In this episode of Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I meet Andy Piper, the head of communications for Mastodon, to talk about his involvement with Oggcamp, a unique unconference that runs on collaboration and creativity.

We discuss the origins of Oggcamp, its roots in the Ogg Vorbis audio format, and how it has evolved into an event for tech enthusiasts and creators. Andy explains the unconference format, where attendees can propose topics and engage in discussions that spark new ideas and collaborations. I wanted to ask him about the potential for a similar model in the music industry, where musicians can connect, share, and innovate together.

Andy also talks about his work at Mastodon, and the platform's commitment to decentralization and community-driven content in a federated social network.

For more information about Oggcamp, visit https://www.oggcamp.orgYou can also follow Andy on his blog at https://andypiper.co.uk

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com

In this episode of Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I meet Randy, a musician known as Lime Bar. We talk about how he got back into music after a long hiatus. Based in Indianapolis, Randy discusses how the pandemic reignited his passion for music creation, diving into digital tools and collaborating with other artists on the Fediverse.

He tells me his experiences with MIDI and Cakewalk, reflecting on how technology has transformed music production since the 80s. Randy covers his approach to blending video and audio for his projects. We also cover his involvement with Indie Beat TV, a platform he helped build to showcase indie music videos to support other artists through community engagement.

Check out Lime Bar's music on his website https://limebar.space

And watch videos and more on the Indie Beat TV self-hosted stream https://tv.theindiebeat.fm

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com

In this episode of The Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I meet Timezone LaFontaine, a multimedia artist based in Asheville, North Carolina. Timezone is a Creative Commons musician, animator, and comic creator. We discuss these creative pursuits and how he finds time and inspiration to create.

Timezone tells me about his approach to making music, including his use of spreadsheets to organize album projects and collaborate with other artists from the BlocSonic Netlabel. Plus, we also talk about his latest album, "The Unrealist," and the comic series he’s been developing, "Zoom Bats."

Listen to Timezone’s music on Bandcamp https://timezonelafontaine.bandcamp.com.

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com

In this episode of The Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I talk with Ryno, also known as Ryno the Bearded, a long-time podcaster and passionate supporter of Creative Commons music. Ryno talks about hosting his Creative Commons music podcast for over 15 years, discussing how he celebrates open culture and connects with independent artists around the world every Friday night.

Ryno explains how he curates his extensive library of over 5,500 Creative Commons tracks, how he finds new music, and the importance of supporting independent musicians. Ryno also tries to help the music community by promoting artists.

To check out Ryno's show, visit https://ryno.cc for live streams and archives.

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com

In this episode of Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I meet fluffy, a VR musician behind Sockpuppet. fluffy tells me about their unique approach to music creation, blending genres from alternative rock to EDM. fluffy discusses their experiences performing in VR chat environments, the challenges of hand tracking, and other things involved in virtual performances.

We also talk about Canimus, a project they are working on aimed at creating a decentralized music distribution platform, participating in game jams, and the Trans Academy, where fluffy volunteers as a lead composer.

Sockpuppet website: https://sockpuppet.band

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com

In this episode of Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I meet the live coding duo known as Crash Server, two musicians, both named Sebastian, from Strasbourg, France. They share their unique approach to creating music and visuals through live coding. They improvise and generate sound in real-time using programming languages and software like SuperCollider and Troop.

They tell me how they met through workshops and the evolution of their sound, which incorporates elements from various genres, including electronic, jazz, and punk. They discuss their live setup, which includes laptops, guitar effects, and the use of text-to-speech technology.

They also tell me about their upcoming projects, including a new album.

To learn more about Crash Server, visit their website - https://www.crashserver.fr

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com

In this episode of The Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I sit down with Paul Davis, the original developer and current maintainer of Ardour, the open-source digital audio workstation. Paul shares the story behind Ardour's creation, which began over 25 years ago when he struggled to find a usable music production solution on Linux.

Paul discusses managing a project like Ardour, from development tasks to responding to user inquiries in the community. We also talk about how his collaboration with other projects, like Harrison Mixbus, helps the project. And Paul shares info about the upcoming release of Ardour 9, which will have new features, including a more intuitive MIDI setup and enhanced clip/cue recording capabilities.

To learn more about Ardour, visit https://ardour.org

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com

In this episode of Lorenzo's Music Podcast, I meet Robert Kaye, the founder of MusicBrainz and the MetaBrainz Foundation. Robert talks about creating MusicBrainz, a community-driven music database that emerged as a response to the privatization of the CDDB database. We explore the impact of open-source communities and the importance of collaboration in building it's music metadata infrastructure.

Robert shares the challenges he faced, from navigating community dynamics to the evolution of MusicBrainz over the past 25 years. We discuss the creation of Picard, the tagging application for users' music collections, and how MusicBrainz is a resource for artists and music collectors alike.

Robert also talks about his other projects, including ListenBrainz, which aims to enhance music discovery and recommendations for local collections.

MusicBrainz website - https://musicbrainz.org

Lorenzo's Music Website - https://www.lorenzosmusic.com