Technology has made producing music increasingly less expensive. Prior to the advent of the Digital Audio Workstation, a musician's recording studio would require the purchase and mastery of a large quantity of hardware. Computers now recreate the studio environment by allowing a musician to record at a professional quality with very little additional hardware. A microphone and mixing board are still required to input the recording, but effects, mixing, and mastering can be all done by a computer, making the studio much smaller and more portable.
Technology has changed the way musicians perform. Laptop computers and other forms of digital technology can augment a live show by bringing an endless array of possibilities onto a stage. Guitars and keyboards can be run through a computer to add real-time effects to a performance that would traditionally require multiple pieces of expensive hardware. DJs no longer need to carry heavy crates of records to nightclubs because vinyl simulation surfaces allow digital file formats to be controlled in the same way as a record. Music venues can use computers to control sound levels, lights, and cuing to ensure a smoothly run concert.
Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) has become a standard way to create an endless array of sounds via a digital controller. MIDI controllers are often built into keyboards but can also be found in the form of simulated woodwinds, velocity-sensitive drum pads, and all-inclusive MIDI Processing Centers. Via software-based synthesizers and MIDI, a keyboardist can compose a piece of music using any instrument imaginable.
The advent of the Internet has changed the way that musicians sell their music. A song can now be sold anywhere on the planet immediately and can also be shared for free, giving musicians more exposure yet less commercial control. Promotion and networking are given endless possibilities via online social networks. A band can sell an album as an online digital download for much cheaper than a physical copy because printing and disc pressing are not required. This situation has created an inflation of supply in the musical market because virtually anyone can sell digital music.
Musicians can meet and collaborate instantly online. The combination of rapid file-sharing, inexpensive recording equipment, and digital audio workstations has allowed for instant collaboration between musicians across the globe.