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Thursday May 14, 2009 at 10:04 AM
Wynton Marsalis Signs With The Orchard – by Vijith
Last week, we briefly discussed concert promotion behemoth Live Nation‘s ongoing moves toward signing suspiciously record-label-like deals with artists like Jay-Z and Nickelback. This, of course, is largely because traditional ways of generating revenue using copyrighted recordings aren’t working so well anymore, and regular record labels had been hemorrhaging money for a solid decade or so before the rest of corporate America decided to join the party last fall.
It’s also why other companies are also considering stepping in to add their own twist to the formula. Around this time last year, UK electronica and trip hop duo Groove Armada unveiled a deal in which they’d be distributing their new recordings through (seriously) Bacardi, for example, and as of this week we have another considerably less ridiculous, perhaps even culturally noteworthy addition to that list: jazz trumpeter and all-around living legend Wynton Marsalis has signed a similar deal with The Orchard.
“Who?”, you’re probably asking. If you’re referring to Marsalis with that, we’ll start laughing at you and throwing CDs at your head, but if it’s the Orchard you’re curious about, that’s OK.
During the earliest days of the iTunes Music Store, Apple decided to sidestep the hassle of dealing with musicians directly (admit it, we are tremendous pains) and instead would only work with record labels to procure the songs. There was once some suspicion that this hesitance was due to their standoffish relationship with Apple Corps, the Beatles’ record label, which took Apple (Computer) to court several times starting in 1978 for trademark infringement. That built to the mutually tense understanding that both companies could use the same darn fruit as long as they stuck to their respective fields: Corps to music, and Computer to, well, computers. The iPod and certainly the iTunes Music Store blurred that line a bit, and direct dealings with the musicians could have been construed by a judge as an invasion of the Corps space.
Unfortunately, this meant that independent musicians were screwed.
That changed in August 2003, however, when hard-copy indie music retailer CDBaby convinced Apple they’d be able to perform all the duties of a traditional label and broker otherwise independent music for use in the store. CDBaby isn’t selective about the music they stock and sell — they will even accept homebrew CD-Rs — and their services are pretty affordable, so all of a sudden, even the least business-savvy of broke-ass independent artists could sell their songs through the iTunes Music Store and pocket the majority of the proceeds. CDBaby had this niche locked up quite nicely for a few years, but around 2005 or 2006, alternatives like Tunecore and The Orchard popped up and started providing the same services, but using slightly different pricing models and dispensing entirely with the physical sales.
So now Marsalis has signed with the latter, also sidestepping the more traditional labels; he’s worked with Sony and Columbia extensively, and his most recent records came out on revered jazz imprint Blue Note, which is a subsidiary of EMI. All are heavyweights.
There are three things that are interesting about this development.
First, the company he’s working with is in many ways far better aligned with his new digital trajectory than, say, the profiteers of sin at Bacardi. Even Live Nation, which doubtless has a promotional budget that could unknowingly blow The Orchard’s away with a sneeze, isn’t positioned quite as well ideologically. That is, The Orchard is fundamentally in the business of making money by distributing audio recordings sans physical media. That would bode well, it would seem, for Marsalis’ ability to do so himself.
The second point — and this is not going anywhere, since it’s just me indulging my inner space-cadet — is that Marsalis is pointedly traditionalist when it comes to his music. That’s another post entirely, but the short version is that he preaches the importance of studying proper jazz forms and learning a canon, while his detractors say his retrospective emphasis runs counter to the genre’s improvisatory spirit of evolution. And while we shouldn’t run around confusing the art and the technology willy-nilly, it’s still a little amusing to see him break with tradition in such a pronounced fashion.
Third, if he was using Indaba, it’d be possible for him to both create and distribute his tunes without any of the physical infrastructure once required by either. Cool, huh?
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May 15, 2009
*minime - I'm not sure about other download services, but eMusic allows you to download your music again - heaven forbid you've lost it in a hard drive crash.
May 15, 2009
The Orchard will arrange for physical distribution as well? Interesting... I'm curious to see how this plays out - it's quite important that they do this well, as this will pave the wave for many similar signings.
As for the digital side, it'll be important for The Orchard to offer high bitrate or even WAV versions of the tracks in order to attract "older" customers who are starting to delve into the digital domain.
I generally find myself buying music on less expensive download services like eMusic and amieSt... even Amazon's mp3 service often offers album downloads for just $5. But, of course, buying the physical album is always more gratifying and of better quality. In any case, the convenience of being to be down here in Argentina and keep up with all new music with online download services has completely outweighed the quality of the physical product (because it simply isn't available for me at the moment).
Anyways, that is a good discussion to be had... perhaps in a forum!
Buen suerte, Marsalis.
May 15, 2009
Other companys are going the same way with Physical copies ! Orchad is NOT the only ........take a look in the listed companys and you will see ! I am sure this will come step by step more and this is good BECAUSE it is good for the ARTIST ! I like to see that Artists do this WITHOUT the Industry ! I think in the next Years step by step this will come more big as it is now ! You are right !!! In the moment it is a focus on the dowload mp3 thing but i am sure this will change !!!
Then A WORD to this with the OLDER FANS :-)
I am OLD :-) I have NEVER buy a mp.3 and there is NO WAY that i do ! It s not why i am to old ! It s why i prefer Qualitty ! On one side you have the Cd /Dvd and the vinyl and on the other side the mp.3.............so and now as a consumer WHAT IS THERE THE REASON TO PAY FOR CRAP QUALITTY ???
THE PRICE ???
YES this COULD be a argument but let us look on this a little clooser ;-)
Two CDs ...........ALBUMS ............and the same As mp.3 download !
1. Faith no more - King for a day
As Cd in a german online Cd store 7,97 EURO
As download Album in the most known mp.3 online store 9.99 EURO
2.Supertramp - Paris (Double Cd )
As Cd in a german online CD store 13.99 EURO
As Download Album in the most known mp.3 online store 19.99 EURO
This must not be all the time so but more and more i get the feeling that the Price is not an argumennt to buy mp.3..........So and now let us look ...........We have on the physical copies a better price and we have a better Qualitty so and in this way i want say THIS OLD people are not only OLD i have the feeling they are clever too :;-)
AND NEXT WEEK a story about someone who had buy 5000 mp.3 in an online store ! This person had never backup this mp.3 s and one day the windows compuer sytem had crash and the system hard disc was out of order ! On this day this person WAS an EX owner of 5000 mp.3 .............all away ! Bye bye to the complete music libary .............This person was not OLD and also not CLEVER ..........hahahahahahaaaaaaaaa :-)
May 14, 2009
To clarify: the Orchard will also be arranging for physical copies to cater to those older fans. My point was more that their overall focus is overwhelmingly on the downloads.
May 14, 2009
Sevices like Tunecore ,audiomagnet and rebeat are very interested with there service ! Everything is in the hand of the artist self :-) Not that bad :-)
May 14, 2009
I recall an executive from The Orchard coming in to speak with my class in the Fall of 2006 at NYU... perhaps Steve Haase, but I don't recall specifically.
It definitely seemed like they've been ahead of the game, digitally, for a long time now. They're even starting to post profits, which is very encouraging to see, as someone who hopes to survive in this industry.
It definitely a very interesting, and possible profitable, move by both parties involved. I can't help but focus on the fact that Wynton Marsalis's core group of fans (I'd imagine 30-65yo) are still heavily focused in the physical domain.
It will be interesting to see how they don't abandon these fans, who may be looking for something like deluxe physical packages with bonus features and DVDs as opposed to lower-quality, less tangible online downloads.
On the other hand, this will definitely make me check out Wynton with a more open mind than before! Perhaps the same for other college kids, hopefully.
~o
May 14, 2009
then invite him 2 indaba.icould use him.------