a sampling dilemma (ethics...not a tech question)

sweetjesus · Post by **sweetjesus** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 5:00 am

legal stuff aside

if it sounds good fuck it... MAKE PEOPLE DANCE

norrinradd · Post by **norrinradd** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 5:09 am

depends how they do it if the composition is original and timeless

the_viirus wrote:for most of my music activities, i have been against sampling anyones music. when i say this, i mean that i do not use audio from the recorded compositions of other musicians. i do use one shot samples in my recordings; the basic drum samples which people swap...606s 808s 909s.

a friend just traded me a copy of Jeff Mills' "the purpose maker" 12inch and as i was listening i heard "in the bush" sampling liaisons dangereuses "peut etre pas" and "black is the number" sampling gino soccio "remember". apparently more than one mills record includes cut up disco.

from what i can gather, views on sampling have changed since the early 90s and since when "the purpose maker" was released. you cant go and sample GNR like 2 live crew did back then...

so my questions for those of you who sample...those of you who sample in similar ways to what has been described in paragraph 2...those of you who use similar sampling techniques...

how would you react to someone who has sampled half a bar or quarter bar of your music? just one sample and only that sample effected in different ways.

if you can clearly hear what has been sampled from your music in someone elses recording, what would keep you from suing their pants off?

if you cannot clearly hear what has beens sampled from your music in someone elses recording but you have been told by them that it includes a sample of your music...would that affect your decision to sue their pants off?

if you sampled someone elses music and the source material is clearly audible for most of the recording but it is less than one 4 count of their music, would you feel comfortable releasing the recording?

does the content matter? (does the samples "obviousness" affect your decisions on what you do with the sample?)

the reason i ask these questions is because i decided that sampling is not beneath me, realized that many people in the past (for one, jeff mills) have used some pretty blatant samples to make their music...but that i should do it a bit thoughtfully. i have sampled an old acid house tune and used small parts of it to construct something new to me. and of all the things i feel i could have sampled, i did not sample the bassline. (1/8 of an 808 4 count, 3/8 of the end of that same sample, and 1 full bar of a snare fill)

i would like anyones opinions on this issue.

Lazos · Post by **Lazos** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 6:00 am

Personally, I don't sample other people's music. At the same time, I would not tell others that they can't or shouldn't just because I don't. For me, it would be the same as stealing. A friend of mine told me about a producer that travels to foreign lands and records native exponents of different musical traditions, gets their permission (I'm assuming) then releases these recordings in remixes and mashups. I told her this sounds both cool and fucked up at the same time. I guess I'm just into making music by my own efforts. My two cents, so please don't take this as condemnation. BTW, norrinradd, who determines what music is timeless?

pulsoc · Post by **pulsoc** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 6:13 am

Sampling is not theft. Theft involves depriving the victim of property valuable to them. The WORST thing sampling can do to the original artist is promote their material. Would I be pissed if was the original Amen break drummer? Fuck yeah, but if I wanted to capitalize on it I could find a way.

iamnotcool · Post by **iamnotcool** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 6:33 am

provided the work is not a blatant copy of the original sampled material, i could care less if people sample other's work. If you want to start nit-picking, you might as well sue someone for using the same chords, drums, or similar synth patches as you.

Lazos · Post by **Lazos** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 7:36 am

pulsoc wrote:Sampling is not theft. Theft involves depriving the victim of property valuable to them. The WORST thing sampling can do to the original artist is promote their material. Would I be pissed if was the original Amen break drummer? Fuck yeah, but if I wanted to capitalize on it I could find a way.

Remember that I said sampling other people's musical material would be like theft, FOR ME. I'm describing why I don't do it. I'm not discouraging anyone else from doing it. If someone sampled part of one of my pieces, I probably wouldn't sue (it depends). I'd certainly not be against someone creatively sampling from one of my pieces with my permission. Or someone creatively remixing one of my songs with my permission (notice the common thread here) That's fine. And getting people to dance any way necessary is fine too, if that's your thing. I just feel a little sorry for people that feel they need to rely other people's music as their medium.

mike holiday · Post by **mike holiday** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 8:08 am

JACK IT

recycling is good

mike holiday · Post by **mike holiday** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 8:16 am

jeff mills used to do radio slots on WJLB, under the alias The Wizard

he would make crazy mixes out of snipits of music it was sick

Contra · Post by **Contra** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 9:49 am

sweetjesus wrote:legal stuff aside

if it sounds good fuck it... MAKE PEOPLE DANCE

this response wins the prize of ultimate answer of this thread.

hambone1 · Post by **hambone1** » Sat Apr 07, 2007 9:51 am

Yep... good answer.

if you can't write your own stuff that makes folks dance, use somebody elses!

a sampling dilemma (ethics...not a tech question)

a sampling dilemma (ethics...not a tech question)

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