Recording and music production technology has seen enormous change in recent years. Engineers and producers now have unprecedented power to manipulate the tinest details in recordings using computers and other tools. But the process may be taking the life and soul out of music. Some feel that commercial recordings lack the spontaneity that makes live music so immediate and satisfying. Others prefer the "perfection."

Bits <I>vs</I> atoms! The new frontier of audio distribution is said to include downloading recordings over the internet onto a CD or DVD recorder for a modest fee. We'll assume for the moment that bandwidth has improved to the point where this is not a painful process, and data compression is not needed. But the question remains: Are you a collector who wants the original disc, or do you just want the music fast and cheap?