Crowdsource: Is Music Cheating Listeners Part 2

When I got into digital recording, I started listening to music in a new way. My love for great instrumentation and harmony had to share some attention with the production of the album: dynamic range, stereo position, reverb, and all kinds of technical stuff the average listener hears but may not pay much attention to. Let’s just say there’s a ton of processes that go into making an album that I would consider engineering, not musicianship.

I blogged about Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters dissing the music industry for their over-reliance on digital tools to make music sound supernaturally good. Whether it’s digital or old fashioned analog, many musicians including Grohl himself can use these tools and techniques to cover up mistakes and add that post-performance sparkle to make it sound like it deserves a Grammy.

I started wondering if this was somehow cheating the listener, so I asked my readers if it actually mattered to them whether they’re hearing a genuine unedited performance or a technologically perfected recording.

“These days, people seem to expect their music to be perfect when it comes out because that is the trend in society today,” said Charlie Balcom, a UC Communication and Journalism student. “People have this idea that these million-dollar artists should be able to hit every note perfectly but this is only possible with a little help from a computer and other devices.”

Sam Weinberg, a UC journalism student, has great appreciation for old school musicians who had to perform without the crutch of technology.

“I grew up listening to the great jazz and blues composers, such as B.B. King, Count Basie, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington and many others. What did they have? Just their instruments, fellow band members and their talent,” said Weinberg.

Diedre Glassford, a UC journalism student, believes that a bit of post-recording work can be attributed to an artist’s perfectionism.

“Of course I think that music should rely on talent, but I don't think that having a little digital emphasis in the studio necessarily negates talent,” said Glassford.

“What I think is important to remember is that music is made for an audience to listen to and enjoy,” said Joe Doerger. “There isn't a magic formula for what makes a good sound - it's up to a listener to determine that.”

Doerger sums up what most people have been saying about the topic: it only matters if you like what you hear.

So just like Grohl and other recordists, listeners have their own ethic about the music they listen to as well.