[Xewksghy]

Twitter has been (rightfully, in many cases) maligned as a distraction, but at times the “microblog” can keep us connected in smaller bits of time, not larger. People read while something is rendering, when they feel a bit lonely or distracted to begin with (a bit like taking work to a virtual coffee shop), while they’re in line at the grocery looking at their phone. And for the bedroom- and studio-based music maker, Twitter reveals something of what the future might be like. Twitter itself can sometimes prove too unstructured to be useful, but that one service aside, it demonstrates that we can find ways of being connected to other music makers in new ways - ways that have probably only just begun to evolve.

Yesterday I looked at why I thought [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] - both as a model to follow, and a chance to see her as an artist in a different light. But I also hoped to hear who readers here might be following. In the informal tradition of “Follow Friday,” here’s a look at a few of those people.

Side note: I’ve actually gotten a whole lot of useful stuff from Twitter - it’s allowed me to keep connected to people I might otherwise lose touch with, and I’ve gotten great news leads and project stories out of it as a writer. I’ve gotten more technical help than musical - but that’s also helped me fix the technical stuff with servers and the like so I can get on with music and visuals. I have a mile-long list of complaints about how I think this sort of thing could work better, but - well, I’ve been online since the days when I had a 1200-baud modem. There’s always hope for change. Oh, and [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] is the best client for processing information productively; I’m just waiting for multi-account support.

Reader Tips for this Week

The first two here also tour with Imogen Heap, but are great musicians themselves (with terrific accompanying solo careers). The last two take us another direction, thanks to one of CDM’s Twitter followers.

Zoe Keating, suggested by [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] in comments
Bio: “cello, computers, pancakes.” (great line)
Sample tweet: “mix, tweak, mix, listen, rest, mix, tweak, mix, re-record, listen, rest, go to post office, mix, mix, mix.”
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] | [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.]

Levi Weaver, also suggested by Tim
Bio: I’m always doing at least 3 things Ed.: hint - one of those is making [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.]
Sample tweet: “Just avoided RyanAir baggage fees the same way I used to try to make spankings not hurt as a child: Books down the back of my pants.”
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Todd Reynolds, the superstar violinist
Bio: Digital Violinist and Global Music Citizen and Advocate. Teacher.
Sample tweet: “If there is one thing that I learn over and over again in music, it’s that simplicity, when embraced, opens a straight shot to the core.”
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] | [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.]

Steve Lawson, suggested by [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.]
Bio: “Bass 2.0 - musician, webbist, uni lecturer on music and technology, bass teacher, music journo… one of life’s enthusiasts. ) ”
Sample tweet: “Wordpress nerds, what CHMOD settings do I need to have files uploadable to the server etc. but still be secure?” (hey, I told you this is part of what Twitter is useful for)
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Steve’s blog, by the way, is full of tips on social media (still hate the term, but the idea is good). [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.]

Regular Information Sources

Other active Twitter feeds I follow:
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] - of monome fame, “Graphic Designer. Musician. Tea snob.”
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] - of Audio Damage / Analog Industries
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] - James Lewin on both his podcasting site and the prolific Synthtopia; expect a lot of tweets (but you won’t have to dig through RSS)
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] - for beats and powerful geeking on new projects like the Mididuino
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] - Greg Smith on digital media, culture, theory
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] is doing all sorts of things, Web and musical, including running the ModulateThis blog
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] - the blog is gone, but Music Thing lives on as Tom tweets

Modular Friends, Ableton Tips

Twitter is in everyone’s thoughts, this week, it seems. (Perhaps the perfect medium for a sagging economy?)

stretta himself rounds up a fantastic list of [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.], with an emphasis on modular synths.

As [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.] (and note [You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.], too):
[You cannot see the link as you're not logged in. Click here to login or here to register.], entirely unofficial tips on Live

Me


Oh, yeah: