Craig Cummings Music

I’ve been pondering recent articles I’ve read discussing the not too distant future when digital downloads will replace physical CDs as the predominant way in which consumers will purchase recorded music. I think this is rather curious and sad. While it is certainly no big surprise, I can’t help feeling that music lovers lose a great deal in this technological development.

When vinyl was the the dominant form in which we purchased recorded music, there was a particular satisfaction gleaned from sitting down with a new album and carefully viewing the cover art and liner notes while losing my self in the music. This was a type of tradition… a routine that provided no small amount of enjoyment and allowed the listener to really explore the various creative aspects that went into the creation of a new record album.

When CDs surpassed vinyl as the main form of recorded music, many people (this writer included) complained that the size of CDs decreased the emphasis on quality album art and de-emphasized the importance of liner notes (they became much harder to read). Still, the CD maintained, albeit in miniature form, the joy of exploring cover art and journalistic contributions that placed the recording in a social, political, or musical context.

My problem with dominance of digital downloads is that we lose the artistic contributions of painters, illustrators, photographers, and journalists that once accompanied the music. When I download a recording I can still enjoy the music but I lose out on so much more that used to be part of the music buying experience.

Purchasing hard to obtain vinyl pressings of recent recordings is a fascination for some dedicated listeners, but it used to be the shared experience of all. Not all technological advances bring joy or make for a better product. As digital music downloads become the dominant way in which we purchase music, the art of creating a musical statement suffers a serious blow. I wonder why musicians aren’t objecting to the trivialization of what they create. Maybe their concerns about the bottom line (e.g., digital sales of individual tracks) trump their concerns for creating a more complete artistic package. And, this plays right into the hands of the corporate giants in the music business that we all supposedly dislike and reject.