Disruptive Technologiesby Dave Allen |
|
|
Ah yes, the Musician’s Union.
What can one write about the Musician’s Union in the year 2003? Never mind that ‘Union’ is a loaded word, heavy with the baggage of mid-century class wars, anti-labor politicians and corporate leaders breaking the back of the American labor movement. Having been around since 1899 the Union appears to be an anachronism in the 21st century. In an effort at modernizing, the federation should replace Musicians Union with a sleeker name – how about MU, a kinder, gentler association.
Bruce Fife wrote in the last issue about the union and he informed us that – “The American Federation of Musicians of the US and Canada is still the largest organization in the world dedicated to representing the interests of all professional musicians (including rockers). There are two distinctive components to the union. The first is the religion. Unionism. Solidarity. The stated mission goals that have been in place for years. We believe in the rights of musicians to live and work in dignity; for our work to be fulfilling and fairly compensated; to have a meaningful voice in the decisions that affect us; to have the opportunity to develop our talents and skills; and to oppose the forces of exploitation through our union solidarity. That’s a mouthful, but it really boils down to (1) you should be paid fairly for your work and (2) you should be treated with respect. You may believe that as a musician, this is art, not work. Though we are artists, as soon as we leave the confines of our living room or studio and set up to play in a “for profit” club, it is work, and we deserve to be treated fairly.”
Nice. The italics are all mine.
There is much to take issue with in this short paragraph but first it may help by taking a look at the current music scene here in Portland. As all self-respecting musicians in this city know, Portland is a hot bed of talent and creativity and has a huge underground support system that is comprised of music fans, writers, clubs and their bookers. In the same issue of Music Lib in which Bruce Fife’s article appeared there was an interview with noted local tastemaker and booker Chantelle Hylton. It’s a shame that her interviewer didn’t ask her about how the now defunct Blackbird would perhaps have fared better by being a unionized venue that had to have minimum standards, wages and conditions. Or how the owner of the Twilight Café, a venue that presents bands who perform there for free which in turn allows patrons to attend for free, would be able to continue with this policy if all the performers were unionized and therefore demanded to be paid. I suspect that the Blackbird would not have been able to book local independent musicians and the Twilight would have to pass along the costs to its customers. And if they didn’t unionize their rooms, one presumes their patrons would have to cross picket lines to get to hear their favorite, and by now, vilified non-union artists.
And I write ‘non-unionized artists’ because I find it hard to believe that those artists, the ones Bruce calls rockers, feel that the union could ever understand their art form well enough to represent them. In his own article he admits that the union did not embrace rock and roll as a legitimate art form; an astonishing statement and a brave admission. And yet of course it is an unsurprising statement; historically the union has primarily represented the orchestra members of symphonies, operas and ballets. Jazz, blues and rock musicians have long had to tussle for second, third and fourth place.
And where does the Musician’s Union stake its place in America in 2003? How far out of the ballpark does the American public launch the phrase ‘collective bargaining agreements?’ Americans of all stripes these days are far more centrist than the anti-communist fuelled new suburbanites of the mid-century. No longer do they perceive collective bargaining1 as a win/win, nor do they see unions as the great levelers flattening out the playing field and smoothing out the ride from working class toward middle class. They do not like being ‘organized’ either. And that, by the way, is one of the reasons there is no real difference between the two major political parties. It’s just chocolate or vanilla.
The union has to begin to understand the sentiments of both the public and the rockers because to win the hearts and minds of one constituency is to win them both. The 21st century is no place to be an anachronism so the union must pick its battles very wisely. I will go on record and say that I believe the union will never in the next hundred years increase its membership by repeating statements like this – (the union is) “fighting the scourge of illegal downloads, one of the toughest battles musicians have ever faced.” This is an off-the-cuff remark worthy of a clueless politician attempting re-election by only kissing babies. Education begins at home so I suggest that the union does its homework and takes the pulse of the public and the rockers before embracing bland RIAA spin as public policy.
Like the music industry itself, it would appear that the union is not going to embrace breakthroughs in technology without a fight. For the union to pick this mother of all battles and risk going down in flames is probably based in part on its genetic makeup, the genes that call for heroic confrontation. And hearts always beat faster in the chest of a Union member at the utterance of the word confrontation. So, here’s the battle cry -- let’s mail out more lawsuits to our customers and patrons and while we are at it let’s confuse the media by not acknowledging or reinforcing the difference between uploading and downloading, and let’s not point out that users of Kazaa, the most popular file sharing program, do not understand that the free software can land them and their families in court facing fines of $750 per shared file! This will, of course, be a fine use of union resources and one that most likely will not be put to the members for their vote.
In the same vein, the union’s mantra that an artist in her home practices her art, and yet on crossing the threshold to perform in public she no longer practices her art but is now ‘working,’ is a huge statement reduced to pithiness. Perhaps more than any other this statement reflects the true divide between the union’s perception of rockers and the career musicians in the orchestra pit. Although they are blessed with the gift to play an instrument or apply their vocal chords with aplomb, rockers understand that this is not a free ticket to a middle class living with access to health insurance in America. We rockers, apparently by aligning ourselves more clearly with the cultural, societal and artistic rewards of performance and its attendant benefits, without the need for constant financial rewards, understand the zeitgeist of the American public far better than the union is currently capable of doing.
Meanwhile musicians are distancing themselves from the music industry more and more each day. The industry itself and the union along with the RIAA, the Grammy organization, Clear Channel, et al have seriously underestimated the public’s perception of how artists are treated and how the ever-potent dollar is being spread so thinly these days.
So who is to blame? The music industry flails around in search of answers for falling CD sales and blames file sharing, even though revenues from CD sales were in serious decline prior to Napster2. And guess what? We’ve been going through a recession and kids have been spending their money more wisely – see below. Network TV companies3 wonder with incredulity where did all the 18 – 24 year old male viewers go? Like the music industry, they never question the quality of their own content (programming) but are quick to blame cable TV. Meanwhile the movie industry runs to the bank with DVD revenues and steady box office receipts, gamers buy games and the computer industry sighs with relief. Cell phone companies offer great services, Palm and others offer wireless access to data and snow boarding, Instant Messaging and music file sharing all continue to grow and excite young people!
Joining an organization like the union, however well-intentioned its motives, is not a very sexy undertaking in today’s youth-culture obsessed society. It’s far more fun to boot up the computer, launch Pro-Tools, jam hard, mix and burn and give copies to your friends, then virally spread the MP3 over a P2P network. Ironically the Internet is far more responsible for forming an egalitarian society than any union ever could be. Online everyone is anonymous and these days everyone with a computer and Pro-Tools can be a superstar, at least in their own minds.
In all fairness to the union and Bruce Fife they should be commended for their opposition to the OLCC’s disastrous policy that prevents underage musicians from performing in Portland’s clubs. And yet one must ask -- where was the union when the OLCC’s proposal was first floated? Were they powerless to intervene until it was too late? Or did they drop the ball?
Unfortunately Bruce has the unforgivable task of pushing the rock uphill, and in the current climate of music industry PR disasters and general disarray, I am tarring the union with the same brush. And yet it’s easy to spot a trend here; today’s rock musicians more closely reflect society than ever before and their need for instant gratification is as intense as their peers. Alliances are formed more loosely and tend to be online too, such as user groups, list serves and IM networks. A union that was formed over a century ago and one that stands shoulder to shoulder with a decaying industry is, in the world of those rockers, an unfortunate anachronism.
Maybe the initials MU would best stand for Must Update.
|
