#PerformanceArt - DIgital Nation
- Back in 2003 the internet had only been in use for 10 years. A computer in every home still wasn’t the norm. Many creative musicians were looking for ways of reaching more people and making a living in the ever expanding new world that lay behind the monitor.
- A piece of software from Rogue Amoeba called Nicecast opened the door for streaming - something we take for granted these days.
- Second Life exploded onto the monitors of computers around the world. It wasn’t just another video game, it was built by the users - a virtual world where anything was possible.
- Musicians started performing live, online concerts using streaming technology mixed with avatars and amazing particle shows. (Facebook live video was still a twinkle in someone's virtual eye. )
- This was the brave new frontier - the ultimate immersive experience for those sat in front of their computer at home. LIve music shows, live chat, even a virtual currency.
- Some of us embraced the new streaming technology and used it in all kinds of interesting ways - from home networks to playing music in virtual worlds, mixing music with realtime art, and even playing mixes from the studio directly to clients and collaborators on a private stream to save from MP3 piracy. ( Labels trying to stop MP3 sharing - how quaint!!) We found ways to collaborate and perform on line in (almost) real time.
- We set up our own online Radio stations streaming music from computers 24 hours a day. Over the years my old G4 whirring away underneath a kitchen sink in the woods of Tennessee streamed to thousands of people via the world wide web.
- For over 15 years I played reflective music in the virtual world of Second Life - Music to relax and unwind. It was used as meditation, in hospices and for general mindfulness. I loved every minute playing the 'Music of JaNa KYoMooN' but times and technology changed and moving back to the UK made me only too aware of the limitations of internet speeds and virtual worlds.
- I started to explore streaming music from a cloud server. Virtual worlds weren't really keeping up with the social media scene and their bloated computer requirments were putting it out of the reach of most ordinary people.
- Apple understood and thus conquered the world of music streaming in 2001 and so in 2021 Facebook has 'discovered' and reinvented the metaverse.
- Here I am talking in 2010 for the American PBS TV program 'Digital Nation'
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