Internet Collaborating
The Internet helps musicians stay connected
by Adam Dolge
Kevin Gardiner found himself in a difficult musical situation. He had been playing drums in several bands in Connecticut and found that, as his bandmates moved away, it was hard to keep the music rolling. He began recording drum tracks and e-mailing them to former band members.
A lot of his friends were in the same situation—playing in bands with musicians who lived in different cities and states. The 27-year-old wanted an easier way for musicians to play music together, even if they weren’t in the same room. That’s when he came up with the idea of Tune Rooms. “I thought it’d be cool to create a website so musicians didn’t have to send files through e-mail,” he says. He decided to make the website public, so musicians could collaborate. If a guitarist was looking for a harmonica solo, he or she could post the track online and have a harmonica player lay a track over the guitar part.
Other sites offering Internet collaboration include MacJams, Jamglue, Kompoz, and eJamming Audio, which even offers real-time collaboration. Musicians from all over the world take part in these websites exposing them to different styles of music ranging from rock and pop to jazz and funk.
The Internet has opened the door for musicians to experience new styles of music, and collaboration sites allow them to learn new techniques and make virtual friends who may live anywhere in the world.
For the most part, musicians who participate in Internet collaboration sites are hobbyists, but there are also professionals using the site sto keep in touch with musicians in other areas of the world.
The mission of sites like MacJams, Jamglue, Kompoz, eJamming Audio, and Tune Rooms is simple: to allow musicians to collaborate over the Internet. “It rounds out music,” says Gardiner. “Musicians use the sites to practice, to find other musicians, and to get their music out.” Most sites encourage their users to not only collaborate, but to critique one another.
It’s easy to get started on collaboration websites. Simply sign up and start sharing tracks. The only tech-savvy component is learning how to record music on a computer and export it as an MP3 file.
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