Alltabs.com

[BauerHaus]

What has happened to alltabs.com?
For the past few days, the main page on the site, said they were down because they were revising the site.
Tonight, I can't even get to the main page. Is it my computer, or is anyone else having trouble.
I have been using that site for the past 3 months, like crazy, learning songs. #

[Dfyngravity]

I would guess they are re-doing their webpage. So they have either taken it down to replace it or their server is down.

[John Flynn]

I read on one of thier pages that it should be back up after the first of the year. I have an email into them to see if they have a more specific time frame. I'll post when I get a response.

[John Flynn]

BTW, I hope you are using Mandozine also. Lately, I am finding them to be a better source for what I am playing. There is also Hetzler's and lots of other sites.

[csstanley]

tell us about those other sites. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

[Ray(T)]

Could it be something to do with - http://www.acousticguitar.com/ubbcgi....=022248 (http://www.acousticguitar.com/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=1;t=022248)

[John Flynn]

tell us about those other sites
Mandozine: Great site, a lot of stuff there. Click on "practice tunes" and the "Tabledit files" and search for the tune you want. You will need to download "Tef Viewer" (free) or "Tabledit" (very reasonable) to use the files, but it is a program worth having anyway. They also have a discussion forum.
http://www.mandozine.com/

Hetzler's Fake Book: Good site for MIDIs and sheet music. You may need to download a MidiNotate to create sheet music, or you may be able to import them into TablEdit, although I have never tried it.
http://www.hetzlersfakebook.com/

Simple Gifts Mandolin Tablature Archive:
http://www.users.csbsju.edu/~eknuth/mandotab/

Of course, the Cafe' here has a decent collection also.

[Mandobar]

riaa is what happened. the recording industry is on a rampage

[csstanley]

Didn't know anything about Hetzler or the other. THANKS A BUNCH. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

[DryBones]

Well RIAA better find a way to sell me individual songs in tab and notation becasue I am not buying complete songbooks for 1 song I may want. I can buy an mp3 for $.99 so they dang well can sell me 1 sheet of music for the same price. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mad.gif

[jmkatcher]

Much of what I'm looking for isn't even available in sheet music. The chord/tab sites have been a godsend for motivating me to play, by helping me learn what motivates me.

[Dano Reible]

I am sorry but what are these programs? Are they something you play along with or what?

[kyblue]

See MPA deems tab illegal (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tablature)

An excerpt from that page:

The Music Publishers' Association (MPA) has recently deemed unauthorized tablature illegal and is beginning to shut down websites that offer free tablature. MPA president Lauren Keiser says that the owners of free tablature services may even be arrested[1]. Several websites that offer free tablature have already been shut down, including the "Power Tab Archive".



http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

[John Flynn]

what are these programs? Are they something you play along with or what?
There are a myriad of downloadable programs that allow you to create, view, print, listen to, loop and/or slow down tunes. Different sites have thier stuff in different formats. There are some programs like TablEdit, that can import different formats.

[arbarnhart]

I always wondered how it could be legal. I knew that some MIDI files of some poular music were unavailable for legal reasons, yet you could get tablature that streamed to MIDI and included the score pretty freely.

[psann]

Alltabs.com seems fine today

[psann]

Well........... maybe not so fine. It comes up but is definitely not the same

[Michael H Geimer]

MJ, thanks for those links! There's good stuff to be found there.

* * *

I've been using 'cooking analogies' to help myself think through some of the business-model issues the music publishers face these days.

Consider Bisquick:
- The recipe is basic, old, and pretty much public knowledge.
- It's easy enough to make yourself.
- It's probably even cheaper to mix it yourself.
- It's not even illegal, or immoral to mix it yourself.

Somehow, Bisquick sells ... because they offer something we want in a conveinient manner. (unlike the awful, error-filled, piano-key, borderline-useless music books that get published)

What about chefs and their original recipes? There are cooks out there who make their living by creating recipes ... but then these same chefs will go on TV and *show you how to do it yourself*!

If only the music publishers could see how freedom of intellectual property can be profitable, if only they knew how to treat musicians as a different sort of customer, the way cook book authors respect the skills of their readers.

It would ridiculous for Emirel to go on Oprah as a cooking guest, and rather than show us how to cook some entree, he'd instead hide all the 'secrets' from the audience, and use the show to plug his pre-made meals ... all out of some precieved need to guard his precious proprietary knowledge. (OMG ... what if people just cooked this by themselves at home! What if they invited friends over to eat, too ... think of all the potential customers he's losing! )

See, if music publishers really 'got it' they'd be hiring more musicians to help them create better books, with accurate TAB (and notation too I hope), accurate lyrics, good liner notes, etc.

Like Bisquick, if you can just provide something (however basic) that people want to use they will often buy it rather make it themselves.

I sure hope these jokers (RIAA, Sony, ASCAP, Warner/Chappel) wake up before they ruin everything by suing everybody.

(/rant)

[John Flynn]

I agree with you, Benignus, but as I'm sure you know, "they" really don't care about the music, its contribution to society, or ever the artists they represent. They are "bean-counters" who really only care about thier cut. I am sure the guy who figured out they could crack down on tab sites got a promotion and/or a bigger bonus for it.

I also think it's ironic that a lot of the artists that are being "protected" learned a lot of thier chops from free tab and bootlegged sheet music when they were coming up in garage bands. The whole thing is incredibly hypocrtical.

I do think the artists and the publishers have property rights that need to be protected, but I also think it is incumbent on them to make it easier and more reasonable to comply. Everyone loses when Mom and Pop music venues and non-profit tab sites get shut down.

[Michael H Geimer]

Agreed that artists do have rights. But they way the Big Guys are playing this game, it's hardly even about IP anymore ... regardless of how the press releases read.

The market is changing, the demands of consumers are changing ... but the publishers are taking their issues into the court system rather than out into the Free Market.

What's next? Agents wandering around the festival campgrounds listening for signs people might be showing each other how to play copywritten material? LOL

I see future problems for the MIDI format. It is the best vehicle for Internet transfer of music notation - IMO. But MIDI itself has no provisions for DRM and probably isn't even sophisticated enough in its syntax to allow for copy restrictions in its code.

I sure hope not ... MIDI is just so underrated as a raw content format.

[Tom C]

Is there a difference between learning lyrics by listening to them or reading them?If it is illegal to distribute lyrics on paper or on web, shouldn't it be illegal to verbally distribute them? Maybe playing of all songs in public should be illegal as somebody else may learn them.

[BauerHaus]

WOW!!! I had no idea all this stuff about MIDI and TAB sites was going on. This is making for very intersting reading. Personally, I have no idea about laws regarding TABS, so I will keep my thoughts to myself right now, except for the fact that I really hope they don't force the tab sites off the 'net, because I have learned plenty from them in the past 6 months or so.
Also, thanks for all the other helpful sites that have been listed in this thread.

Steve