Media
Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 9:48am.
Since we last shared this space, the Chicago Sinfonietta presented its debut performance at Millennium Park’s Pritzker Pavilion. Having attended a number of Grant Park Music Festival concerts in the past, I was familiar with the venue. But I have to confess, seeing our orchestra on stage at this magnificent venue was a blast! We had over 10,000 people in attendance despite the threat of rain all day. A few thoughts.
The sound system at the Pritzker is truly amazing. Rick Talaske’s group has created a state-of-the-art sound system for a state-of-the-art venue. Sightlines are great, the setting is dramatic, and what a fantastic centerpiece this venue provides in the heart of the city! We are grateful to Jim Palermo and the people at GPMF for their generous assistance, though we are a little envious that they get to perform there all summer long.
There are some faults, as well. There is a great deal of ambient noise, especially the sirens that seem to cut through almost anything the orchestra is playing. It also seems that some of the lawn seats might not have the greatest of sightlines. Having said that, Pritzker Pavilion is an incredible asset for the city and we were proud to have been invited to play.
One final quick plug. The Chicago Sinfonietta will broadcast its season preview on WFMT 98.7 FM on Saturday, September 6th from 10 –noon. Tune in to hear Maestro Paul Freeman and yours truly discuss the 08-09 season.
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Today's guest blog is written by Dileep Gangolli, Clarinetist with the Chicago Sinfonietta
While playing with my wife’s new computer, I stumbled on a desktop prompt for Pandora Radio which connected me to a world of streaming Classical music organized in a highly logical mathematical manner.
I was immediately taken by the way the music is presented and delivered (at no cost to the listener). I am anxious to get the thoughts of others on this method of classical music distribution.
After signing up for Pandora Radio, listeners are invited to create their “own radio stations” that feature their favorite composers. I have stations that feature Mozart, Bach, Schubert, Mahler, and Coldplay among others.
But what is so interesting is that the musical selections are not just of the selected composers but of those that compose in a similar manner either by being of the same time period or by being similar in aesthetic. So Mozart could precede a neo-classical work by Stravinsky that would then be followed by a composition by Varese or Satie. This type of musical organization is a by-product of the Musical Genome Project.
I “Googled” the MGP and this is what surfaced on Wikipedia:
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Social network services on the Internet come and go; a while ago MySpace was the dominant service, now it is equaled, and soon undoubtedly surpassed, by Facebook in traffic. There are dozens of other popular services, such as Orkut and Friendster, and probably thousands of small, niche-market sites.
What’s an arts organization to do with all this new media? Jason Heath
talks about it in a video (in which he mentions Chicago Classical Music as an excellent example). In the last section, he talks about Facebook (“more and more Facebook over Myspace,” according to Jason).
Facebook didn’t start out very business friendly, but there have always been ways for fans of different organizations to express their love. The most commonly used way was Facebook Groups. Some of CCM’s Participating Organizations have these groups (I’m not sure which were started by fans and which were started by the organization:
Ars Antiqua;
Chicago Chamber Musicians;
Grand Park Music Festival;
Ravinia Festival). The CSO has several, all started by fans.
Then in November of last year, Facebook launched Facebook Pages. Two CCM organizations have already established a presence:
Chicago Opera Theater and
WFMT. Today, we launched
our own Facebook page. There are obvious marketing benefits to having a page for your own organization, but I believe the main strength is building a community and participate (just like CCM aims to do).
So go explore Facebook and if you have an account, be sure to
become a fan of the CSO. If you do so before this Friday, April 11, you enter for a chance to win the latest recording from our new CSO Resound label,
Mahler’s Symphony No. 6,
signed by Principal Conductor Bernard Haitink.
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Regarding Jim's blog on Dudamel's appearance on 60 Minutes (which agreed is a good piece), I'd like to link to Andrew Patner's
Critical Thinking interview with Dudamel which took place just days before he flew to California (mid-stint with the CSO!) to make his announcement with the LA Philharmonic. Contrary to the last line of the 60 Minutes piece, we in fact heard all about Dudamel on WFMT first.
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The CSO released its Traditions and Transformations: Sounds of Silk Road Chicago CD this week. It is the most recent release from CSO Resound, our in-house recording label. This recording helps to illustrate the full range of the CSO musicians, with music ranging from Prokofiev's Scythian Suite to Bloch's Schelomo, his cello concerto performed with Yo-Yo Ma. But it also includes Harrison's Pipa Concerto that was also featured during 2007's Silk Road Chicago collaboration between the CSO, the Art Institute, Silk Road Project and Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs.
I'm writing not just about this release, but the freedom that the current recording and distribution environment provides to all ensembles. With CSO Resound, we have been able to define our artistic priorities and record what the CSO feels is important. There are many examples of groups looking at music distribution differently. Radiohead's In Rainbows release is one that is often referenced, but it is an outstanding example.
The methods by which music will be distributed in the future are absolutely continually in flux, which makes it an exciting time. We all recognize the shift from physical to digital product, but the digital environment is shifting as well. Where will Rhapsody fit into the mix as its share of the market grows?
We feel there will always be interest in the highest fidelity sound, which is why we released our Bruckner 7 recording with principal conductor Bernard Haitink in SACD Hybrid format. In April, we will be releasing Mr. Haitink's Mahler 6 with the CSO, also in an SACD and traditional format. There may be some opportunities where we cannot have a physical product, such as our Shostakovich 5 conducted by Myung-Whun Chung. But there is still merit in making such an outstanding performance available to the public, which is why this was our first digital-only release. Digital buyers are much more interested in portability than fidelity. It doesn't mean that you have to give up fidelity for portability in all cases. The key is to reach out to as many potential listeners as possible in the formats that make sense to them.
While those strategic decisions need to be hashed-out, the freedom this new recording environment provides is incredibly exciting.
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Submitted by Guest on Tue, 10/23/2007 - 3:28pm.
Like Jim Ginsburg (10/22 post), I've lately been thinking about the classical recording industry and resources available online for new listeners.
In his article
"The Well-Tempered Web" (
The New Yorker, October 22nd), Alex Ross explores how the internet has provided an outlet for classical musicians, enthusiasts, composers and administrators to share ideas and that this information can help people who are new to classical music.
He writes that the classical record business is not dead, as is evident from the new recordings and extensive back catalog reissues available in CD and MP3 format on iTunes, ArkivMusic, Amazon and the Naxos label. People, especially new listeners, can browse these sites, sample recordings and explore classical music without feeling intimidated by the genre. Let's face it, this music can be intimidating to people who are not familiar with it.
Well produced podcasts and downloads available on symphony and opera web sites can also help people who are new to classical music and can enrich the concert-going experience for seasoned listeners. Ross highlights the San Francisco Symphony's Keeping Score broadcasts and online pages of music and scores as a prime example of this.
My iPod is full to capacity with a wide variety of music. I like to hear samples of classical music I may not be familiar with before I make a purchase and also use the internet to explore new music and back catalogs. Additionally, even as a seasoned listener, I find some classical podcasts helpful. For example, I am not familiar with some operas I am going see at Lyric this season, so Lyric's behind-the-scenes podcast discussions with the artists enrich my opera-going experience.
And you? How do you enrich your listening experiences using the internet? Do you think that the prevalence of classical music and information about this music on the web aids in the demystification of the genre?
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Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Wed, 10/03/2007 - 9:41am.
I just saw an interesting tidbit 
about the San Diego Symphony’s use of digital recordings. Apparently audience members will be able to purchase a downloadable version of the concert they just attended, thereby creating the opportunity of turning every performance into a permanent keepsake. Seems like a great way to keep audience members engaged and for keeping our orchestras top of mind.
Technology offers those of us in the classical music biz other similar opportunities. The Chicago Sinfonietta recently video-recorded Maestro Freeman talking about each concert on our 2007-2008 season and posted the mini-videos on our website. Paul spoke about what to listen for in each concert, and in some cases, provided interesting insights into why he chose the works we will perform.
It is clear that the ease of recording and distributing digital content will continue to provide opportunities for orchestras to interact with audiences well beyond the concert hall. The questions this brings up include how rights fees are negotiated, how musicians and composers are compensated for their work, how organizations benefit, the role that the musician’s union and other mediators play, and countless others.
Regardless of how these questions are answered, digital content is here to stay and is making a significant impact on how we all do business. Here are some questions posed to musicians and administrators who may read this post:
How should musicians and composers be compensated for music downloads? How should the producing organizations receive compensation, if any? If a project has little or no chance of recouping rights usage fees, should the fees be negotiable? Let’s hear your thoughts on this important and timely topic.
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Today is the 10 year anniversary of Sir Georg Solti's death. Yesterday I interviewed CSO president Deborah Card and Martha Gilmer to get their reaction, as well as information on today's tribute to take place at noon.
If you missed the piece on today's morning show, you can
listen here.
(it's about 3-4 items down the list)
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Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Wed, 08/22/2007 - 11:11am.
Everyone loves a good contest, right?
I was recently contacted by Alex Davison of Gramaphone Magazine about a world-wide contest to name the classical
music artist of the year, and honor other notable achievements in our field. There are a group of nominees that were chosen by Gramophone Magazine's own critics as well as respected members of the industry, including retailers, broadcasters, arts administrators, and musicians. Sure, it feels a bit like our favourite pop music TV show on Fox, but if it helps raise the profile of classical music artists and orchestras, I'm all for it.
Want to have your voice heard? Click on to the Gramaphone website and cast your vote. The results will be published in real time on the Gramophone website, as well as in the special November Gramophone Awards Issue of the magazine, out on the 3rd of October.
Don't forget that age-old Chicago tradition of voting early and voting often. And if you happen to write in the Chicago Sinfonietta, or any of the partner organizations on ccm.org, we won't mind at all.
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Submitted by Jim Hirsch on Wed, 08/08/2007 - 10:55am.
A few interesting items caught my attention this week. Drew McManus, writer of the classical music blog, Adaptistration, found a financial model 
that provides the "value" of classical music blogs. Drew was nice to include our humble little site that, lo and behold, is valued at $22,017.06. I'm wondering what gave us the extra 6 cents worth of value. I'm also wondering what we need to do to reach the $220,000 value of the top-ranked Arts Journal. Suggestions?
Another article that caught my attention this week was Andrew Patner's Chicago Sun-Times column about the recent successes experienced by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Congratulations to CEO, Deborah Card, for her stewardship of Chicago's flagship classical music organization. Ticket sales are up, the budget is balanced for the first time in a long while, and the artistic product has been broadened to appeal to many new audience members.
Finally, we have some changes coming on this site very soon. We are working on a re-design of the site that will include some new and exciting functions (more about this in the future), we are saying goodbye to Steve Burkholder, our long-time Webmaster who is leaving us for some new opportunities (Thanks Steve!!), and we are welcoming a new Site Manager, Angela Golden, who will begin her work in just a few weeks (Welcome Angela!) and is the author of next week's blog.
That's it for today. Don't forget to send me suggestions on how to up our blog value.
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