Digital to Analog: Making Music in the 21st Century

It's an interesting dichotomy to have grown up in this day and age if you're a working musician. On one hand, many of us have grown up with albums (yes VINYL!) and cassettes with their analog warmth and lower fidelity. But in the late 1980s and early 1990s the digital music revolution began gathering steam as Compact Discs made their way into the music mainstream.

Now, some 15 years later, CDs are slowly on their way out, and digital music in the form of MP3 files, streaming audio, IPods and other various and sundry devices have given rise to a new age in music. This new digital technology has made music cheaper and much more widely available.

How did we get here and where are we going? Let's perhaps take a moment and discuss some trends and issues…

Digital Storage - magnetic hard disks have gotten much more efficient and are capable of storing larger amounts of data. They are more portable, and now devices other than computers have hard disk storage capabilities. Digital audio tape is also a much cheaper alternative to analog tape as well.

The Internet - within the last 5 years the Internet has become more pervasive. Networking technology is both faster and more affordable. Many homes and offices have high speed internet access now. Your favorite tunes are often no more than a mouse click away.

Digital Music formatting - standard digital formats included WAV, AIFF and others. When the MP3 file was first released circa 1991, it represented a new standard that would change music. An Mp3 (MPEG-level3) file could be compressed at least 10 times smaller than a standard audio file without much discernable loss of quality, making the format very popular.

Recording Software and Home Studios - Now digital technology and personal computing have aided in simplified the recording process. Personal recording studios for home use have hard disks in them and memory to store tracks and mixdown to a master digital file or Compact Disc. Tascam, Teac, and other companies make these devices.

Online Music Distribution - the web has (virtually) brought the world closer together for better or for worse, and the music industry is no exception. Now you can press a run of CDs and get them out on CDBaby or Myspace or any number of such websites, and build both income and a following without any kind of agent or major recording deal or such hassles.

Modeling Technology - this a new and exciting trend in guitar technology, which I hope discuss in future articles. It used to be that if you wanted various guitar sounds, you have to travel with a fleet of guitars, amplifiers and effects devices. Not so any more! The Line 6 company has developed modeling technology with provides digital approximations of acoustic and electric guitars, and amplifiers. With the advent of the Line 6 POD, and now the POD XT, line 6 has provided a professional-level alternative to owning either a roomful or truckful of equipment. Their devices are catching in significant numbers in the professional music community.

Making music is more affordable than ever before. Now the average musician can crank CD for less than $1000 and have it all over