study : capturing the unintentional performance ; Artist or artisan?; title: Repurposing participation. Application study : African folklore and music communities ; Studio study : from iPod to GarageBand ; Integration or (dis)integration?