Our editors: vzell

This is part of a series where we talk to some of the amazing editors that have cracked one million MusicBrainz edits and qualified for super special (lousy) shirt plan.*

These users have donated substantial amounts of their time to improve open music data, enriching open-source knowledge and culture for billions of people. Let’s find out what makes vzell click. And click and click and click!

Thanks so much vzell for agreeing to chat. Many MusicBrainz editors will know you through your MusicBrainz profile and editing – who are you offline?

Hi, I’m from Germany (originally born in Romania, Transylvanian of German descent). I live in Drabenderhöhe—the largest Transylvanian-dominated community near Cologne—where we keep all Transylvanian traditions alive.

I am an avid singer myself and a member of an eight-time championship-winning choir; it is my favorite hobby, right after Bruce Springsteen and MusicBrainz. I studied physics and have been retired for a year, yet I still work three days a week in the IT industry.

How did you get started with editing MusicBrainz?

It’s all because of Bruce Springsteen dominating my life musically. As a data fetishist, I want to record every conceivable piece of information in a super database like MB.

Ah, a MusicBrainz obsession sprouting from another music obsession. That will be familiar to many MusicBrainz editors.

How does editing MusicBrainz fit into your everyday life and routine?

Perfectly… as I sit in front of the computer anyway, listening and archiving Bruce and related stuff.

Do you have any personal tricks or rules to keep a large amount of editing sustainable, healthy and fun?

Yes… have a lot of friends to party with, a choir to sing with AND listen to Bruce during editing (a never ending story, this guy has so many bootlegs and I have them all, 30 TB on my NAS). Last but not least, stay focused and work precisely, it’s worth it… and… laugh and enjoy life, there seems to be actually only one.

Do your friends and/or family know that you edit MusicBrainz for (hopefully) fun? What do they think about it?

All of them know about it and now with the T-shirt it will wide spread even more 🙂

Actually they like it, and they know it’s my habit to work precisely no matter what it is that I’m doing.

What is your favourite thing to edit?

Right now, entering every single Bruce bootleg on earth after I finished off (a long time ago) entering all his events (about 4,200) and works and having a lot of beer…

What is your least favourite thing to edit?

Bruce related Various Artist albums, but I do it anyway…

What are your favourite editing tools? Do you have any editing tips?

In the beginning my fingers, later on I automated as much as possible with self written Emacs Lisp routines (yes I’m an Emacs guru). Nowadays userscripts I’ve written with the help of AI (Claude), see [forum thread].

One tip so, be consistent in what you’re doing, every single dash/en-dash/em-dash matters… hahahaha

Last but not least, what are your current top music recommendations!

Well, do yourself a favour and listen to Willy DeVille and maybe… hahahaha… to our choir MGV Drabenderhöhe.

And last but not least “The Boss“…

Thanks again vzell. Happy editing!

*If you are a million-editor and missed our emails and are keen for a shirt and/or a chat, please get in touch. If you have a million edits you should know how to reach staff, so no contact link for you! Non-million editors, you are also welcome to share your story, please get in touch (you get a link!)