The Future of Classical Music

A very interesting article on the Classical music business.

The record label Naxos has gone from budget outsider to industry leader in its 20-plus years of existence. But what does the future hold for any record label at a time when CD sales are plummeting and dowloads are stagnant? Naxos’s founder and CEO, Klaus Heymann, is one of the most candid and straightforward executives in the business, and he’s tailored his long-term goals to the realities of today’s market; his goal, he says, is to be “the last man standing.” He spoke to me while in the States for marketing meetings about the Naxos’s future.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-classical-beat/2010/07/the_future_of_the_recording_in.html

Be sure to follow this link afterwards.

More music is being recorded and released than at any other point in history. Yet music copyright is completely insecure, and piracy rampant in the current climate. So what does that say about pro-copyright and anti-piracy initiatives?



A sticky debate indeed. One of the major reasons for copyright law is to ensure the continued creation of intellectual property. Yet more musicians are in the game than ever before, and music fans couldn't be happier with the abundance.

http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/stories/072710stand

Cheers, I think.

David Story

Children Today

I remember a time before computer games, cell phones, instant messaging, IPads, iPhones, Internet surfing, Youtube.com, inflated school grades, unlimited free downloadable musical files, and instant communications.

Instead, we had: wall-to-wall television, radio, telephones nailed to the wall, bootleg cassettes, top 40 charts, hippies with guitars.

Okay, we still have hippies with guitars, except we now call them singer songwriters. Same chords, same banal sincerity.

And, old folks still worry about young folks.

Teaching young folk when you are an old folk has always presented a few challenges. But, the basics remain. Teaching, inspiring, and succeeding with still children requires:


Confidence
Competence
Enthusiasm
Experience
Knowledge
Trust
Faith

Cheers,
David Story

Upcoming: more book reports on teaching