Is there still a value in music?

I recently loaded some old cd's onto my itunes . . . albums (mostly in the CCM world) that were produced back in the glory days of the industry- going all the way back in the last century (1990's :-) and the differences are stark.

The biggest contrast in those recordings from todays music is the production value. Albums that came out in the late 90's and very early 2000's have a depth/quality in the musical recording- not necessarily in the talent of the artist or even lyrics of the songs, though you can make an argument for those as well. Im referring to the depth of the musical canvas, the musicianship of the artists performing in the music. This is the time we first started seeing digital effects coming into play, and it was used to extend the value- not replace it. Much of this is attributed to the budgets that albums used to have, verses the "above the garage" studio budgets that many major label artist are "forced" to create in. While there are some great advantages to having a relaxed environment and more time to create than in a traditional studio, you also can't fit a real orchestra in there!

Mixing in the box (a term coined when mixing happens completely inside a computer environment- no physical mixing console or gear) has opened up the gates to new engineers and producers, but has also put the art form of recording and producing into cold territory. No longer do you have the time to tweak and mix, to let the music rest on your ears for a bit. Now you create a mix- compress it to a MP3, and send out to radio. Unfortunately, the art in the mixing and producing has become a forumla to be followed- mix a CHR verison, an AC version, an album version, a cut with the local stations call letters, and an extremely "Vocals UP" mix to make sure everyone has a version that they can play. While this is great for helping reduce friction to playlists, it becomes calculated.

Musicians, by nature, are passionate "all-in" people, and the ones that do well are willing to put everything in and do what is required to make it. Producers and engineers are also passionate people who can see the vision in a song. They can take a artists vocals/guitar, and craft an entire musical experience. I'm afraid the machine today has taken a lot of the gut feeling out of musical production, and left the artist torn between being a major player or creating authentic music.

When corporations saw the $$$ in Christian music, they jumped on board. While this enabled the genre to expand and gain acceptance, it also created a dichotomy in musicians who feel called to create music that points to our creator and the most popular product that is most accessible to radio. It can be done, and the artists that find that illusive balance are till surviving.

I don't know that the bulk lies on any one particular group, its just kind of the product of the times. I guess the point is that I would like to have a rock/pop album with real instruments, real musicians AND technology. One violin and a synth keyboard will never replace the pops orchestra accompanying a full band. We're now about ten years out from the collapse of the music industry, and while we still (and always will) have new artist and big hits, I can't help but think back to when an album took you on a musical journey.

Check out the site http://www.restoringmusic.org/TheCrisisDocument for more depth on many of the things I'm talking about. Im glad to see a group that is trying to not only restore some of what was lost, but also create an environment where business and creative can co-exist more effectively.