Vortex Conference

On 11 and 12 March, as part of an EU project with which we are involved at the Vortex, there will be a conference/showcase/workshop etc. at the club. In particular, there will be a public session about the state of the media as it now is. It is an opportunity to take into account the consolidation of the internet impact, as it complements and frequently is an essential replacement of the traditional media, such as BBC and newspapers.

The above, from Oliver Weindling of London’s Vortex, raises many important issues – not just about jazz but about life in general.

As a committed blogger – some say I should be committed – I’ve got an obvious interest. Without doubt the Internet has made information more readily available but, how reliable is that information? Years ago, the stock phrase used to be, “Don’t believe everything you read in the papers”. Today you can substitute online for in the papers.

In fact I remember reading, or hearing somebody say that information garnered on line should be regarded with the same pinch of salt as that elicited from a stranger in a pub ten minutes before last orders.

I must admit that it is satisfying having something such as a book or a glossy magazine even a tabloid newspaper in your hands and yet, if I’m in a pub and reading a book or a newspaper (unless it’s the racing page) I’m regarded as an oddity despite the fact that most others – even in company – are glued to the screens of their mobile phones!

All that aside, an online site that is constantly updated – and I mean by the minute and not by the day – is the way forward.

From a jazz point of view, apart from the specialist monthly print outlets, neither the broadcast media or the dailies (apart from the occasional weekly column) are going to tell you that so and so blew up a storm at a pub in East Lothian or that he had a gig coming up at a bar in Newcastle (on Tyne/under Lyme/Australia). They probably will tell you that he has a gig at Ronnie’s and that’s it.

Here, at BSH, we try to promote the local scene and it is gratifying when someone thanks you for bringing a gig to their attention (this, of course, can also backfire!) I'd also like to think that a localised blog such as BSH brings the local musician's profile to a wider/further afield audience. I know it works in reverse and encourages artists from further afield hoping to land gigs in the northeast which, I'm afraid, doesn't always work out despite our recommendations ...

Summing up, personally I still buy newspapers and mags knowing that, whilst I may not agree with what they say I recognise that I am dealing with professional journalists which not all, myself included, bloggers are.

By the same token, neither were the early jazz, blues, rock, pop musicians pros and yet they changed the course of music just as the pirate radio stations changed the course of broadcasting so It will be interesting to hear what emerges from the project at the Vortex.

Lance