With albums being released in more formats than ever, yet another medium has taken arrived as a means for delivering and packaging music: the app.
Norwegian fusion pop artist Jarie Bernhoft released his third full-length album earlier this year as an app for iPhone and iPad, featuring all of the tracks in HD format, 3D video, exclusive material and photos, and a “studio” interface that gives the ability for users to create remixes of the album's tracks.
The app album sells for $20 and is available for download through the App Store. One downside is its size. At 1.3 gigabytes the app is considerably big for the mobile world, where storage space is often a key point of consideration.
Depending on how Islander succeeds, it may be the beginning of a new trend of using the app format to deliver music in exclusive fan-centric environments. Some have even speculated that it could be the future of iOS music.
Last summer, Hans Zimmer released an app that allowed users to hear his score for Man of Steel in a simulated 3D surround sound version through a normal stereo pair of headphones. The app was free, but the music had to be purchased. Fans who bought the CD were given a free access code for the app as well.
The idea of an app format taps into both the apparent growing interest in high fidelity digital formats and the interest of independent artists looking to package exclusive content to fans directly, rather than through Spotify, Pandora or iTunes.
Reviews of Islander in the App Store have been high so far, with one fan writing, “This is the best item I've spent my hard earned money on in a long long time. The music is top tier and the looping station is fun. I love being creative and this is superb! It lets me be part of the action instead of just a fan listening to a good album!”
The top comment in a discussion forum on Reddit wasn’t as enthusiastic, however, writing, “It's original, but I'm not going to want an App for every album I buy.”
For those preferring the more traditional formats, Bernhoft’s new album is also available on CD and in all the major digital music retailers and major streaming services.
While the evolution of digital music isn’t exactly predictable, it’s certainly going to favor artists that leverage the newest technology to engage with fans and use the tools available to create immersive experiences with their music. Because technology, like apps, makes artists and their music more accessible to fans, it’s likely we’ll see a lot more of the most successful artists take advantage of it.
So, Why A Membership?
Let’s face it — trying to create professional mixes without the correct knowledge, tools, services, and network is like playing a concert with a broken instrument to an audience of no one.
That’s where the Sage Audio membership comes in — the membership gives you everything you need to create professional mixes consistently.
The membership is the secret to your success — it’s the difference between the 1,929,999,999 of poor-sounding mixes and the .00000002% of mixes that make people say 'WOW!"
There are 7 unique value-points included in your Sage Audio membership.
Let’s go over each one so you can decide if the membership is right for you.
1. Sage Audio University
- SAU Flagship Mixing Course: 23-video in-depth mixing course that reveals the little-known secrets of mixing and matches the needs of the new music industry.
- SAU Flagship Mastering Course: 19-video in-depth modern mastering course that dives into every nuance of making professional-sounding masters.
- SAU Pre-Mastering Course: Concise pre-mastering course that details the latest industry standards for preparing your mixes for mastering.
- SAU is designed for every experience level, ranging from budding mixing engineers to advanced engineers. The techniques and concepts taught can be applied to any DAW to create industry-leading mixes without expensive software or plugins - and free plugin alternatives are suggested throughout each course.
- Each SAU course includes Start-to-Finish session walkthrough lessons for multiple genres so you can follow along with your preferred genre.
- SAU Certification Document, which can be downloaded and showcased on your website and social channels.
Yes, I want to join the membership now >
2. Private 1-on-1 Mentorship
- The Sage Audio private 1-on-1 Mentorship gives you direct access to us for advanced mixing feedback, in-depth discussions, and customized guidance that's tailored to your specific needs.
- Unlimited private access to us for advanced mixing feedback, where we provide detailed suggestions for improvement.
- Unlimited private access to us for in-depth discussions to help you improve every aspect of your mixes and masters.
- Customized guidance that’s tailored specifically to your needs.
- Fast communication so you can improve your skills quickly.
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3. Unlimited Mixing Feedback
- Unlimited professional mixing feedback directly from us so you can consistently improve your skills and create professional mixes.
- Mixing feedback is invaluable, and the Sage Audio membership gives you continual direct access to us for real-world feedback so you can improve every aspect of each of your mixes while you're in the process of mixing.
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4. 50 Free Mastered Songs Per Year
- 50 free mastered songs per year with your own dedicated professional mastering engineer so you can get all your mixes sounding like professional songs.
- You get your own dedicated Sage Audio mastering engineer to create custom masters that are specific to you and sound exactly how you want.
- Unlimited revisions with your dedicated mastering engineer. As a standard of our service, we are not happy until you are happy with the sound of your masters.
- All masters are delivered as commercial, industry-standard high-resolution 24-bit HD WAV masters so they will sound clean and clear on every platform.
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5. Community
- The Sage Audio community is a tight-knit community of passionate audio engineers who can provide you with additional real-world mixing feedback, meaningful discussions, networking, collaborations, and more.
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6. 70+ GB of Curated Sage Audio Downloadable Content
- 36 multitrack sessions spanning multiple genres for mixing practice.
- 57 un-mastered mixes spanning multiple genres for mastering practice.
- 62 Recommended Free Plugins List (vetted, tested, and approved, so you don’t have to).
- 39 Recommended Paid Plugins List (vetted, tested, and approved, so you don’t have to).
- 71 Sage Audio custom plugin presets to improve your mixes and masters.
- Sage Audio Membership Badge to showcase on your website, social channels, and portfolio.
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7. 800+ Video Catalog
- Access 700+ in-depth Sage Audio mixing and mastering videos - curated and organized into categories so you can easily take a deep dive into all aspects of audio engineering with thousands of hours of concise, expertly crafted Sage Audio videos to continually improve your skills at your own pace.
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