… I’m now wondering what are the eligibility requirements for an event? What I learnt from the previous discussion was: if it exists, add it. Is that the same for events?
Are there any minimum standards for what an event is, in MusicBrainz terminology?
Examples being:
Perform at least 2 songs? Does streaming an event on Youtube count as an event? Do I need to have at least an x amount of audience members that watch the stream or y amount of subscribers that will be notified once I start my stream and/or how many z hours/minutes they spent watching my streaming event?(in which case maybe I’d only find out if my streaming event is eligible for entry after watching some Youtube statistics on how many members watched and how much time they spent watching my performance event after it ended) For how long does it need to be streamed etc.?
I remember “Surprisingly O.K. Variations on This Shit” being an example I was given as a song that wasn’t notable but was still eligible for entry into the database. Are there any examples of a ‘not so notable event’ that has already been added to MusicBrainz?
The only documentation I could find is at https://musicbrainz.org/doc/Event which says “an organised event which people can attend, and is relevant to MusicBrainz.”
It doesn’t seem like there is a minimum number of songs (and e.g., the page explicitly gives a launch reception, which may have no music at all), length, or audience size.
I think we ought to count watching a live stream as attending, so a concert live-streamed on YouTube would count, even if being done from a studio or the performer’s basement.
(Also note it says can attend, not did attend—so I think it’d still be an event, even if no one shows up. Or watches the live stream. Although, my condolences if that happens!)
I have added house parties/birthdays where bands have played:
My work has a heritage team on-site, and it’s been interesting working with them. You would think they would be assigning a heritage ‘status’ to data that they value and collect. In fact, it’s the opposite. They often complain about the fact that so much ‘mundane’ everyday stuff is missing/thrown out and not valued, even though it can give us the most accurate impression of everyday life. This includes current things (heritage is different to ‘history’ in this respect).*
Anyway, I use MusicBrainz to map the local scene that I have been included in, and that without MB would have little to no documentation. Sometimes niche scenes are of importance culturally, or just to someone, later but information is hard to find because nobody considers their output at the time noteworthy enough.
Because MB is well equipped to deal with massive amounts of data I’m very glad to be able to add so much ‘minor interest’ material - which is also MB’s biggest advantage over other music sites (though Discogs does the same - allows any release - and owes much of it’s popularity to that as well).
Just wanted to raise the flag in support of our current notability requirements - none
*Vaguely related, I’m dying waiting to be able to upload gig posters, older events I added are disappearing from Facebook with all the data!
But is a band performing at a house party the same as a bunch of guys (who happen to be in a band) being at a party in a house, and after a few beers people say “we want music” and the guys get up and jam out a few tunes.
Because, I would love to post about the times that I played with John Smith, but they aren’t events. They were just two people who happened to be at the same place at the same time, giving in to peer pressure by doing an impromptu performance.
*peer pressure - that means grandma tells me to go play pretty music while Uncle John Smith sings some songs.
I haven’t added any impromptu performances yet, nothing’s happened that I’ve thought is worth adding, but as far as I know there’s currently no restriction on it.
If Beyoncé decides to do an off the cuff performance at my flatwarming you can put a safe bet that it’ll be on MusicBrainz!! Even if she was pressured by grandma.