Copyright Royalties

This chapter examines the New Music Distribution Service (NMDS), a nonprofit organization designed to provide a “desperately needed alternative to the music industry machine.” The NMDS constituted a musician-run service “for the distribution of all independently produced recordings of new music regardless of commercial potential or personal use.” It aimed, namely, to give musicians total artistic and economic control over their recorded work. Moreover, the NMDS focused on new music in a broad sense, with inclusiveness at its core. This diverse array reflected Bley's growing identification with a wider variety of musical styles and her ongoing exploration of jazz's position with regard to both mass-marketed popular music and the niche genres of the classical avant-garde.