I'm interested in seeing what other marimba players think of napster. Records are very hard to find in our line of work. Do you think good or bad?

I think it's great! I've downloaded I nearly 100 marimba songs now. It really helps me appreciate marimba music and just be exposed to it. I've never seen a marimba cd in stores. This is the only way I can get it.

I grab whatever I can off of Napster, and I only buy cd's if I really want to hear a particular piece and it's not on Napster at all. These specialty cds are really a pain to locate and order (or impossible), and it's much easier to get it off Napster.

I think you are all missing a very major point about the subject of Napster, which ties into Julia's attempt to obtain the "liner notes" from albums she has downloaded.

Many of you may be considering music as a career, or at the very least are dedicated to your study of music. Most professional musicians, such as myself, piece together a living from performing, teaching, and recording - in differing degrees of concentration. The problem we have with Napster and other "free music" sites, is that by getting around the copyright issue and "avoiding that exorbinant $10-20 per CD" you who download copyrighted material are taking away a portion of our livelihood. I'm sure there is, and will be, a place for downloading instead of buying CD's. I'm also aware that many artists make their work available on MP3. However, downloading a commercial CD, such as the Stevens CD in Julia's post, is not an acceptable alternative to purchasing the CD, and supporting that artist's career!!! Even the top percussion artists today are so far from the mainstream that record companies support that their ability to produce their work, and even to make a living as an artist - AND THEREFORE YOURS IN THE FUTURE - is severely jeapordized by these companies. I beg of you to view this issue in the larger picture, and not just in terms of a few dollars now.

William Trigg