[OT] Critique a Short Essay on Free Music?

[Michael David Crawford]

Yes, I realize that this has nothing to do with Lilypond - with the 
exception that the following essay explains *why* I have placed my 
scores under a copyleft license.  The scores to two of my songs are 
engraved with Lilypond, with the rest to follow soon.

I'm working on a new CD jewel case insert for my album "Geometric 
Visions: The Rough Draft".  The case insert will be a single sheet of 
paper printed on both sides, and folded in half for a total of four 
printed pages each the size of a jewel case.  When the insert is removed 
from the case and unfolded, the essay will be on the inner, left-hand 
side.  (The right-hand page explains why it's "The Rough Draft".)

The current draft just barely fits when set in 10-point Times.  I can't 
make it any longer; any additional text must come at the cost of 
removing some.

Following my draft, I'm also submitting a draft that was completely, 
independently written by a Kuro5hin member named mumble.  I must admit 
that his piece is quite a bit more compelling than my leaden prose.

Everyone who helps me will receive a free - and autographed! - copy of 
my compact disc.  Just email - OFF LIST! - your snail mail address to 
address@hidden

Thanks for your help! - Mike

Behold:

       Why Free Music?

I don't charge money for my music, and have placed it under the 
"Free-as-in-Freedom" Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license so 
more people can get to know my music than would be possible if I sold 
it, or restricted copying.

I actually give a free compact disc to everyone I meet!

I hope that by doing so there will be lots of fans who will attend my 
performances when the time comes for me to play professionally. I have 
been studying piano intensively for several years with the aim of 
enrolling in music school to study musical composition. I want to write 
symphonies!

Furthermore, I feel that setting my music Free is The Right Thing To Do. 
I am inspired by Richard Stallman and his Free Software movement; my 
music is "Free" as in "Free Speech", not as in "free beer." It's a 
matter of liberty and not price.

The sharing of music over the Internet has been controversial for a 
decade now. The Recording Industry Association of America has threatened 
thousands with lawsuits for sharing music. But it's important to 
understand that, in America anyway, our Founding Fathers created 
copyright to benefit society, and not primarily to benefit the copyright 
holders.

The framers of the US Constitution intended to "promote the progress of 
science and useful arts" by granting creative people temporary 
monopolies. But I feel that of greater benefit to society than copyright 
is that computers and the Internet enable digital media formats to be 
copied completely faithfully anywhere on Earth, and with near-zero cost.

But how are we musicians to feed ourselves? I plan to do so by selling 
tickets to live performances, as well as T-shirts, posters and the like.

I love my music so, that I know I must set it Free.

*********************

K5's mumble submitted the following; it's obviously a lot more 
compelling than my version, but I'd like to work in some of the factual 
info from my version, such as Stallman being my inspiration,  for a sort 
of fusion of the two.

      The Internet Revolution and Free Music

The advent of the Internet and the Web sparked a revolution - the 
Information Revolution. No longer is information difficult and expensive 
to copy - virtually unlimited amounts of information can now be copied 
and distributed at near zero cost. This is the revolution inspired by 
Gutenberg's Press magnified a thousand fold!

In this new age, copyright seems quaint and redundant. There are 
stall-warts, many of them big and powerful! They are the ones that made 
their money the old way. But their time has come, and gone. It is our 
turn now. Music is culture, our culture, that should be shared freely by 
all, not locked behind high walls, leased out to only those that can pay 
the ransom.

But I am only one, and the most I can do is humbly share my music. 
Please listen to my music, and share it with everyone you wish.

Who knows, maybe one day I will become famous and write great 
symphonies. And you will already know my name.

- Michael Crawford.

***************************

Now, as to why my album is subtitled The Rough Draft.  The following 
will appear on the inner right-hand page of my insert.  I'm basically 
happy with this, but may try to tighten it up a bit:

     Howard by Baldwin

Your ears do not deceive you: my piano really is out of tune.

I recorded this album in 1994. The last time my piano was tuned was in 
the 1950's. My father, an accomplished musician, tuned it by ear.

I feared that tuning it after so long would change its voice – the 
characteristic sound that is different for every piano. The strings were 
very old and might break. They could be replaced, but the new strings 
would have their own voices, quite different from the rest of the piano.

While I planned to tune it, I decided to record my piano un-tuned to 
preserve the memory of its voice in case my fear was borne out.

The voice of my piano means a great deal to me. It's not just that it is 
the piano I taught myself with – it belonged to my grandparents. Many of 
my earliest and fondest memories are of the sound of that piano, heard 
while visiting Grandma and Grandpa Crawford in Grass Valley, California.

One day my father told me how his family had come to own it:

A door-to-door piano salesman offered one to my grandmother. Grandma 
angrily told the fellow to get off her property.  A little while later 
Grandpa Crawford drove his pickup truck home and said, “Guess what I 
just bought!” He'd met the salesman on the road and bought one from him.

I understand Grandma got a new washing machine out of the deal.

This album is “The Rough Draft” because I always intended to re-record 
it after composing some new songs.  I've been urged to use a Steinway, 
no doubt the world's best piano, but for me nothing would be special 
about its voice. I will instead honor my Grandparents' memory by playing 
Grandpa Crawford's 1940's Baldwin Howard for my new album.

My piano has since been tuned; its voice – and its strings – survived.

Thanks for your help!

Mike Crawford
address@hidden
http://www.geometricvisions.com/music/ <-- Creative Commons Sheet Music