After reviewing alternatives for we told и . Today we will see what streaming platforms are criticized for (besides the low quality of recommendations), and why it is useful to “dilute” their “advice” with an independent and conscious search for music.
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Something went wrong
Not everyone manages to “train” the system so that it gives out new tracks that they like and . Recommendation quality и , repeats in "” and “picks of the week” become a tangible problem. But there is also : sudden replacement of familiar versions of songs and remixes with updated ones, on individual tracks in purchased albums, titles, errors in metadata, and even .
The matter is not limited to this. A month ago, in a column for The New Yorker, Alex Ross (), a well-known critic and winner of numerous awards in the field of music journalism, to a book by Kyle Devine called "". She talks about the impact of the music industry, including streaming services, on the environment and explains how online distribution and multiple (re)downloading of tracks is causing more and more significant damage to the environment, incomparable even with waste from vinyl and other media.
Alex rightly notes that the release of the book also does not go unnoticed for the health of the planet, but - like its author - does not offer to go to the window and throw the smartphone out the window, but only emphasizes that the consumption of musical content can be a little more conscious.
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As a weighty argument, he cites an article where, in a humanitarian, but rather detailed manner, the risks of streaming are analyzed from the point of view of information security. According to From an author representing the University of Texas at Austin, algorithm and recommender executives at a number of major music services often boast that they "know not only what their audiences are listening to, but what their audiences are doing."
An old, but textbook example of not the most successful PR in the context of this article - the director of one of these companies about the most sought-after tracks in the bathroom.
Even if we do not take into account such statements and about the automatic installation of malware in free versions of streaming "accounts", the developers of music services have enough problems - how to so with user experience listeners.
The latter often do not see new tracks just because they do not fall into the right category. Well-known examples of such situations are − legendary ""and .
Some may consider these difficulties insignificant, others perceive them as a reminder of what can be learned from the “stock” of favorite compositions that each of us already has.
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My own curator
A disc rack, an external drive, a network player with an archive, or a music library on a computer can be a great alternative for and services.
If you take and slowly study your own selection of tracks, find a lot of artists and bands that you later want to add to your online playlist.
It cannot be ruled out that you decide to take some of these finds on vinyl or other media. If you already have a record collection, analyzing your favorite tracks can result in the entire archive, which is also quite a worthy undertaking. But don't forget about one of the most underrated ways to find new music - advice from friends, colleagues and buddies on a particular hobby.
Can a streaming service know your musical preferences better than a friend? It seemed to many that this task ten years ago, but it is worth recognizing that today the question is open again. While this is the case, it is worth using all .
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Why is it important
Being proactive in making decisions is the key to greater self-confidence and a better quality of life, which research. But this conclusion is also true for the selection of music. The mere knowledge of how this or that album was recorded, published and how it affected the income of the authors will not only make us a little happier, but also open up new those who put emotions into their work, and often - .
A conscious attitude to what to listen to has more practical meaning than it might seem at first glance. Even three laps on the gaming race track show that this is so. According to exactly this conducted by specialists from the Caledonian University of Glasgow with the participation of 125 volunteers, self-selected musical accompaniment helps to increase efficiency and get positive emotions from their activities, plus - reduce stress and the impact on the process of various distractions.
PS Next time we will continue to study this topic and discuss what the web radio market is like now, and which of them could be recommended for listening.
What else do we analyze on Habré:
Materials in our Hi-Fi World:
Source: habr.com