How do you listen to recorded music?

This might sound like a silly question, but I am genuinely curious. I think it’s important to consider how we personally listen to music for various reasons. It can impact musical artists financially, but it also affects our experience as a listener. Some only listen to music in their car, others only listen in earbuds or headphones, or speakers, or all of the above. Some choose to listen to entire albums, while others jump from track to track with the touch of a finger. Some people follow the same artist for decades, others are always on the hunt for new sounds. Some collect tapes, vinyl, CDs, or solely listen to mp3s from their smartphone. Some only listen to the radio.

I‘m not convinced there’s a “right” way to hear music, but I do believe it is important to be conscious of the choices we are making as listeners. Streaming music is known to be of little financial help to most artists, but can be a way for some artists to get more exposure by cultivating a larger following. Purchasing albums can get expensive quickly, but can also be a great way to support artists. Of course there are the companies and record labels that take a piece of the action, but there are also more and more independent platforms that give nearly full financial and creative power to artists.

What kind of listener are you? With technology expanding quickly, it’s easy to forget we have a say in how we choose to be part of the bigger picture. Are you satisfied with your listening experience? What feels best to you? Most of all, thank you for listening.

Sincerely,

Jaan Landheer