[dar-list] Who's the New Dar?

[Rob Wynne]

Well, I think there's a lot of factors to consider.  The music industry
is currently going through a fairly dramatic sea-change right now, and
who knows how that's going to shake out.  On the one hand, it's much
easier for small indie artists to connect with fans than ever before,
thanks to the Internet and electronic distribution.   This is both good
and bad for any given artist -- they have more potential to get fans,
but so does every other artist, and there's only so much you can listen
to in a day.  As blogger Jim Henley once remarked,   "There is more
merit in the world than any one of us are going to discover
before we die."

With regard to festival attendance and volunteerism, let's face it.  The
US economy right now isn't doing well.  There's a big credit crunch
going on, the dollar's value is at its lowest mark in some time, and the
mortgage sector is in full-blown crisis.    People think twice before
spending money on things like folk festivals, especially if they're more
than easy driving distance away.

Folk/singer-songwriter music has always been a niche market in the US,
and that means that broad market trends have the potential to either
completely bypass it or to have an disproportionatly greater impact,
depending on the particular trend.

No one has a crystal ball that can predict what the Next Big Thing is. 
Will someone come along to match Dar's reach and stature.  Yes.  It's
nearly inevitable.  Who that will be or when that will happen is beyond
anyone's ability to know, but history suggests that there will be. 

So, don't panic.  All may yet be well.  As Dwight Eisenhower pointed
out, "In times like these, it is comforting to remember that there have
always been times like these." :)

Rob
Sunny Side Of The Street GA

melodyschlottman at comcast.net wrote:
> I agree - it is difficult to get people of any age interested in great music in today's world.  But i do believe there are other great artists out there worthy of huge crowds.  Does anyone follow Girlyman?
>
> -------------- Original message -------------- 
> From: Jim Gottlieb <jimmy at TokyoJim.com> 
>
> > This is a question based on a discussion held at the post Falcon Ridge dinner 
> > last year. Someone mentioned that the number of volunteers at Falcon Ridge had 
> > been much less than in previous years, and I wondered if that might be because 
> > there are fewer young people (who would be more likely to volunteer due to a 
> > lack of funds) attracted to the festival. 
> > 
> > When I started attending Falcon Ridge in 1997, people like Dar and The Nields 
> > had huge teenage followings. But now that they (and their fans) have aged and 
> > are raising families, I don't think today's kids can really relate to them as 
> > they once did. The lack of traffic on this list, I think, further proves the 
> > lack of Dar Williams enthusiasm bubbling these days. Heck, even Ani is married 
> > now! 
> > 
> > And I don't see anyone of that stature taking Dar's place. There are many young 
> > folk artists that I think are really talented, but I'm not sure any of them are 
> > at Dar's level in terms of attracting huge crowds. 
> > 
> > Am I wrong? I hope so. Who is out there in the folk world right now who can 
> > attract a thousand teenagers to a festival the way Dar once did and inspire the 
> > same kind of fanaticism? 
> > -- 
> > Jim Gottlieb 
> > http://TokyoJim.com/ 
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>   


-- 
Rob Wynne / The Autographed Cat / doc at america.net
http://www.autographedcat.com/ / http://autographedcat.livejournal.com/
Gafilk 2008: Jan 11-13, 2008 - Atlanta, GA - http://www.gafilk.org/
Aphelion - Original SF&F since 1997 - http://www.aphelion-webzine.com/