Musicians aren't getting paid well, but Spotify "pays most of its revenues from songs back to labels and artists and has rarely turned a profit. In 2019, the company announced a new focus on 'audio,' meaning recorded books, live chats, and the booming medium of podcasts." - The Atlantic
First, of course, you could just buy music. But if you're a streaming fan, there are a lot of other options, some of which even seem to pay musicians in a half-decent way. - Los Angeles Times
"The world’s three biggest music companies: Universal Music, Sony Music and Warner Music, control about three-quarters of the UK recording market, allowing them to strike increasingly advantageous deals with streaming companies." That's not good for smaller artists - or maybe consumers. - The Guardian (UK)
I think we can all agree that this system is not set up for independent artists with a growing fanbase. The benefits of this pay-out scale are designed for the established, mega-stars with millions, or even billions of streams. - Erie News Now
Opera demands engagement. It’s best if it accomplishes this by being creatively provocative or ravishing or infuriating, but as long as there's enough to mull over to defeat tedium then all’s square. The worst operas are the ones that inspire nothing but boredom in a captive audience that can’t change channels. - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Damn you, COVID-19! yet the good news is that 2020-21 season's shortfall, $6.3 million, is down by almost half from the previous season. And donations were up by 23%. Not too bad for an orchestra that played only 13 live-with-audience concerts. - The Star Tribune (Minneapolis)
“If you don’t have role models, it’s much harder to see yourself as a conductor – and there were male musicians who wouldn’t see themselves as conductors either.” - Irish Times
Calling out fellow songwriters for not writing their own material is bad form for musicians, particularly so given that the definition of songwriting has become ever more fluid over time, and depends greatly on the genre of music. - The Conversation
"I have spent the past two years immersed in writing a book about the man and his music. Beethoven’s most appealing feature is his progressive impetus, his need to flout precedent, to prick the pompous and kick the fools. The new AI confection is made by ticking digital boxes." - The Critic
"For decades, Barenboim and the Staatskapelle shared common interests. Now, 'til death do us part' has become a burden. Complicating the dynamics of this stagnant marriage is a third party: Berlin's Culture Department, … (seemingly) unable to intervene in the quagmire at the Staatsoper." - Van
The exodus of two-thirds of both administrative staff and board members — culminating in the resignation of music director Thomas Dausgaard — since the arrival of CEO Krishna Thiagarajan just over three years ago indicates a problem. What's happening now is not how a healthy organization would handle things. - Post Alley (Seattle)
The Orquesta Sinfónica Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho in Caracas is already the country's least conventional symphonic ensemble: they frequently perform in the barrios and regularly explore fusion with Afro-Caribbean music. Their most recent project, Sinfonía Desordenada (Disorderly Symphony), turned out to be, er, aptly named. - National Geographic
A majority (69%) of orchestras are planning a hybrid (digital and in-person) season for 2021-22. Once halls return to full capacity audiences, 45.9% of orchestras plan to continue some of the digital activity they’re doing... La Scena Musicale
Anna von Hausswolff can joke about it, but enraged demonstrators have actually shut down concerts of hers. All because a music blogger called her "the high priestess (of) satanic harmonies" and, in one track recorded 13 years ago, she sang "I made love with the devil." - The New York Times
