In response to my post last week on Stanford’s iTunes initiative, several folks wrote to tell me about arts organizations entering the on-line distribution business. Here are a few:
- The Gürzenich Orchestra in Germany offers concert-goers a CD of the performance as they leave the hall. They now make available the ”best versions” of the concert series on iTunes shortly thereafter.
- The Milwaukee Symphony is also offering live recordings on iTunes, through an alliance with a digital distributor (as covered by fellow blogger Drew McManus earlier this month).
- The Frist Center continues its experiments in podcasting with audio tours and interviews supporting the current exhibits.
Digital distribution agreements and homegrown podcasts are a giant step into the on-line world. Stanford, as can be expected, is about five steps beyond in terms of integration into the iTunes platform and in their own mission delivery. But it’s great to see a few brave arts organizations taking those steps.
