A fragile connection of thoughts on sampling and music.
My friend Alex emailed me a rather interesting Youtube link last night. It was a miniature documentary concerning a six second drum break that has seen much use in modern day music, particularly in the genres of hip-hop, drum’n’bass, jungle, and trance music. The documentary is called the “Amen Brother Drum Documentaryâ€, (which you can watch for yourself either at nkhstudio.com or on Youtube).
The documentary concerns a particular drum solo that was performed on the song “Amen Brother†by The Winston’s, a funk/soul band from the ‘60s. This drum solo is now referred to as ‘the Amen Break’.
The break is instantly recognisable, having been used in countless forms in modern dance, techno and hip-hop music. And the documentary, which has been around for a while, drew my attention to a few issues that were quite interesting. While the documentary might concern the appropriation of the break, in successive generations of popular music, its main objective is to speak out in support of sampling as a valid new method of creating ‘new culture’. This is something I totally agree with.
The disturbing part of the documentary concerns the efforts of large music publishing houses attempting to assert copyright over music and other samples that are based off the Amen Break. It points out several companies have asserted copyright over samples that are clearly derived from this break, something which I consider abhorrently wrong. Despite the original composers of the piece not asserting their own copyright interests over the sample (presumably because they agree with sampling, or out of disinterest), it shouldn’t be the case that other entities can claim it as their own and subsequently charge people for using it, or pursue ‘samplers’ legally for any alleged copyright breach.
In short, I recommend you give it a spin – it is interesting enough to warrant 18 minutes of your life. The Tome of Universal Knowledge has more information regarding the break.
Which brings me to a related thought I had earlier in the week. A Rave Magazine interview with Melbourne artist “Whitley†quoted discussing the recent work of Victorian musician Wally De Backer, otherwise known as Gotye.
“No, I really disagree with sampling other musicians’ music. I love what Wally does, but I don’t personally think that sampling other people’s music is an honest art form. But that’s only my opinion, that’s only for my music. I think the way Wally does it is beautiful.†Source: Rave Magazine.
Not sure what this guy was trying to say exactly here, but it comes across as mild criticism of the ‘art’ of Gotye’s work – that he doesn’t consider Wally’s work to be of true musical and artistic merit.
In my view, those who consider sampling somehow less of an art form than picking up a guitar and strumming a few chords are simply living in the past. It takes just as much dedication, skill, and talent as the other traditional ways of composing music. (And frankly, even with making allowances for the possibility of misquotes and article slants that come with modern journalism, in the case of Whitley, which I saw supporting Calexico in Brisbane earlier in the year, he’s got a bit of a way to go before he’s in Wally’s league – but, of course, that’s only my opinion).
Q.E.D