Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Peter Davison (composer)


 * The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review).  No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was delete. There are many "wait"s, and we have waited, but after more than thrice the normal length of AfD discussions, we have waited enough. The two "do not delete" opinions fail to identify reliable sources of the kind we need to support biographies.  Sandstein  20:49, 22 August 2016 (UTC)

Peter Davison (composer)

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This is an unsourced biography of a living person that reads more like a promotional piece than an encyclopaedia article. That's not a reason on it's own to delete, but I'm finding absolutely no significant coverage in third party sources (reliable or otherwise) that is about the person and not just adverts for his music or him writing about other people. Thryduulf (talk) 11:15, 26 July 2016 (UTC)
 * PS, having looked at the article history to leave a notification of this discussion I noticed that user:Pdmus, one of the major contributors to this article, has contributed only regarding this article (edits to it and links to it), making me suspect a conflict of interest or autobiography. Thryduulf (talk) 11:20, 26 July 2016 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Bands and musicians-related deletion discussions. Thryduulf (talk) 11:24, 26 July 2016 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of California-related deletion discussions. Thryduulf (talk) 11:24, 26 July 2016 (UTC)

 Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, North America1000 03:32, 2 August 2016 (UTC)  Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.
 * Delete -- strictly promotional article on an unremarkable composer. Coverage is insufficient to establish notability. K.e.coffman (talk) 00:04, 8 August 2016 (UTC)

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, North America1000 03:14, 9 August 2016 (UTC)


 * Koala Tea Of Mercy ( KTOM's Articulations &amp; Invigilations ) 23:17, 15 August 2016 (UTC)
 * This a strange comment. There's no need to for the editor to jump through hoops to cite that article, per WP:SOURCEACCESS. Joe Roe (talk) 09:10, 22 August 2016 (UTC)


 * Delete (with reluctance) -- This is a case of a person who obviously has a substantial body of work in his field but for whom (almost) no one has written anything about the guy. To complicate matters his name is very common and is currently shared by many others including at least a couple men in the entertainment industry (an actor, a set designer, a poet, an author/editor, an academic, etc) making it hard to determine what search hits are about this Peter Davison. I had to dig deep and so far this is what I have been able to find:
 * A brief mention in a blog (18-SEP-2014) that he is living in Santa Monica. Confirmed this is the right guy as Davison posted a comment below the blog from his Facebook account: "I grew up next door to the author [of the blog] and remember all the characters in the article. I remember the neighborhood as peaceful and friendly, as well as secure. It sounds like some of our parents had stable long term jobs, others moved around. My family moved away when I was 12 (the Valley), but I look back on 4th street, Farmer's Market, Gilmore Stadium, Kiddie Land and huge plastic army man battles in the back yards with fondness!"
 * http://www.foxandhoundsdaily.com/2014/09/ward-cleavers-job-world-los-angeles-1957/
 * A brief mention in the LA Times (03-JUL-2011): "And then there were the California communes that gave rise to artists like and Iasos."
 * http://articles.latimes.com/2011/jul/03/entertainment/la-ca-new-age-20110703/2
 * A detailed mini-bio paragraph at the official website for the International Documentary Association dated APRIL 2004, identifying him as a new member of the association and listing his (then) current and recent work. Difficult to tell if this is self-written and submitted or IDA vetted material.
 * http://www.documentary.org/magazine/welcome-new-members-april-2004
 * A mention in a National Endowment for the Arts publication, Arts Review, v.2 (1984) which supplies only the fact that Davison was a composer and a faculty member of East Los Angeles College.
 * https://books.google.com/books?id=n9A3XxutpAgC&q=%22Peter+Davison+%28composer%29%22&dq=%22Peter+Davison+%28composer%29%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwih6c7vn8LOAhUNxmMKHeJwBk0Q6AEIIzAB
 * A similar mention in another NEA publication, Annual Report 1984 (published 1985) supplying the same information.
 * https://books.google.com/books?id=_IvWAAAAMAAJ&q=%22Peter+Davison+%28composer%29%22&dq=%22Peter+Davison+%28composer%29%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwih6c7vn8LOAhUNxmMKHeJwBk0Q6AEIKDAC
 * ...and that is about all that I can find of independent sources about the guy. Seems a shame since he has done many well known scores but Davison needs in-depth stuff written about him for us to have sources to write from. Koala Tea Of Mercy ( KTOM's Articulations &amp; Invigilations ) 05:20, 15 August 2016 (UTC)


 * Do Not Delete --

I have been a listener of Peter Davison's music for many years; his first LP was released in 1979. Years ago I found a small entry for him at Wikipedia and have been updating it over time, using Davison's website for new CD releases, awards, etc. and IMDb for TV/Film scoring projects. It contains a short biography and a list of Davison's works.

On the Wikipedia “Category:Start-Class biography (musicians) articles”, under Peter Davison is this text from Wikipedia: “This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography, a collaborative effort to create, develop and organize Wikipedia's articles about people. All interested editors are invited to join the preject and contribute to the discussion.”

This statement, in its complete Wikipedia graphic form, was on the “Peter Davison (composer)” Wikipedia page prior to the current deletion complaint, as I remember.

Under “Wikipedia:Verifiability #2.1 What counts as a reliable source:”

“The word "source" in Wikipedia has three meanings:”

1) “The type of the work (some examples include a document, an article, or a book)” This biography clearly lists the type of work. These are Film and Television music scores, CDs of music compositions and DVDs of Yoga/Meditation teachers, for which Davison composed the scores.

In addition, I have added Peter Davison's IMDb page to the “External Links.” It lists all the TV/Film scores and productions on the Wikipedia page, with additional works as well. IMDb is a trusted source for verifiable Television and Film “credits.” Please note: IMDb does not list music CDs. 2) “The creator of the work (for example, the writer)” - Peter Davison

3) “The publisher of the work (for example, Oxford University Press)” - the studios, film and television companies listed and the record labels listed are the publishers.

When I click “Find Sources for Peter Davison (composer)” on the “Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Peter Davison (composer)” a web page that lists all sorts of places to listen to and purchase his music appears. That is the nature of contemporary music on the internet. Just as an author search will list places to purchase his books, and an actor search will show lists of productions in which he has appeared, etc. I suppose this is advertising, but it also the nature of current music and other pursuits on the internet.

Davison is a well known composer, both for TV/Film and his CDs and DVDs are listened to globally. His listeners deserve a Wikipedia page to read a bit more about him.

Paul D. Musilier Pdmus (talk) 21:15, 15 August 2016 (UTC)

Paul D.MusilierPdmus (talk) 18:59, 22 August 2016 (UTC)
 * Delete - Fails WP:BASIC; almost no coverage in reliable secondary sources, just scant mentions of his name. Fails WP:ANYBIO and WP:COMPOSER.  Magnolia677 (talk) 02:40, 16 August 2016 (UTC)
 * Peter Davison is a leading New Age, Yoga/Meditation music composer. I have most of his CDs and during the last 20 years he has been an invaluable companion in my spiritual life with his music.  Konstantinos Ioannidis, Athens, Greece.  posted this comment, but overwrote the rest of the page doing so, I've placed it here as I believe was their intention. Thryduulf (talk) 12:29, 16 August 2016 (UTC)
 * Wait and see if creator can come up with reliable sources. White Arabian Filly  Neigh 21:24, 19 August 2016 (UTC)
 * Delete - sources do not establish notability, being either non-independent or local in nature. Cordless Larry (talk) 15:56, 22 August 2016 (UTC)
 * Do Not Delete - the sources establish that Davison has released 34 Cds of his original music on 4 labels. The sources establish awards and nominations for his CDs.  The sources establish that Davison has composed music scores for over 500 TV/film productions.  The newspaper sources, while local, establish details about Davison's life.  If these facts do not establish notability, I have no idea what does.
 * Significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the topic would establish notability. It's really nothing to do with the number of CDs that he has released. Cordless Larry (talk) 19:20, 22 August 2016 (UTC)
 * The article currently cites seven sources:
 * Davison's bandcamp page - not independent, not reliable as it is self-published;
 * His IMDb page - not reliable as IMDb relies partly on user-submitted content;
 * An album chart listing - I'm unsure whether being 10th in an album chart contributes much to establishing notability;
 * A PDF on Davison's Dropbox detailing some award nominations - looks self-published;
 * A PDF on Davison's Dropbox which appears to be from sleeve notes - not independent of the subject (interesting that it notes that his first two LPs were self-released);
 * Two local newspaper articles.
 * This is not significant, independent coverage. Cordless Larry (talk) 19:34, 22 August 2016 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.