Rocker Neil Young talks the future of sound at SXSW
Neil Young wants to bring music back to where fans can listen to every cymbal strike, every guitar strum, every echo thought up by a musician.
The future of sound one day soon could be contained in a candy bar-size receiver — a new music initiative he's launching named PonoMusic, the legendary rocker told an audience of several thousand attendees at SXSW [in March].
Young, 68, used a 30-minute speech, prerecorded video of stars and a Q&A with USA TODAY technology writer Mike Snider at the Austin Convention Center to promote his new start-up company, PonoMusic, a music ecosystem that will offer studio-quality music in an online store.
In his speech, he pointed to the invention of MP3s as the key element that derailed recorded music's quality. That format lowered sound quality by drastically reducing the amount of recorded information, he said.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, who delivered timeless hits such as Heart of Gold and Old Man, said he became incensed through the years at seeing technology improving everything from video cameras to toasters but letting music quality wither.
Midway through the presentation, Young flashed a video of more than 20 star performers and music executives — from Norah Jones to Sting to Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen — sampling PonoMusic and giving seemingly candid endorsements of the new sound.
"I haven't heard a sound like that since vinyl," Elton John said. "It was wonderful."
A Kickstarter campaign launched in March to raise money and awareness of the project drew more than $500,000 in four hours, Young said.
But even if PonoMusic is a financial failure, the effort is a big win if consumers realize there's a choice in quality, he said.
Vocabulary Focus
derailed v.
to prevent a plan or process from succeeding
timeless adj.
describes something that does not change as the years go past
incensed adj.
extremely angry
wither v.
to become, or cause something to become, weak, dry and smaller
vinyl n.
in the past, records for playing music
mms://203.69.69.81/studio/20140822ada4fa02ea09c290e84b6c3b9c87bce012edef45610612d7c6fed8bfc36ca031c99.wma
No comments:
Post a Comment