The year 2023 means rebirth, iteration and reinvention for the global classical music scene. The development of science and technology has gradually changed the way of listening and creating, and the post-epidemic era has also brought new tests to the industry. Happily, the audience who loves ** is still cheering, and there are also young faces who continue to join the camp of classical music fans. In the world's top ** competitions, Asian faces have gradually become the favorite ...... to win
There is no doubt that this year is a year of development, although accompanied by the painful period of transformation, it still indicates a bright future for development. Let's take a look at each of the eight most representative trends of the year.
1**Attendance is gradually picking up.
After experiencing the terrible situation of the epidemic lockdown of performance venues, in 2023, major ** institutions will be able to resume offline performances across the board. According to statistics, although the attendance rate of major overseas performance venues has not caught up with the level before the epidemic, it has shown a recovery trend at the overall level. In the case of Carnegie** Hall in the United States, the average attendance for the 2022-2023 season was 89%, lower than the pre-pandemic 2018-2019 season (93%), and slightly higher than the figure at the beginning of the pandemic (88%)Broadway theaters in the United States have reached 12.3 million audiences in the 2022-2023 season, which is a change from the gloomy situation during the epidemic, but there is still a big gap compared to the pre-pandemic attendance situation.
There are also performance institutions that break the pre-pandemic attendance record in 2023: in September, the Salzburg Festival released its official statistics report for 2023, which showed that the attendance rate of this year's festival reached 98The record of 5% broke the box office record in its 103-year history. This is due to the multiple strategies of the Salzburg ** Festival in terms of marketing, as well as the excellent reputation that spans a century, which is worthy of reference by major theater groups and event organizers.
2 **Stream** becomes the new trend.
In 2023, **Flow** will usher in new changes, and many ** institutions around the world will launch Flow** services. The most representative event is the launch of Apple's official streaming app "Apple Music Classical" in March, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, London Symphony Orchestra and many other well-known orchestras announced their participationIn May, the Australian Chamber Orchestra announced the launch of its streaming platform, "ACO on Demand".In November, Carnegie cooperated with the Amazon film and television platform to launch a **stream** service called "Carnegie **Hall +".
In addition, the traditional record industry is beginning to adapt to the way it is heard. According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) 2023 Global ** Report released on March 21, there are now more than 58.9 billion paid** users, of which the revenue generated by the streaming ** platform accounted for 67% of the total revenue. In addition, Hyperion Records announced in July that it plans to upload all record sources to the streaming platformIn the same month, Naxos Records also granted the rights to its opera recordings to Amazon. It can be seen that the promotion of the best service has not only created huge benefits for the industry, but also broadened the marketing and communication channels of its products.
3. Top ** institutions receive large donations.
In 2023, a number of world-class top theater troupes have received a considerable amount of sponsorship funds to support the development of their leading performing arts careers. Among them, in February, the Houston Grand Opera received a donation of 22 million US dollars to support the theater's opera production;In March and April, the Cleveland Orchestra received donations of $7 million and $10 million, respectively, to support its educational programs and improve the operations of its centersIn May, the Salzburg** Festival in Austria received an all-time high donation of 12 million euros, which will be used to create a new glass art venueIn June, the Berklee Symphony Orchestra received $1.5 millionIn October, the Sarasota Opera House in the United States received a sponsorship of **60,000 US dollarsIn November, the Long Beach Opera House in Los Angeles received $1.25 million to prepare for a commemorative season ...... the opera house's 50th anniversary
The large donation has undoubtedly injected a boost into the ** organizations that have just survived the cold winter of the epidemic, indicating that their financial situation will improve in the coming year.
4 More than ** institutions have been closed or laid off.
For others, 2023 will be a difficult year. Many orchestras and performing arts institutions are facing the crisis of closure. In February, the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra was included in the list of closures by the Austrian State Broadcasting Company in order to save money. To this end, the orchestra launched an initiative to raise funds from the local crowd in Austria to tide over the crisis. In March, the BBC announced that it would cut one-fifth of its symphony positions in England. In May, the Manchester Ensemble, founded in 1991, was forced to disband due to the withdrawal of funding from Arts Council England. In August, the Icelandic Opera House was forced to announce the cessation of operations due to a reduction in funding. In September, Canada's Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, founded in 1945, filed for bankruptcy after 78 seasons of performances, citing "unprecedented post-pandemic operating costs". In October, the English National Opera cut 19 staff positions and required the remaining staff to sign part-time contractsSubsequently, Brabins, the director of the opera house, announced his resignation to express his decision on layoffs.
At the time of the crisis, some institutions relied on years of artistic reputation and public support to turn the tide through spontaneous initiatives, such as the singers of the British BBC broadcaster, who faced the risk of layoffs, but finally saved the day with the support of all partiesWhile some other ** institutions can only exit in the fierce industry competition in the post-epidemic era.
5**Record label mergers and acquisitions transformation.
In 2023, a number of record labels are facing transformation pressure, and some ** record brands are acquired by other ** companies. In March, Universal ** Group (UMG) announced the acquisition of Hyperion Records, a famous British classical label founded in 1980. In addition to Hyperion Records, the Universal** Group also has Deutsche Grammophon Records and Decca Records. In September, Apple announced the acquisition of Bis Records, a Swedish classical brand. Founded in 1973, the label is known for its high-quality classical repertoire. After the acquisition, the record label employees were able to remain with Apple and merge the company's music library resources into Apple's Classical** platform.
Under the general trend of the development of streaming technology and the change of the payment model, the merger and acquisition transformation of the record brand is a reshuffle of its adaptation to market rules, and it also indicates that more competitive labels will survive in this change of the times.
6 Asian faces win the top tournament.
In 2023, the faces of Asia's best players will be active in major global ** competitions and shine on the podium. On March 30, 18-year-old young Canadian Chinese pianist Kevin Chen won the gold medal at the 17th Rubinstein International Piano Competition, and 24-year-old Japanese young pianist Yukine Kuroki won the bronze medal in the competition. On June 4, 22-year-old South Korean baritone Taehan Kim won the Queen Elizabeth International** (Vocal) Competition. On June 10, Korean-American violinist Yeyeong Jenny Jin won first place at ......the 2023 Mike Hill International Violin CompetitionThese young, enthusiastic and talented artists have earned a place for the Asian American community in the classical music scene.
For a long time, composers and performers, both female and non-white, have faced exclusion or marginalization throughout classical history. In recent years, with the implementation of the concept of diversity and equality in the industry, the figure of Asian Americans has broken through the invisible "ceiling" and has been able to fully shine. This is also due to the high importance that Asian cultural groups attach to education, which not only adds a new audience to the Western-centric classical, but also improves the quality of talent training in this field.
7 Technology helps the hearing-impaired enjoy the music.
In 2023, an emerging technology called "vibration haptic sensing device" will enter the public eye, aiming to empower more hearing-impaired people to appreciate the beauty of ** through technology empowerment. In March, the Philharmonie de Paris announced a partnership with SoundX Technologies to launch vibrating haptic sensing technology for the 2023-2024 concert season, allowing hearing-impaired audiences to experience art through wearable devices. On July 22, the Mozart Festival Orchestra also used this technology to help hearing-impaired audiences enjoy the music at the outdoor event held at Lincoln Center in New York, USA, and also set up sign language interpreters to convey repertoire information to hearing-impaired audiences.
Coincidentally, during the Beijing International Festival in October 2023, the Beijing International Festival Art Association and the China Association for the Development of Hearing Medicine jointly held three public welfare activities of "Returning the Hearing Impaired to Theaters, Theaters and Cinemas", which used the hearing aid headset chat1 (omnidirectional sound theater auxiliary headset) developed by the team led by senior recording engineer Zhao Ping. This is also the world's first hearing aid earphone dedicated to helping the hearing-impaired solve the problem of listening. New technologies are benefiting the hearing-impaired in different technological ways, allowing them to enjoy a round of "fun" with ordinary people.
8 AI creations continue to cause copyright controversy.
With the development of science and technology, artificial intelligence (AI) composition technology has gradually been promoted in the field of science and technology. The popularization of this technology has high commercial value for film, television, game companies and advertisers. Because the use of AI composition technology can not only save high labor costs, but also simplify the complex process of copyright protection, and serve the customized communication function. However, while this technology provides convenience, it also brings controversy to the field of copyright, causing the global community to pay attention to the copyright of AI creation.
At the beginning of 2023, Global ** Group issued an article expressing its concern about the creation of artificial intelligence through copying and imitation, believing that if the legislative protection of original copyright is not strengthened, the market survival space of original ** will be infringed. In the UK, UK Music is also committed to opposing "AI undermining copyright". The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has partnered with a number of industry organizations to form a coalition called the Human Artistry Campaign to ensure that human culture and art are not threatened by the use of AI technology. The Grammy Awards, which have global influence, also limit the recognition of AI composition, accepting it as an auxiliary tool for creation, rather than replacing the status of people in creation.
In fact, the industry's attitude towards this technology has gone through a process of wait-and-see, resistance and gradual acceptance. In August 2023, the YouTube platform announced that it would jointly launch the "** Artificial Intelligence Incubator" with companies such as Global ** Group. Warner** Group has also gone from initial skepticism and opposition to now incorporating AI technology into the company's development plan. In September, Warner** also signed the first AI virtual idol singer Noonoouri. In 2024, will artificial intelligence compete for more living space for human composers?We can only wait and see.
Gu Yufei text.