Artistic Control
I listened to a recent BBC radio documentary that talked about the large quantities of undistributed recorded material by Prince. This "vault" of never-released material is the stuff of legend.
One interesting observation that was made is that Prince, apparently has simply had a great need to create and evidently at a rate that exceeds the models of the music industry for distribution.
And herein lies the perennial tension over control.
Another artistic figure I am familiar with who comes to mind on this subject is the famous American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright is known for his designs of buildings small and large. He surrounded himself with others who helped him. There was no doubt, however, that he directed his team quite rigidly. He was also a bit infamous for rearranging furniture in the homes of the clients whose houses he had designed. In common language, we'd call him a control freak.
Control is at the heart of art itself. In architecture it was the modernist movement that adopted the mantra, "form follows function". This implies a strong relationship between the designer and users of the end product.
In music, this could be one of the good things that systems of distribution can potentially provide. Is the music that has been created received by people? So while the integrity of the art itself is important, it has a much more extended life if it can be received effectively.
By succeeding in writing and performing music in several genres Prince has succeeded at both. He has given voice to his creative intelligence and spoken several musical languages that can be received by audiences. Added to this is his penchant for producing music as a response to his own need to be creative.
Like breathing, or socializing his creative processes and output are part of his being sustained. For him it appears to be a good and necessary thing to do.
This is a gift. What is necessary is also a privilege, something beautiful which reflects the goodness in us. Perhaps this has also helped him to put celebrity in perspective. His life blood seems to be found in generating life.
The dynamics of the music business are aimed at maximizing profits (like other business models). Each album or song needs to bled. Output that is too rapid misses opportunity. Too diverse and it is confusing. The vault would seem to indicate to me that there isn't a firm solution to this problem. Good and intelligent music ought to be able to be received, but we need to be sufficiently attentive to the artist and respect of the work.
One interesting observation that was made is that Prince, apparently has simply had a great need to create and evidently at a rate that exceeds the models of the music industry for distribution.
And herein lies the perennial tension over control.
Another artistic figure I am familiar with who comes to mind on this subject is the famous American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright is known for his designs of buildings small and large. He surrounded himself with others who helped him. There was no doubt, however, that he directed his team quite rigidly. He was also a bit infamous for rearranging furniture in the homes of the clients whose houses he had designed. In common language, we'd call him a control freak.
Control is at the heart of art itself. In architecture it was the modernist movement that adopted the mantra, "form follows function". This implies a strong relationship between the designer and users of the end product.
In music, this could be one of the good things that systems of distribution can potentially provide. Is the music that has been created received by people? So while the integrity of the art itself is important, it has a much more extended life if it can be received effectively. By succeeding in writing and performing music in several genres Prince has succeeded at both. He has given voice to his creative intelligence and spoken several musical languages that can be received by audiences. Added to this is his penchant for producing music as a response to his own need to be creative.
Like breathing, or socializing his creative processes and output are part of his being sustained. For him it appears to be a good and necessary thing to do.
This is a gift. What is necessary is also a privilege, something beautiful which reflects the goodness in us. Perhaps this has also helped him to put celebrity in perspective. His life blood seems to be found in generating life.
The dynamics of the music business are aimed at maximizing profits (like other business models). Each album or song needs to bled. Output that is too rapid misses opportunity. Too diverse and it is confusing. The vault would seem to indicate to me that there isn't a firm solution to this problem. Good and intelligent music ought to be able to be received, but we need to be sufficiently attentive to the artist and respect of the work.
