AudioMedia - July 2008 - (Page 17)

For the Record A Secondary Virtual Reality It’s just after 3am, and I’m playing live to an audience from all over the world. I’m also wearing a bathrobe and watching my cocoa cool, while the laptop works its way through some improvisational Reaktor patches under some light hands-on guidance. Gigging from the studio is certainly more convenient than the traditional sweat, beer, and Transit van approach. There won’t be any heavy lifting after I’ve finished – unless you count the empty cocoa mug on its journey back to the kitchen. The Internet continues to be a surprising thing, and while most press attention is still focused on downloads and the end of the age of plastic, new opportunities are appearing elsewhere. The biggest surprise has been a completely new culture of virtual live performance that has developed in online worlds like Second Life (www.secondlife.com). Second Life is divided into parcels of virtual land, available to own from around US$10 and upwards, and a simple setting for each landowner makes it easy and cheap to pipe in a live audio feed. Most parcels default to Internet radio stations, but anyone with a spare laptop can set up a free Oddcast server, plug a console into it, put on some headphones, and be ready to go. This low cost of entry means that Second Life has an amateur and semi-pro live music scene that would be the envy of any city in the world, with styles from traditional R&B, to experimental electronica, to classical. Clubs and virtual locations are easy find, and easier still to perform in, and Second Life has a simple groupbased one-to-many messaging tool that makes promotion much simpler than the usual flyposting run. What makes Second Life different is its link between virtual and real currency. At an exchange rate of around 270 ‘Linden Dollars’ to US$1, Second Life offers a simple and cheap micro-payment solution for live performers. Making money from music isn’t any easier – or harder – than it is in real life. Most musicians make very little, a smaller number get by, and a few do well enough to earn a living. But artists with a saleable style can make substantial real-world income from spin-off CD sales and downloads, and also from virtual tips. It takes constant hard work, networking, and self-promotion – just as it does in the real world. It’s an easier sell for musicians because front-person charisma is less important in Second Life – film star good looks can be bought for a few dollars, and actions and gestures are pre-scripted. Is there a downside? Second Life is technologically creaky and socially seedy, with plenty of virtual porn, and – even more bizarrely – a thriving virtual escort industry. Of course the real world music business has never been squeaky clean. But it’s not nearly as dull as Second Life’s almost endless virtual mall sprawl and How virtual is a performance if you earn real money from it?, asks RICHARD WENTK’s digital avatar. show homes. Fortunately, it’s not all sleaze and play-shopping. Performing in Second Life can be a little like playing in an animated doll’s house – but fans are fans, and sales are sales; and it’s relatively simple to start a spin-off virtual radio show with a guaranteed audience that bypasses the traditional MySpace scrum. It may not be the perfect model for the future, but it’s an interesting extra media outlet for the present. And as oil prices aren’t likely to come down again soon, no one should be surprised if virtual performances become an unexpectedly busy new market in the short and medium term. RICHARD WENTK is the owner of Skydancer Media, a digital production company providing sound, image, design, and consultancy services to various clients in London and the West Country. New PD Series Location Recorders Audio acquisition that’s as versatile as you are. www.fostex.jp Fostex Company, 3-2-35 Musashino, Akishima, Tokyo, Japan 196-0021 Email: info_sales@fostex.jp Designed from the ground up to excel in ‘real-world’ applications, wherever you happen to be in the world. The new PD606 (8-track) and PD204 (2-track) location recorders both offer spectacular audio quality, flexible recording to 12cm DVD-RAM, hard disc or a combination of both, rock solid timecode implementation, extended battery life, loads of ‘instant access’ knobs, buttons and switches plus a whole battery of interface options. But impressive features are only part of the script. Fostex’s unrivalled pedigree in designing and manufacturing world class location recorders for over 16 years and our unique understanding of the broadcast, film, tv and audio acquisition environments means that these new recorders aren’t just the best PD recorders ever, they’re simply the best professional location recorders available today. S o m e t h i n g to S ay ? if you are an audio professional and have something constructive to say about your field of expertise, or tips for your peers, contact us with your ideas at ftr@audiomedia.com 00 A U D IUOD IM E D IEAD I A O V E M B2 E R 82 0 0 5 N jUly A OM 00 17 http://www.secondlife.com http://www.fostex.jp

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of AudioMedia - July 2008

AudioMedia - July 2008 Contents Recording Post Broadcast What's Up UK Geofocus: France For the Record Special Report: Develop Preview SE Electronics 4400 Sennheiser MKH800 Twin Tubetech Club Final Cut: Wanted Smart AV Tango Doctor Who Made in America DSP Roundup Product Sampler: Summer Hits Edirol R44 Video Guide AMSR Fame - Le Musical Waves MaxxBCL Yamaha AD8HR Special Supplement

AudioMedia - July 2008

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