Open Source Music

[info being]

I'm a musician who offers original open source music for free at http://www.anotherdreamer.net. In my opinion, the only free music distribution model that is viable over the long-term is a direct “consensual” relationship between the artist and the audience. The Creative Commons licensing scheme (http://www.creativecommons.org) is an excellent option and that's what I used.

Record companies argue that they help artists get paid for their work...but the reality is that most artists get paid little and sacrifice much. Artists are forced to give up the rights to their work and are at the whim of corporate power...which is at odds with creative freedom.

I think it is the responsibility of the artist to find ways to make and promote quality music on our own terms. We should not perpetuate a cycle whereby our fans are prosecuted by record companies for downloading and listening to our music. Music should be free and put into the public domain, much like open source software.

Artists have to make a living. Yet aside from the popular, mainstream artists who are heavily promoted, most musicians make very little from record sales. Why not make music available for free and then ask fans to tip their favorite artists? Customers willingly tip waiters for good service...so why wouldn't a fan contribute $3 to a favorite artist? I plan to experiment with this type of model in the near future.

Ultimately, artists and fans will need to create a mutually-beneficial relationship of trust that leaves out record companies. My songs and source files are licensed under the Creative Commons model and made available to listen, share, and modify for free at my weblog.

Anyway, the themes in my songs are along the lines of what we discuss here at DU. If you have a chance, please venture over to my weblog and have a listen:)