Music has become more pervasive in peoples lives thanks to the advent of technologies such as CDs and MP3s. It struck me when I was watching the various clips in Wednesday's lecure, that people who listen to vinyl records, seem to sit down and listen.
This is in contrast to they way people who on MP3s listen to music. While I admit that I am basing this purely on observational evidence, it appears to me that people are always doing something when they are listening to MP3s. You will seldom find a person who sits in a room and plays an MP3 or two before getting up to switch of their device and do something else.
You do find this, however with records. I think this can be attributed to the technial limitations of a record. These including the fact that only two or three songs can fit onto any side of a record meaning that the listner must be more active in their musical consumption as every few minutes, they must return to the turntable to physically turn over the disc or replace it.
Does anyone else think this is true?
What are your thoughts?
2 comments:
Interesting point Andrew about vinyl records, because yeah I thought about that too, how vinyl record listeners are more embedded with the lyrics and the song that they would have to sit down and listen to it, whereas the accessible MP3s gives the ability to multi-task. Yeah I agree that the vinyl records do have “technical limitations”. I think that the technical limitations decreases the accessibility of usage for records, for instance you can only listen to records at home or on a static platform, you cannot necessarily take the vinyl record with you everywhere you go like you can with a MP3. This is where the advanced technological differences come into play, as MP3s are specifically designed to cater to an accessible outlook for customer satisfaction. For instance, designed to be carried around, thus the invention of MP3 cases, handles and straps designed to easily and comfortably place in your car while driving, carry around in your pockets while listening to it or just wearing it around you arm like when you’re going for a run, of just listening to it on the train while reading (lecture notes, newspaper, book etc).
MP3s are so easy to use and can download more songs than a vinyl record can hold, as well as having a ‘menu’ of many options that of course a vinyl record does not, keeping you more occupied, like with games installed etc. The improvement of technology (with CDs, MP3s etc) is focussed on customer satisfaction of ‘easy to use’ and accessible technological products however, cannot affect the so called obsessive record collectors who have embedded their knowledge and satisfaction in vinyl records. Like for instance, the clip from Diner, in the Scene ‘Don’t Touch’ that Nabeel played in the lecture on Wednesday, of that guy yelling at his partner for his records being alphabetically out of order. In which the female character admitted she only listens for the ‘music’, whereas he remembers the name, year and producer of the song; proving to be an obsessed record listener.
It sort of reminded me of my father, he still has his record/stereo player sitting at home all dusty and old, with all his favourite vinyl records stored at the bottom. I’ve requested countless times to sell his record/stereo player and records yet he refuses, then goes on and on about when and where he brought the records from, the latest songs during his childhood/adolescent years and his many memories. It made me realise that NO he is not an obsessive record collector (hehe) but he is however, embedded in his vinyl records just as how we are now embedded in the latest technological products such as the MP3s, CDs, ipods etc. So it goes to show that through time, there have obviously been technological advancements especially with music products, but what we choose to listen to and how we hear it is clearly up to us, the individual themselves, no matter how flash, fancy and accessible it may have become.
From reading the above post make me think how our experience of listening to the music has been changed by the technology. And it is not only apply to the music listening, the technology has changed lots of the things. For example, the experience of seeing a movie is been changing now. The old fashion way of going to cinema with a pop corn in hand is less and less popular. People rather stay home and rent in DVD for the Friday night, or see them online. It is not to say that the DVD decreased the viewing pleasure, because people can still enjoying their chosen film in their comfortable environment of home. But it indeed changes the traditional cinematic experience. The DVD set of the popular TV drama also did the same thing to the traditional TV viewing, even more dramatically. Now you don’t need to wait for a week to see the plot development, you can see the whole season overnight if you want. Back to the music, like Italia said it used to be sitting down and concentrate when listen to the records. But nowadays, the music becoming more like background thing, because they are played when people engage in other activities. Some times make me think about the music itself, are they influenced by the way we consumer them? For example, I prefer to have songs which are fast and have a strong beat stored in my mp3 player, because I usually listen to them while walking. In the morning or at night, you need something to keep you going; a slow and emotional song will not do well with the mood
Post a Comment