Quote:
Originally Posted by Icemagic
This is an interesting question with many well thought out replies. I don't post anything on Youtube, but I enjoy seeing people cover songs. Sadly, I have rarely found some one doing an original song on Youtube that really grabbed me. I think there are far more people who can play guitar well, or sing well than people who are good songwriters or lyricists.
With so many people coming of age in a time where music comes out of a little box and is controlled by major corporations, rather than uncle Zeb pulling out his banjo and mom and sis singing harmonies on the front porch.
YouTube is the modern high-tech front porch. And even songs like "Stairway",are the new folk songs, passed on from generation to generation. After the young nephew (or not so young) finally learns to fumble through "Wildwood Flower" he wants to share it, and it's fun to watch, just as it's fun to watch our cousin who plays the same song spot on with crazy flourishes.
Now I'd much rather be sitting on a porch listening or playing but I like that people play music wherever it may be and I'm happy that they want to share it.
With out people playing other peoples songs where would Bluegrass ,Folk Music, or Classical music be. And we would have missed out on all those great Johnny Cash versions of other peoples songs.
I'm guessing that for those people on YouTube, they find a song they like, learn to play it, and want to share it on our modern day front porch.
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I really like this front porch analogy.
Far too many people view music as a spectator sport that is only worth doing if you are a professional at it. I think this is a tragedy. Music started out as something that ordinary people did - artistic expression, including musical expression, is sort of one of the fundamental characteristics of our species. Everyone can potentially have active involvement in making music of some sort or other.
As I think about this, I have to wonder whether the YouTube phenomenon might actually be encouraging more people to get into music because they see lots of examples of other ordinary people making music and enjoying it.