DubMC

Vieux Farka Toure: An Emerging Case Study on the Simultaneous Convergence of Remix Culture, Niche Marketing, and New Source Material

Two weeks ago when DubMC's Dmitri Vietze facilitated a discussion titled "Digital Explosion and Live Performance" at the annual Arts Presenters conference, a somewhat spontaneous "case study" emerged as various people involved with the debut album of Vieux Farka Toure and the parallel remix album produced by Derek Beres shared different aspects of the project. Here we offer a Q & A with producer Beres about this new-model approach which supports: original source material and accompanying live performances as well as a remix project, whose tracks will be staggered over a few months, and for which there will also be a live dance party with DJs and Vieux playing live; and, exclusive downloads on various e-tailers and blogs, and even a fan-as-remixer project in collaboration with Creative Commons/Mixter. The intent here is to expose the inner workings of such a project and explore new models for cross-marketing world music.

Describe the mission of the Vieux Farka Toure remix project.

It’s twofold. First, the remixes are a way to lead people back to the source material, which is the root of anything Vieux does. Second, I wanted people to recognize both the foundation of African music, which shines through in the soulful, bluesy songs he writes, as well as a “future culture” that is not limited by geographical location but is nonetheless influenced by African music. Every aspect of the mission leads back to Vieux himself.

Digital Explosion, World Music, and Niche Aggregators

A great discussion took place during the Digital Explosion session at the annual Arts Presenters conference. In the spirit of Wiki, attendees were asked to jot down some notes to share with those who could not attend. Radio programmer and concert producer Charles Blass of WKCR FM (NYC), Lovevolv, Inc., and Brooklyn Sugar captured three quotes:

Rumors of New Non-Profit Radio Licenses from FCC

DubMC has been informed of rumors circulating that, for the first time in a decade, the Federal Communications Commission is going to open an application window for FM broadcast licenses for nonprofit organizations. The available bandwidth would be geared towards new local, community-based stations. There is grassroots movement to start to organize consortia of performing arts communities and organizations to apply for the licenses. Many broadcast spectrums in densely populated markets are too full for new licenses, but up to two thirds of zip codes are thought to be eligible for new licenses. Wouldn't it be amazing if a local "world music" market teamed with other arts organizations to create globally-minded local radio station on par with Berlin's Radio Multikulti. Expect more details of this opportunity to be announced during the Arts Presenters world music preconference session on Digital Explosion.

DubMC.com is the brainchild of Dmitri Vietze and is sponsored by rock paper scissors, inc., world music publicity firm.

World Music Preconference at Arts Presenters 2007

The North American World Music Coalition has organized a preconference day of workshops/panels during the 2007 Arts Presenters conference:

Context and Connection: Much More than the Music
Friday January 19, 2007
9:00am – 12:30pm & 4:00pm – 5:30pm
Sutton Parlour Center/Hilton Hotel
(no registration required for world music professionals)

A series of thematic exchanges intended to spark interactive dialogue on some of the current issues facing the world music community and performing arts presenters. Sponsored by the North American World Music Coalition (NAWMC) with the Summer Festival Presenters Group (afternoon session only). Read on for exact schedule and session panelists and descriptions.

Unofficial World Music Schedule, Arts Presenters 2007

DubMC and rock paper scissors, inc. have compiled an Unofficial Guide to World Music Happenings at the 2007 Arts Presenters Conference. We asked our friends at booking agencies, record labels, venues, and festivals to let us know about World Music showcases, concerts, panels, and networking sessions happening during and around the annual presenters conference and compiled them onto one 10 page Word document. There are over 150 happenings listed from twenty minute showcases to festivals with a dozen world-class performers. You can download the schedule (MS Word) here.

Note that we also made available the Arts Presenters Unofficial Schedule Tool to help you plan your meetings and sessions in advance. See you in New York!

If you see any errors or omissions to the world music schedule...

Arts Presenters Unofficial Schedule Tool

DubMC and rock paper scissors, inc. have put together an unofficial tool to help arts professionals attending the annual Arts Presenters conference in New York this month organize their schedule. The Word document includes an overview of conference events and a calendar for attendees to add their own meetings. Get a jump start on planning your conference activities by downloading and saving the Arts Presenters Schedule Organizer here.

Stay tuned to this space for Now available: the Unofficial Arts Presenters World Music Schedule, in which we compiled all the world music showcases and panels that we can find going on in and around the Arts Presenters conference (January 17-23, 2007, NYC). We expect to post this tomorrow.