Performance and playback

I am a local music artist and producer and I deliberately did not enter for any award contest because they coincided too closely with my album launch. I am writing to second and to discuss some of Jon Mallia's concerns (Malta Miming Awards? December 10). I second everything I don't discuss herein.

I must say that with all the respect Winter Moods and I have for each other, I share Mr Mallia's feeling of "unreality" about a band, whichever it may be, receiving a Best Performance award in a playback context. I am one of those artists for whom playback is fine in a given context. I actually enjoy these festivals/contests because of their comfort and security. I've been through tens of gigs with one band or another where a number of bands and artists were playing live. This almost inevitably resulted, at least in my experience, in serious logistical problems which in the final analysis impinge primarily upon the bands' sound, peace of mind and thus the performance. In short, as things stand, no one would really gain if events with large lineups were to be staged live. So, in a way, be it big Winter Moods or little Niki Gravino it doesn't really matter; we have little in terms of choice.

I know for a fact that there have been bands who refused to go completely playback during awards, demanding that the voice be live. But the truth of the matter is that they too, if one considers the complexities of the musical relationships created by a band during a performance, were tantamount to playback.

I do believe that, properly done, live is the scenario to labour for, but we still have some way to go for that especially if one considers the fast-increasing complexity of setups that bands in present-day Malta are coming up with. If say Etnika, Niki Gravino and the Vile Bodies, and Sixth Simfoni were to play live, back to back, some considerable setup changes would have to be made in virtually no time.

So while one understands the real and pressing problems of the vast organisation such shows would require if they were to be completely live, I think that a Best Performance award in such "unperformative" contexts is banally dissonant. A Best Performance award would be in good taste if bands and artists were to be followed in their live gigs by unbiased professionals with clear criteria, and then awarded. Then, perhaps "baby" acts who never recorded anything but sound great live could make it to the awards. Otherwise, one should really think about either going live or discarding performance awards altogether, not least because they risk throwing an aura of superfluity over such events.

When one considers that award contests are major players involved in creating a strong and lasting façade to the music industry in Malta, with all the glamour and exposure it entails, that would be an unforgivable shame.

In fact, I believe that these contests are only valuable - and very much so - as structures of exposure for every deserving act, and as such should reflect the whole spectrum of the industry. An approach of this kind is also good for business.

These events however should not be portrayed as either "competitions" or correct statistics as to who's the best or best-loved or followed. This for one simple reason; it is counterproductive to us musicians. It is a gig for us. A gig before thousands. That's more than we had four years ago.

What Mr Mallia is suggesting, in my view, is the ideal toward which the infant local industry should be heading, and I sincerely hope his words will help shake things up.

What we artists, established or not, should understand is that we must tread the fine line between enjoying what we do in the context offered, and pushing the very limits of that context, if necessary by following or seconding people like Mr Mallia, who are gifted with the anger.