VOA慢速英语 Unemployment Leads to Increased Volunteerism in the United States

　　(MUSIC)

　　SXSW

　　HOST:

　　Since nineteen eighty-seven, the South by Southwest Music Conference and Festival in Austin, Texas, has been an important event for people in the music industry. The festival started as a way for musicians in Austin to reach out to larger audiences. It has grown into a huge event that brings together musicians, record companies, filmmakers, reporters and radio programmers from around the world. Barbara Klein has more.

　　(MUSIC)

　　BARBARA KLEIN:

　　That was the song "She's Got a Hold on Me" by the band Hacienda from San Antonio, Texas. This group was one of about one thousand eight hundred musical acts that performed at the South by Southwest festival last month.

　　Some performers at the festival, like Metallica, Jane's Addiction and Erykah Badu, are very well known. Other less known artists attend the festival to be discovered by record companies. And some musicians attend to gain new fans and have fun performing.

　　Most people at the festival would agree that the Internet has greatly changed the ways musicians and record companies do business. Online music stores and file-sharing have had a big effect on record sales. But the Web has given a kind of freedom to independent musicians who depend on the Internet for sales, reviews and staying in touch with fans.

_小精灵 儿童网