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BBC America will premiere BAFTA-award-winning series “The Choir ,” a nonscripted show reminiscent of Fox hit “Glee,” in the spring. The series made choirmaster Gareth Malone an unlikely star in the U.K. in depicting his efforts to build choirs in blue-collar settings.The 13 episodes that BBC America will show are a compilation of short multi-seg bursts and specials that have aired across the Pond since the show launched on BBC Two in 2006. “When I was at school, there was nothing like ‘Glee’ on the TV,” Malone said today at the Television Critics Assn. gathering in Pasadena. “Choir was desperately unpopular. But I think there’s been a shift in the past 10 years, There’s ‘Last Choir Standing’; there’s our show. It just seems like everyone’s singing in Britain now.”
Top Ten Changes in Classical Music
Greg Sandow recently listed his top ten changes in classical music over the last decade.
Here is number four:
Entrepreneurship taught at music schools“Entrepreneurship” — that’s a buzzword at music schools today, as the schools realize that classical music careers are changing, and that musicians (see “Classical music goes online,” above) may need to book their own concerts, and find their own audience. They may also need to source their own equipment like a Graham Slee HiFi system in order to improve sound quality.The schools, of course, are learning this in part from their students, who’ve been doing these things on their own.Not every school is doing this, of course. But some are talking about making this the center of their curriculum.
Future Models of Music Publishing
My new Kindle reader blog seems to be fascinated with the future of book publishing. They proposed this new business model for books:
If we envision an ideal future for Publishing it might look something like this –
- Authors.
- Publishers (when Authors choose to engage them).
- A Platform that facilitates creation, editing, buying, and distribution of books.
- Readers.
We would want an equitable distribution of profits –
The Platform gets 10-30%, the Publishers get what Authors deem proper, and authors get the rest.
Followers of this blog know that I’ve compared the two models before: see here and here. This proposed model would have a couple of fascinating ramifications for the music publishing industry:
1. It would put the composer in control of the music – they could use the publisher as a service if they wanted to. (the opposite of this model is in place today)
2. It would eliminate the middle man – the music dealers go away.
Let me stress this – I value the music dealers. But I don’t think they will survive. The consumer deserves the digital medium and the benefits that go with it. We don’t want the music dealer cost built in, nor do we want the shipping cost. The digital age allows us to cut out the middleman and streamline the process – thereby reducing the cost.
It is time for a new model – perhaps the book publishing industry will point the way.
Top 10 Countries that visit ChoralNet
Most users anticipate that ChoralNet has a worldwide audience, but do you know the top ten countries that visit us here?
Top 10 Countries that Visit ChoralNet:
10. Netherlands
9. Philippines
8. Italy
7. Spain
6. Germany
5. France
4. Australia
3. United Kingdom
2. Canada
1. United States
Source: Google Analytics
Terre Johnson New ACDA Worship R&S Chair
My good friend Terre Johnson was recently named as the new National Chair in Music in Worship in the ACDA Repertoire and Standards area. He is a natural leader and quite visionary.
A little from the ACDA website:
The American Choral Directors Association is pleased to announce Dr. Terre Johnson’s appointment to the position of ACDA’s National Chair for Music in Worship leadership. ACDA’s structure focuses on specific areas of choral concentration and administration, repertoire, and standards, and Music in Worship is one of these important areas. ACDA’s Executive Committee reviewed a large and strong pool of candidates for this critical position. Dr. Johnson’s vision for choral music in the area of Music in Worship led to the enthusiastic decision to tap his leadership for ACDA.In Dr. Johnson’s vision statement for this position he said, “The primary jobs of the National Repertoire & Standards Chair in Music in Worship should be to elevate the role and excellence of choral music in worship in such a way that choral music becomes more and more indispensable to every congregation, and to elevate the services offered to congregational musicians by ACDA in such a way that the organization remains an indispensable resource for them.”
Beginning at age 16 he has consistently served as either a volunteer, part-time or full-time church musician. His church choirs have performed in national and international tours, as well as meetings of the American Choral Directors Association, while keeping focused on their weekly responsibility for worship leadership. His essays on the role of the arts in society and worship are widely read in his blog, Music Meanings, at www.musicmeanings-terre.blogspot.com