One of the weirdest parts of doing music for a living is dealing with copyright issues. Anytime a song is performed in public or recorded for sale someone must be paid a royalty for it. It used to be fairly simple, but now it is more complicated with digital music and streaming as well as copyrights running much longer than they used to (80 instead of 18 years currently.) I have nothing against people being paid for their work, but it does go against what many musicians feel about what music really is. Many of us feel that the music comes through us from somewhere else - from the muse or the wind or the universe. It does take time and sometimes considerable effort to capture it, so we can see being paid for that, but we know the song and inspiration doesn’t come from within us. There is magic and mystery afoot that we are privileged to be a part of. I have a utopian idea of what it would be like to not deal with money and pay, but in our society that’s not how it works, and we must value music enough to pay for it so that musicians can live and thrive. (This sounds like a plea for funding - it’s not.) Of course I could just write all my own music so that I don’t have copyright worries with other people’s music, but I would even need to collect for performing my own music - technically. Pretty crazy, huh? Contrast this with someone like a comedian. They don’t have defined pieces of comedy usually like a musician has a song, so there aren’t the same copyright issues and royalties to be paid. Anyway, it’s a slice of my life that surprises some. A magical song has chains tied to it that seem contrary to the very spirit of music. Weird, huh?
What have I been up to?
I didn’t have any public gigs last week, but the week before I had a lot of fun.
Wednesday playing for the Medal of Honor recipients at El Pueblo Museum was just a treat! The folks were so vibrant, alive, and appreciative.
Friday at PDubs was a fine crowd with new and old friends. It was a super night.
Saturday at the reunion I got to play so many old favorites with my friends. It was special.
Sunday playing for the folks from the college was also a very special event. I got to meet the president of CSU-Pueblo and several other folks I haven’t seen in years.
What am I up to this week?
Friday I’m playing for a big Samboree RV event. I love playing for these folks and have played for this group several times. One of the things I’m thinking of doing in my later years is to travel in an RV and play for different RV parks. I think it would be a great way to see the country while still doing a little music in a semi-retired state.
Saturday 6-9 I’m back at the Bull Moose in Guffey. I really enjoy the folks of Guffey, and my performance back in July which was the first one I’d had there in a few years was a blast. I expect this one will be just as fun again! Com on out if you’re up that way.
Sunday 7-8ish MDT is my first-Sunday monthly online concert from my living room. I get to play for friends all over the country at these concerts, and I really look forward to checking in with so many and getting to play from my home sanctuary. Please login if you can so you can make comments during the show or send me a Facebook message or text. Hope to see you then!
That’s it for this week. Hope you are enjoying the fall.
Best always,
Tom
Details this week:
Who: Tom Munch
What: playing and singing
Where: Bull Moose, Guffey. 719-689-4199
When: Saturday, September 30, 1-4 pm
Who: Tom Munch
What: playing and singing
Where: online at https://www.concertwindow.com/
When: Sunday, October 1, 7-8ish pm MDT
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