Yahoo Tuning Groups Ultimate Backup metatuning muse-amused: Mix-Up Over Sale of 'Silence' Cleared Up With a Little Talk

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/16/business/media/16silence.html

Mix-Up Over Sale of 'Silence' Cleared Up With a Little Talk
By DAVID F. GALLAGHER

[Unable to display image]

Published: February 16, 2004
The silence was broken. Now it is fixed.

The experimental rock band Sonic Youth was surprised to find out last
week that Apple Computer's iTunes Music Store was restricting the sale
of one of its songs, a 63-second stretch of silence called "Silence",
by allowing it to be downloaded only by people who bought the entire
1995 album on which it first appeared.

In an article in The New York Times last Monday, an Apple spokeswoman
had said that such decisions were up to the artists and that the band
had requested the change. But Lee Ranaldo, a guitarist and singer for
Sonic Youth, disputed Apple's version of events.

"We are very happy for the track to be sold to anyone who wants it as
an individual download," Mr. Ranaldo wrote on Wednesday in an e-mail
message to Apple. He added that the track was "a very intentional
'piece' on our part," and that restricting its sale was "against our
ideas and sensibility."

The silent track created a small stir earlier this month when an iTunes
shopper ran across it and told an Apple gossip Web site about his
absurdist 99-cent purchase of some copy-protected silence. A few days
later, Apple made the silent track available only as part of the album.

In a response to Mr. Ranaldo, Alex Luke, Apple's director for music
programming and label relations, said that there had been
"miscommunication on a few fronts," and that the change had been made
after discussions with the band's label, Interscope Geffen A&M, part of
the Universal Music Group. He said that the iTunes store would reverse
the change. A Universal spokesman said the track restriction had been
approved by an employee who did not regularly deal with the band and
"thought they were fixing an error."

Sonic Youth's music is typically heavier on squealing guitar noise
than meditative calm. But Mr. Ranaldo said the silent track was meant
as a nod to John Cage, who used a silent composition to make listeners
aware of the constant presence of ambient sound. "Conceptually, I love
the idea that it's there and you can download it," Mr. Ranaldo said.

"We felt at the time that it was important enough for us to make it a
track on the record, so why should it be differentiated from any other
track on our record?" Mr. Ranaldo added. "Sometimes it's hard to
understand how people on the business side of things think about this
stuff."

---|-----|--------|-------------|---------------------|
Hanuman Zhang, musical mad scientist: "Nah, I don't wanna take over the
world, just the sound spectrum to make it my home."

"For twenty-five centuries, Western knowledge has tried to look upon the
world. It has failed to understand that the world is not for the beholding. It
is for the hearing. It is not legible, but audible. ... Music is a herald,
for change is inscribed in noise faster than it transforms society. ...
Listening to music is listening to all noise, realizing that its appropriation and
control is a reflection of power, that is essentially political." - Jacques
Attali, _Noise: The Political Economy of Music_

So when is the Cage estate going to sue Sonic Youth over this?

--- In metatuning@yahoogroups.com, czhang23@a... wrote:
>
> http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/16/business/media/16silence.html
>
> Mix-Up Over Sale of 'Silence' Cleared Up With a Little Talk
> By DAVID F. GALLAGHER
>
> [Unable to display image]
>
> Published: February 16, 2004
> The silence was broken. Now it is fixed.
>
> The experimental rock band Sonic Youth was surprised to find out
last
> week that Apple Computer's iTunes Music Store was restricting the
sale
> of one of its songs, a 63-second stretch of silence
called "Silence",
> by allowing it to be downloaded only by people who bought the
entire
> 1995 album on which it first appeared.
>
> In an article in The New York Times last Monday, an Apple
spokeswoman
> had said that such decisions were up to the artists and that the
band
> had requested the change. But Lee Ranaldo, a guitarist and singer
for
> Sonic Youth, disputed Apple's version of events.
>
> "We are very happy for the track to be sold to anyone who wants
it as
> an individual download," Mr. Ranaldo wrote on Wednesday in an e-
mail
> message to Apple. He added that the track was "a very intentional
> 'piece' on our part," and that restricting its sale was "against
our
> ideas and sensibility."
>
> The silent track created a small stir earlier this month when an
iTunes
> shopper ran across it and told an Apple gossip Web site about his
> absurdist 99-cent purchase of some copy-protected silence. A few
days
> later, Apple made the silent track available only as part of the
album.
>
> In a response to Mr. Ranaldo, Alex Luke, Apple's director for
music
> programming and label relations, said that there had been
> "miscommunication on a few fronts," and that the change had been
made
> after discussions with the band's label, Interscope Geffen A&M,
part of
> the Universal Music Group. He said that the iTunes store would
reverse
> the change. A Universal spokesman said the track restriction had
been
> approved by an employee who did not regularly deal with the band
and
> "thought they were fixing an error."
>
> Sonic Youth's music is typically heavier on squealing guitar
noise
> than meditative calm. But Mr. Ranaldo said the silent track was
meant
> as a nod to John Cage, who used a silent composition to make
listeners
> aware of the constant presence of ambient sound. "Conceptually, I
love
> the idea that it's there and you can download it," Mr. Ranaldo said.
>
> "We felt at the time that it was important enough for us to make
it a
> track on the record, so why should it be differentiated from any
other
> track on our record?" Mr. Ranaldo added. "Sometimes it's hard to
> understand how people on the business side of things think about
this
> stuff."
>
> ---|-----|--------|-------------|---------------------|
> Hanuman Zhang, musical mad scientist: "Nah, I don't wanna take over
the
> world, just the sound spectrum to make it my home."
>
> "For twenty-five centuries, Western knowledge has tried to look
upon the
> world. It has failed to understand that the world is not for the
beholding. It
> is for the hearing. It is not legible, but audible. ... Music is a
herald,
> for change is inscribed in noise faster than it transforms
society. ...
> Listening to music is listening to all noise, realizing that its
appropriation and
> control is a reflection of power, that is essentially political." -
Jacques
> Attali, _Noise: The Political Economy of Music_

muse-amused: Mix-Up Over Sale of 'Silence' Cleared Up With a Little Talk

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