tag:theconversation.com,2011:/ca/topics/live-music-6586/articlesLive music – The Conversation2024-03-21T19:07:45Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2257882024-03-21T19:07:45Z2024-03-21T19:07:45ZFrom Taylor Sheesh to The Smyths: why tribute acts can no longer be considered just cheap copies<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/583341/original/file-20240321-21-xs1qer.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=25%2C25%2C5535%2C3676&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The tribute music scene has evolved time and again since it first emerged more than <a href="https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-rising-popularity-of-tribute-acts/">60 years ago</a>. </p>
<p>Beginning with Elvis impersonators, tribute acts garnered somewhat of a “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZpQFApy7Ng">grubby</a>” reputation through the 1970s and ’80s. They became synonymous with glitter, wigs, jumpsuits and elaborate stage props – frowned upon by anyone with an ounce of self-perceived integrity.</p>
<p>However, while these acts mainly existed as tributes to music no longer accessible, in recent years we’ve seen an increase in artists being tributed while they’re still active.</p>
<p>For the many Australian “Swifties” left <a href="https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/tours/tickets-for-taylor-swifts-australian-eras-tour-go-on-sale-again-today/news-story/a53ba279656c44514e0a1859ef0997a3">without tickets</a> for the recent Eras tour, tribute shows offered a financially viable alternative. Interstate fans who couldn’t embark on a “<a href="https://www.escape.com.au/escape-travel/taylor-swift-effect-travel-trend/news-story/281bec360b666889ef71a4939d169e9a">swiftcation</a>” could instead see Adelaide sister duo <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-13111777/Desperate-Taylor-Swift-fans-missed-pop-singers-Australian-Eras-Tour-snap-tickets-tribute-concerts.html">Reputation</a>. </p>
<p>In Melbourne, drag star <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-20/taylor-swift-eras-tour-recreated-by-taylor-sheesh/103490240">Taylor Sheesh</a> performed “The Errors Tour” for a crowd of thousands, while Taylor Swift performed about a kilometre away at the MCG. </p>
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<p>But while they say it’s the sincerest form of flattery, can tribute acts really come close to the “real thing”?</p>
<h2>A ‘real’ experience?</h2>
<p>It’s not only affordability and accessibility that make tribute shows appealing. Experiencing live music in a smaller, dedicated live music venue also provides audiences with a much more personal experience. </p>
<p>Perth-based Ed Sheeran tribute singer <a href="https://grandstandagency.com.au/joe-boshell/">Joe Boshell</a> said, as a fan, he would much rather experience his musical heroes in a more intimate setting. “Obviously these tributes are not the real guys but the sound can be better [at smaller venues],” he said. </p>
<p>“You feel like you’re at a gig rather than watching it from miles away on the [stage-side] TV screen.” </p>
<p>The experience at a stadium can sometimes feel detached and isolated. Not to mention, climate change and extreme weather events are making it <a href="https://theconversation.com/australian-music-festivals-are-increasingly-affected-by-climate-change-but-is-the-industry-doing-enough-to-mitigate-its-impact-225183">increasingly difficult</a> to hold large festivals and outdoor stadium concerts.</p>
<p>Smaller venues are usually indoors and offer easy access to the bar and toilets, liberating people of the conundrum of giving up a <a href="https://seattlespectator.com/2023/10/25/concert-culture-has-a-problem/">hard-earned vantage point</a> to relieve a bursting bladder.</p>
<p>At tribute shows, you can even initiate a dialogue with the <a href="https://books.google.nl/books?id=l5bkYhQJz_QC&printsec=frontcover&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false">band onstage</a>, or share a drink with them afterwards. They’re often happy to chat as fellow fans of the music – and don’t have to be whizzed off to a nearby hotel. </p>
<p>This experience surrounds you with friends, loved ones and like-minded individuals. Tribute events aren’t just a spectacle, but an immersive, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-09-23/tribute-acts-celebrate-music-of-their-idols-with-their-audience/102858838">participatory outlet</a>.</p>
<h2>Authenticity in imitation</h2>
<p>You might be wondering: should the original artist hold precedence when it comes to performing their music? </p>
<p>While it seems like a straightforward question, the answer isn’t always simple. As ageing rockers become distant from their original ethos, some argue they may as well be performing a <a href="https://books.google.nl/books?id=l5bkYhQJz_QC&printsec=frontcover&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false">tribute to their former selves</a>. </p>
<p>For example, Morrissey of fabled indie pop band The Smiths has little in common with his 1980s back catalogue that he still performs today. Many fans feel “<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/may/30/bigmouth-strikes-again-morrissey-songs-loneliness-shyness-misfits-far-right-party-tonight-show-jimmy-fallon">betrayed</a>” at his political transition from leftist torchbearer for disillusioned youths to an outspoken rightist provocateur. </p>
<p>Another consideration is that tribute acts aren’t just imitative; they have their own personality. </p>
<p>Graham Sampson, the lead singer of The Smiths tribute band, The Smyths, said their audiences desired a more individual performance. They want the band to “be themselves” rather than provide a “pantomime” version.</p>
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<h2>Impact on local music scenes</h2>
<p>Accessibility is a major factor contributing to the popularity of tribute scenes throughout Australia. Perth had more than 70 <a href="https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/wa/instant-replay-perths-80s-live-music-scene-reconnects-ng-b5c19ec2aaa8a87ceca549c0eda27089">ticketed tribute shows</a> dedicated to ska, punk and Britpop in 2022 alone – and as many as five tributes to Oasis over the past few years.</p>
<p>Tributes now jostle for space in a competing musical landscape, striving to prove their legitimacy as cultural ambassadors of music history. This competition is driven further by the fact that our love for old music is far from shrinking. In fact, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/01/old-music-killing-new-music/621339/">music of the past</a> increasingly dominates the music charts today.</p>
<p>At the same time, tributes reflect our society’s desire for streamlined consumption: getting what we want, when we want it. They are therefore a corrosive agent in local <a href="https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/wa/instant-replay-perths-80s-live-music-scene-reconnects-ng-b5c19ec2aaa8a87ceca549c0eda27089">original music scenes</a>. </p>
<p>An abundance of tribute shows gives fans a choice of what music they can experience on any given night, rather than having to “take a punt on an original band”, as one Perth promoter grimly said. </p>
<p>This is where tribute acts differ from “cover bands”. Cover bands play a mix of hits that appeal to a broad demographic, rather than targeting individual taste groups. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/holograms-and-ai-can-bring-performers-back-from-the-dead-but-will-the-fans-keep-buying-it-202431">Holograms and AI can bring performers back from the dead – but will the fans keep buying it?</a>
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<h2>The future of tributes</h2>
<p>Swedish rock band The Hives is now looking to <a href="https://pitchfork.com/news/the-hives-issue-call-for-cover-bands-saying-theyre-franchising-live-shows/">franchise tribute bands</a> across the globe (seemingly drawing on <a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/wiggles-how-did-four-ageing-australian-musicians-become-the-world-s-bestselling-preschool-act-2015154.html">The Wiggles’ blueprint</a>). We may be on the cusp of a new era where tribute shows can achieve commercial prominence. </p>
<p>In a similar vein, the Netherlands now has a tribute-based Battle of the Bands <a href="https://senalnews.com/en/content/talpas-the-tribute-battle-of-the-bands-garners-high-ratings-among-dutch-viewers">TV show</a>. And this isn’t a big leap from the 2005 reality TV show <a href="https://ultimateclassicrock.com/inxs-rock-star-show/">Rock Star: INXS</a>, in which contestants battled it out to replace deceased lead singer Michael Hutchence.</p>
<p>“Tributing” is undoubtedly dribbling into all areas of the music industry. We live in a world where The Rolling Stones continue to make <a href="https://www.musicradar.com/news/damon-albarn-rolling-stones">commercially successful music</a> that offers little more than a reminder of their younger years, and where <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/nov/02/the-beatles-now-and-then-review">AI is used to</a> reincarnate deceased musicians and release songs written decades ago.</p>
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<p>Clearly, tribute shows aren’t the sole contributors to a lack of forward propulsion in music. Perhaps, for the time being, we should focus on what they do offer: an affordable, accessible and intimate space to celebrate the music we love with others who love it, too.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225788/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Colin Outhwaite does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Perth has had as many as five tributes to Oasis in recent years. As large concerts get more expensive and inaccessible, tributes will become even more important.Colin Outhwaite, PhD Candidate, Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Edith Cowan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2251832024-03-13T01:35:19Z2024-03-13T01:35:19ZAustralian music festivals are increasingly affected by climate change. But is the industry doing enough to mitigate its impact?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/581150/original/file-20240312-24-cpokru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=20%2C0%2C3430%2C5178&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/man-performing-on-stage-OUm4v3mWzoc"> Maxwell Collins/Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Pitch Music and Arts Festival in Moyston, Victoria, <a href="https://www.noise11.com/news/pitch-festival-punters-warned-to-leave-ahead-of-fire-danger-20240309">was cancelled</a> while festival-goers were already on site this weekend, after an extreme fire danger warning was issued.</p>
<p>Cancellations like these have become all too familiar.</p>
<p>The live music and festival industry is currently struggling with <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-are-so-many-australian-music-festivals-being-cancelled-223559">significant challenges</a>, including expensive insurance premiums and the cost of living crisis impacting ticket sales. </p>
<p>In particular are the challenges associated with climate change, as extreme weather events becoming more frequent, severe and unpredictable.</p>
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<p>I looked at news reports over 2022 and 2023 and found at least 22 music festivals in Australia cancelled or disrupted due to extreme weather conditions.</p>
<p>This trend of weather-related interruptions appears to be on the rise: over the seven years between 2013 and 2019, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1329878X231184913">only ten music festivals</a> in Australia were affected by extreme weather.</p>
<p>Severe weather impacts on music festivals and concerts have ranged from delays and cancellations, to the evacuation of venues and areas mid-festival or mid-performance. This will be a growing challenge for the industry.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-is-transforming-australias-cultural-life-so-why-isnt-it-mentioned-in-the-new-national-cultural-policy-198881">Climate change is transforming Australia’s cultural life – so why isn’t it mentioned in the new national cultural policy?</a>
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<h2>Death, injury and cancellations</h2>
<p>This is not limited to Australia, and not all extreme weather-related events result in a cancellation. In my research, I also looked at where and why events were being cancelled in the United States, finding at least 21 cancellations in 2022–23. </p>
<p>I also found similar cases in <a href="https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/elton-john-concert-cancelled-amid-rain-fans-evacuated-from-mt-smart/DB2LP7S2DJEALFDUNT4LHTJBYQ/">New Zealand</a>, <a href="https://www.dancemusicnw.com/wildfire-bc-state-of-emergency-2023/">Canada</a>, <a href="https://news.sky.com/story/tiree-music-festival-cancelled-and-fans-stranded-in-ferry-terminal-during-extreme-weather-12916774">the United Kingdom</a>, <a href="https://accessaa.co.uk/primavera-sound-pulls-out-of-madrid-for-2024/">Spain</a> and <a href="https://edmmaniac.com/awakenings-cancels-storm-2023/">the Netherlands</a>.</p>
<p>In November, we saw the tragic death of a fan due to extreme heat at Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour <a href="https://theconversation.com/taylor-swifts-brazil-concert-was-hammered-by-extreme-heat-how-to-protect-crowds-at-the-next-sweltering-gig-218341">in Brazil</a>. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/taylor-swifts-brazil-concert-was-hammered-by-extreme-heat-how-to-protect-crowds-at-the-next-sweltering-gig-218341">Taylor Swift's Brazil concert was hammered by extreme heat. How to protect crowds at the next sweltering gig</a>
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<p>There were more than 100 hospitalisations following a hailstorm at a <a href="https://uk.movies.yahoo.com/movies/louis-tomlinson-devastated-hail-cancels-100600789.html">Louis Tomlinson concert</a> in Colorado last June. </p>
<p>At a Taylor Swift performance in Sydney, fans were <a href="https://x.com/10NewsFirstSyd/status/1760926131526726105?s=20">temporarily evacuated</a> and the show was delayed due to lightning strikes.</p>
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<p>In Australia, severe weather has recently led to the postponement of major events such as the abrupt ending to Sydney’s Good Things festival <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/sydney-music-festival-evacuated-as-wild-storm-sweeps-through-20231202-p5eok4.html">due to a storm</a> in December, and cancellation the of Strawberry Fields festival, scheduled for October 2022, due to <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-09-27/strawberry-fields-music-festival-cancelled-flooding/101477202">flooding in southern NSW</a>.</p>
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<p>Extreme weather events are <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/chapter/chapter-11/">closely linked</a> to climate change. This trend is likely going to get worse. Australia has witnessed a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969720340432">marked increase</a> in the intensity, frequency and duration of heatwaves over the past 67 years, with a significant uptick observed in recent decades.</p>
<h2>The environmental impact of festivals</h2>
<p>There has not yet been a comprehensive <a href="https://noco2.com.au/noco2-business-certification/carbon-footprint-carbon-audit/">carbon footprint audit</a> of the Australian music industry, but we do know how much music can contribute to carbon emissions through research in the UK.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://theface.com/music/music-industry-climate-change-touring-cop26-vinyl-carbon-emissions-nfts-festivals-streaming-the-1975-massive-attack-billie-eilish-coldplay-olivia-rodrigo">UK’s live music industry</a> produces 405,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually.</p>
<p>The primary sources of these emissions are audience travel, accounting for 43%, and the operations of live music venues, contributing another 23%. This means nearly three-quarters of industry’s emissions <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/5/1/014019">are linked</a> to live music performances. </p>
<p>The average touring DJ is <a href="https://theface.com/music/music-industry-climate-change-touring-cop26-vinyl-carbon-emissions-nfts-festivals-streaming-the-1975-massive-attack-billie-eilish-coldplay-olivia-rodrigo">responsible</a> for 35 tonnes of CO₂ a year – more than 15 times the personal <a href="https://www.flightnook.com/should-you-be-thinking-about-your-personal-carbon-budget">carbon budget recommended for individuals</a> and nearly eight times the average.</p>
<p>In 2019 alone, <a href="https://cleanscene.club/report.pdf">1,000 touring DJs</a> took more than 51,000 flights around the world, generating as much CO₂ as over 20,000 households. </p>
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<h2>Music festivals can make a change</h2>
<p>There are signs of a <a href="https://onimpact.com.au/music-industry-increasingly-considers-its-carbon-footprint/">growing consciousness</a> within the live music industry towards mitigating environmental impacts. </p>
<p>The UK’s live music sector has committed to reaching <a href="https://theface.com/music/music-industry-climate-change-touring-cop26-vinyl-carbon-emissions-nfts-festivals-streaming-the-1975-massive-attack-billie-eilish-coldplay-olivia-rodrigo">net-zero emissions</a> by 2030. </p>
<p>In Australia <a href="https://woodfordfolkfestival.com/about/environmental-statement/">Woodford Folk Festival</a> and <a href="https://www.womadelaide.com.au/news/2022/6/womadelaide-2022-sustainability-report">WOMADelaide</a> have banned single-use plastics and promote recycling to minimise waste.</p>
<p>The live music industry can reduce its environmental impact by adopting more renewable energy, and using sustainable transport options for artists <a href="https://www.sunshinecoast.qld.gov.au/news/caloundra-music-festival-transport-and-sustainability-options-unpacked">and audiences</a>. </p>
<p>Engaging audiences in sustainability efforts, such as <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10824-015-9265-2">incentivising carbon offset</a> contributions, can also amplify impact.</p>
<p>Other environmental concerns at festivals are less obvious but also important. Attendees often enjoy wearing glitter, not realising it is made of <a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2019/06/25/world/plastic-waste-emissions-music-festivals-intl/index.html">microplastics</a>. Switching to biodegradable glitter is a practical solution.</p>
<p>Festivals also see waste from abandoned <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-environmental-cost-of-abandoning-your-tent-at-a-music-festival-120198">low-quality camping gear</a>. These one-time-use tents and accessories contribute to environmental degradation and create waste management challenges. There needs to be more efforts in educating attendees on the importance of sustainable camping practices and encouraging the use of high-quality, reusable camping gear.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-environmental-cost-of-abandoning-your-tent-at-a-music-festival-120198">The environmental cost of abandoning your tent at a music festival</a>
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<p>Tree planting has emerged as a popular strategy for <a href="https://woodfordia.org/festivals/the-planting/">music festivals</a> and <a href="https://onetreeplanted.org/pages/coldplay">bands</a> to offset their carbon footprint and <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781315558189-12/greening-music-festival-scene-exploration-sustainable-practices-influence-youth-culture-joanne-cummings">contribute positively to the environment</a>. </p>
<p>Incorporating carbon offsets into ticket pricing or offering them as voluntary options presents strategy for festivals and artists to <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/AAM-10-2020-0046/full/html?casa_token=ty5KSvbHzEsAAAAA:AIUo7RQl5evieVT15IGullYqdybtx5aZPEujl1wCWpoGzZ8Uvi_D1WQ-yWXO_7oF5gnRGqJs2PJpsEE12ybR2CT-6kHc3sEwh2xjykJ7prbjEXqT46vq">mitigate their environmental impact</a>.</p>
<p>Challenges such as <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-are-so-many-australian-music-festivals-being-cancelled-223559">rising supply chain costs and the cost of living</a> are testing the viability of festivals. Amid these challenges, severe weather can introduce additional uncertainties. </p>
<p>It is important the event industry and festival-goers acknowledge their contributions to these escalating challenges, and take proactive steps towards greening music festivals.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225183/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Milad Haghani receives funding from the Australian Research Council (Grant No. DE210100440). </span></em></p>Cancellations of Australian music festivals, such as the abrupt end to Pitch Music Festival due to extreme heat, have become all too familiar.Milad Haghani, Senior Lecturer of Urban Mobility, Public Safety & Disaster Risk, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2235592024-02-15T05:09:08Z2024-02-15T05:09:08ZWhy are so many Australian music festivals being cancelled?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/575794/original/file-20240215-16-25r5i5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4265%2C2845&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://unsplash.com/photos/three-men-carrying-women-surrounded-by-many-people-during-daytime-74tlEYKgrBE">Jade Masri/Unsplash</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Regional touring festival Groovin’ The Moo has <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/triplej/news/groovin-the-moo-2024-cancelled/103464566">announced its cancellation</a> only eight days after placing tickets on sale, citing low <a href="https://www.gtm.net.au/">demand</a>. </p>
<p>A mainstay of the summer festival calendar, this follows a series of similar cancellations, including the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/may/17/falls-festival-2023-2024-music-cancelled-new-years-eve">2023 edition of Falls Festival</a>, <a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/valleyways-2024-third-aussie-music-festival-cancelled-amid-cost-of-living-pressures/be65eea0-0572-4e43-8c5d-1c9e3eb33335">ValleyWays</a>, <a href="https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/music-festivals/ruin-everything-coastal-jam-festival-scrapped-days-before-it-was-to-start/news-story/266f8eb315aa9b62544e483583582d3c">Coastal Jam</a> and <a href="https://7news.com.au/news/south-australian-festival-vintage-vibes-with-groove-armada-rudimental-postponed-c-13184043">Vintage Vibes</a>, and the “pausing” of Hobart’s iconic <a href="https://www.artshub.com.au/news/news/paused-in-part-but-not-cancelled-dark-mofo-announces-dates-2696718/">Dark Mofo</a> for 2024. </p>
<p>So why are we seeing so many Australian music festivals cancelled? And what will the future of festivals look like?</p>
<h2>Growing challenges for festivals</h2>
<p>The well-documented <a href="https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/more-than-half-of-australians-are-only-just-making-ends-meet">cost-of-living crisis</a> is an obvious culprit when it comes to low demand for festivals, as consumers cut down on expenses. </p>
<p>However, other factors are at play here. They include:</p>
<p><strong>1. Higher overheads</strong></p>
<p>Rapidly increasing overheads, such as <a href="https://themusic.com.au/industry/sooki-lounge-owners-public-liability-in-live-music-venues-killing-us-all/AHC-EhUUFxY/30-01-24">rocketing public liability insurance costs</a> for both venues and festivals alike, affect the viability of such events. </p>
<p>This problem began with the COVID pandemic, but extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change have <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-is-transforming-australias-cultural-life-so-why-isnt-it-mentioned-in-the-new-national-cultural-policy-198881">compounded these issues</a> as well as affecting the viability of outdoor summer music festivals. In 2022 alone, <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1329878X231184913">more than 20</a> Australian festivals were cancelled because of extreme weather.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-is-transforming-australias-cultural-life-so-why-isnt-it-mentioned-in-the-new-national-cultural-policy-198881">Climate change is transforming Australia’s cultural life – so why isn’t it mentioned in the new national cultural policy?</a>
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<p><strong>2. Slower sales</strong></p>
<p>Prior to the pandemic, concerns regarding the <a href="https://theconversation.com/crowded-house-how-to-keep-festivals-relevant-in-an-oversaturated-market-50760">oversaturation of the Australian festival market</a> were already starting to bite. Pre-COVID festival cancellations included the end of the Big Day Out after 20 years in 2014. The annual event <a href="https://theconversation.com/music-festivals-are-in-trouble-but-the-shows-must-go-on-21035">began to falter in the preceding years</a> due to issues that have compounded in the decade since.</p>
<p>As the pandemic eased and festival producers rushed back onsite, they have been faced with a fundamental shift in Australian cultural consumption habits, particularly among young people.</p>
<p>People are <a href="https://tixel.com/blog/ticketing-state-of-play">waiting longer</a> to buy tickets. 2023 was the first time in over a decade that Splendour in the Grass, Australia’s biggest single-ticket festival, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-07-19/splendour-in-the-grass-ticket-sales-down-by-30-per-cent/102620896">didn’t sell out within hours</a>. The trend towards delayed “commitment to purchase” is cause for concern among promoters, who rely on opening-day sales for momentum and capital.</p>
<p>This change can be understood as a response to the rolling cancellations of the pandemic, in combination with rising ticket prices, domestic financial pressures and <a href="https://theconversation.com/as-the-9-to-5-work-day-disappears-our-lives-are-growing-more-out-of-sync-125800">busy schedules</a>. It is increasingly normal to look for second-hand tickets at reduced prices as an event approaches. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/crowded-house-how-to-keep-festivals-relevant-in-an-oversaturated-market-50760">Crowded house: how to keep festivals relevant in an oversaturated market</a>
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<p><strong>3. Youth avoidance</strong></p>
<p>Industry observers are concerned about a drop in youth attendance. Young people who came of age during COVID missed their <a href="https://theconversation.com/no-festivals-no-schoolies-young-people-are-missing-out-on-vital-rites-of-passage-during-covid-145097">key festival-going years</a> and may now have moved on to other cultural experiences – followed by younger siblings. This emphasises the long cultural tail of an event like the pandemic.</p>
<p>The cost-of-living crisis especially affects young people, the core audience for festivals like <a href="https://themusicnetwork.com/groovin-the-moo-on-track-to-sell-out/">Groovin’ the Moo</a>. The majority of under-35s say financial pressure is limiting their <a href="https://creative.gov.au/advocacy-and-research/audience-outlook-monitor/">attendance at arts events</a>. </p>
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<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/no-festivals-no-schoolies-young-people-are-missing-out-on-vital-rites-of-passage-during-covid-145097">No festivals, no schoolies: young people are missing out on vital rites of passage during COVID</a>
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<p><strong>4. The consolidation of taste</strong></p>
<p>While “variety” festivals such as Groovin’ the Moo and Falls Festival – which feature diverse, multi-genre lineups – are struggling, genre-specific festivals and major artist tours continue to perform well. </p>
<p>These include metal and hard rock festivals such as Good Things Festival and Knotfest, and major recent tours by Queens of the Stone Age, Pink, Blink-182 and, of course, Taylor Swift. The media industry and the music industry specifically are experiencing the effects of an <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2019/dec/28/overload-ambush-and-isolation-the-decade-that-warped-popular-culture-simon-reynolds">increasing siloing and consolidation of taste within specific niches</a>, exacerbated by the digitisation of media via highly curated streaming platforms. </p>
<p>Perhaps “variety” music festivals are heading the same way as <a href="https://themusic.com.au/features/the-ultimate-gig-reflecting-on-big-day-out-10-years-after-the-last-iteration-of-the-festival/xLR61tnY29o/02-02-24">the Big Day Out</a>. The struggles of festivals historically backed by Triple J (such as Groovin’ the Moo and Falls) may reveal the national youth broadcaster’s loosening grip on relevance and its inability to appeal to a broad audience in an increasingly hyper-curated media environment. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/i-almost-feel-like-stuck-in-a-rut-how-streaming-services-changed-the-way-we-listen-to-music-219967">'I almost feel like stuck in a rut’: how streaming services changed the way we listen to music</a>
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<h2>Is this anything new?</h2>
<p>The factors influencing the success of a given festival are complex, as illustrated by the case of Groovin’ the Moo. The Newcastle date <a href="https://www.newcastleherald.com.au/story/8512368/groovin-the-moo-2024-newcastles-first-tickets-sell-out/">sold out in less than an hour</a>, with <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C2_XsVoLQ04/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D">reports</a> of strong early sales for the Sunshine Coast edition, yet the overall tour was deemed unable to proceed. </p>
<p><a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/cjas.1659">Uncertainty is inherent in the music business</a>, where an oversupply of product meets a market driven by the vagaries of taste. </p>
<p>Festival programmers must “<a href="https://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/culture/music/2024/01/31/how-are-australian-music-festivals-choosing-their-headliners">forecast</a>” what will draw a crowd, booking performers up to a year in advance. However, mega-crises, such as the pandemic, climate change and financial shocks, create deeper uncertainties that fundamentally challenge business as usual. </p>
<p>Uncertainty poses a profound threat to live music in particular, which depends on advance planning and investment, with its returns and benefits hinging on the controlled realisation of future events. </p>
<p>Too much uncertainty also stifles innovation and diversity, as the large <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/the-overseas-giants-swallowing-australia-s-live-music-industry-20221026-p5bt01.html">multinationals</a> that dominate the music industry are better able to withstand its effects.</p>
<p>Music festivals are a leading site of Australia’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/creative-country-98-of-australians-engage-with-the-arts-80145">engagement</a> with the arts, with significant <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781315596778/music-festivals-regional-development-australia-chris-gibson-john-connell">social and economic benefits</a>. They have also become a focal point for a range of societal challenges, from economic to environmental crises. Sustaining a vibrant, diverse and accessible festival sector will require these challenges to be confronted. </p>
<p>The age of deep uncertainty isn’t going away. For Australia’s diverse festival landscape to survive we need to find new ways – such as financial buffers, government-backed insurance schemes, big ticket levies, tariffs on major international tours, and climate action and mitigation – to ride and survive this uncertainty.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/223559/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sam Whiting receives funding from Creative Australia and the Australasian Performing Right Association.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ben Green receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Australasian Performing Right Association.</span></em></p>Groovin’ the Moo is the latest in a long line of Australian music festivals to be cancelled. It is the new normal in our age of ‘deep uncertainty’.Sam Whiting, Lecturer - Creative Industries, University of South AustraliaBen Green, Research Fellow, Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2229982024-02-12T19:10:39Z2024-02-12T19:10:39Z6 tips to maximise your concert experience, from a live music expert<p>Stadium concert attendance is on the rise in Australia. This month, more than one million people are expected see P!NK and Taylor Swift on their Australian tours, which quickly sold out the country’s biggest stadiums. Both artists <a href="https://celebrity.nine.com.au/latest/pink-announces-new-australian-shows-and-tones-and-i-as-support-act/b7fb5635-5dff-49d7-b178-669d651dceaf">added extra dates</a> to meet demand, following extended runs by Ed Sheeran and Foo Fighters in 2023.</p>
<p>What’s drawing such massive crowds to these events? And how can you maximise your fun (in a safe way) when sharing a space with 100,000 other people?</p>
<h2>What’s behind the concert boom?</h2>
<p>State governments have begun to lift decades-old limits on large stadium concerts. Event caps have gone from six to 12 events <a href="https://statements.qld.gov.au/statements/96688">per year at Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium</a>, and from four to 20 events <a href="https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/sydney-lifts-its-cap-on-fun">per year at the Sydney Cricket Ground precinct</a>. The press releases from both of these announcements trumpeted the benefits for tourism and local economies. </p>
<p>Australia’s live music <a href="https://reports.liveperformance.com.au/ticket-survey-2022/index.html#/">attendance and revenue doubled</a> in the decade prior to the COVID pandemic, attracting about half the <a href="https://theconversation.com/creative-country-98-of-australians-engage-with-the-arts-80145">country’s adult population</a>. Large international events contributed significantly to this. </p>
<p>This popularity continues, with ticket prices rising amid a cost-of-living crisis. <a href="https://www.commbank.com.au/articles/newsroom/2023/05/cost-of-living-commbank-iq.html">Consumer research</a> shows people under age 35, and the one-third of Australians who rent their homes, have made the biggest reductions in discretionary spending. But the overall trend is towards saving week-to-week and “splurging” on big events <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/jul/16/cost-of-living-crisis-australia-spending-habits-relief">such as concerts</a>.</p>
<h2>The ‘peak music experience’</h2>
<p>Live music is a space where extraordinary things happen. We can celebrate who we are and what’s important to us, individually and collectively. We can have intense feelings and express them in uncommon ways, exploring different – or “more real” – versions of ourselves. </p>
<p>All of this creates memorable experiences that resonate deeply with us and keep us coming back time and again. I call these “peak music experiences”. <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Peak-Music-Experiences-A-New-Perspective-on-Popular-music-Identity-and/Green/p/book/9780367553852">My research</a> drawing on in-depth interviews with music lovers, media analysis, and participant observation identifies common elements of the peak live music experience. </p>
<p>With that in mind, here are six things to help you get the most out of your next concert.</p>
<p>1. <strong>Company</strong></p>
<p>A crucial factor in any concert experience is whom we share it with. The heightened feeling and expression that live music enables can create powerful moments that sociologists call “<a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0038038514565835?journalCode=soca">epiphanies</a>”. Epiphanies reveal and encapsulate what specific people mean to each other. </p>
<p>So when tickets go on sale, and you’re considering whom to call, remember your choice can elevate your concert experience – and your relationship with that person or group.</p>
<p>2. <strong>Venue</strong> </p>
<p>Music is inseparable from its setting. In live music, this is a feature. Concert halls and dive bars are perfect settings for certain types of experience. But if you’re seeing one of the world’s biggest acts, where better to do so than a giant cauldron of humanity under the stars? </p>
<p>Stadiums have drawbacks, mostly related to their sheer scale and associated logistics. But the journey, the waiting, the challenges, and especially the fellow travellers, often contribute to the unpredictable magic of live music. So plan ahead and leave plenty of time, but also enjoy the whole ride! </p>
<p>3. <strong>Sound</strong> </p>
<p>Live music doesn’t just sound different than music in your loungeroom; it <em>feels</em> different. High volume, as much as the mass movement of bodies, makes live music a physical experience. <a href="https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2019/04/the-best-place-to-stand-at-a-concert-according-to-a-sound-engineer/">Experts suggest</a> the best sonics are in front of the mixing desk, off-centre and not too close to the stage – but this must be balanced with the view! It’s a good idea to pack ear plugs in case your <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5187664/">ears need a rest</a>.</p>
<p>4. <strong>Presence</strong></p>
<p>A good live show requires the performer to be present, not just physically but also emotionally. This is where we judge their authenticity or “realness”. This isn’t an objective quality, but a reflection of our personal tastes and values. Do you prefer flawless virtuosity or relatable vulnerability? </p>
<p>Such notions are deeply ingrained in us. So when choosing a concert, consider how it might confirm or challenge your ideals. Both can be good! And don’t forget to <a href="https://time.com/6282468/taylor-swift-concert-memory/">be present yourself</a>.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/574817/original/file-20240212-18-j6wpk1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A good performer ensures they have strong presence throughout their show.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
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<p>5. <strong>Fandom</strong> </p>
<p>Concerts aren’t just about enjoying and judging the performer(s); they’re also about us. The costly pilgrimage and elaborate ritual to celebrate <em>this very specific thing you love</em>, surrounded by people who love it too, helps join the dots of our fragmented lives. </p>
<p>Just getting to see a favourite artist or song is the source of many people’s peak music experiences. The moral: if it’s an act you really love, always go if you can.</p>
<p>6. <strong>Collective feeling</strong></p>
<p>Have you noticed the moment when a roaring crowd becomes aware of itself and roars a bit louder? Live music is about more than just the artist, their performance, or even us. It’s also about other people. <br></p>
<p>Music synchronises not only our actions but our subjective experience. We <em>feel together</em>, whether in rapt silence or wild abandon. We become a part of something greater – especially at massive concerts with crowds in the tens of thousands. So my tip: join in.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="TiktokEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.tiktok.com/@coldplayaccess/video/7260241090488421638?is_from_webapp=1\u0026sender_device=pc\u0026web_id=7247360749801375234"}"></div></p>
<h2>Safety and sustainability</h2>
<p>Finally, don’t forget to keep safe. Australia’s love of outdoor events exposes us to extremes, which are a <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-is-transforming-australias-cultural-life-so-why-isnt-it-mentioned-in-the-new-national-cultural-policy-198881">growing reality</a>. Taylor Swift’s recent Brazilian concerts coincided <a href="https://theconversation.com/taylor-swifts-brazil-concert-was-hammered-by-extreme-heat-how-to-protect-crowds-at-the-next-sweltering-gig-218341">with a heat wave</a> with tragic consequences, highlighting the responsibility of event organisers. </p>
<p>You can manage risks by making plans in advance, knowing your limits, and considering important information such as the availability of water, food, safe spaces and venue exits. Event organisers should provide this information. </p>
<p>The music industry and governments are also beginning to address issues of <a href="https://theconversation.com/60-of-women-and-non-binary-punters-and-artists-feel-unsafe-in-melbournes-music-spaces-205399">sexual harassment</a>, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/theconversationhour/the-conversation-hour/102042402">accessibility</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/pill-testing-really-does-reduce-the-risk-of-harm-for-drug-users-181778">drug safety</a> and diverse representation, with a view to making the live music experience available and equitable for all. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/throwing-things-on-stage-is-bad-concert-etiquette-but-its-also-not-a-new-trend-210717">Throwing things on stage is bad concert etiquette – but it's also not a new trend</a>
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</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222998/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ben Green receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Australasian Performing Right Association.</span></em></p>With ticket prices rising alongside demand, live concerts can be a major investment.Ben Green, Research fellow, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2223442024-02-01T20:56:00Z2024-02-01T20:56:00ZBilly Joel is back for an encore − but why did he wait so long to turn the lights back on?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572856/original/file-20240201-25-d4htz6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=282%2C89%2C2582%2C1773&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Joel performs at New York City's Madison Square Garden in 2015.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/billy-joel-performs-madison-square-garden-on-january-9-2015-news-photo/461257302?adppopup=true">Myrna Suarez/WireImage via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>With the flip of a digital switch, Billy Joel fans have their first new song in 17 years, “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hexZ5hwia08">Turn the Lights Back On</a>.” </p>
<p>It has all the markers of a classic Joel ballad: the rhythm and rolling chords of “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cx3QmqV2pHg">She’s Always a Woman</a>,” the plea to accept someone “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaA3YZ6QdJU">Just the Way You Are</a>,” the percussive bass and snare of “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVlDSzbrH5M">The Downeaster ‘Alexa</a>.’” There’s even a lick in the piano solo some may recall from “<a href="https://youtu.be/izzM9LXqP-U?si=iyl52C5sQqYD6W9m&t=168">Scenes from an Italian Restaurant</a>” – much slower, yes, but we should all be so lucky to be making new music into our 70s. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hexZ5hwia08?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The official lyric video for Billy Joel’s ‘Turn the Lights Back On.’</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But what does it all add up to? Does this mean that Billy Joel is back? Did he ever go away?</p>
<p>In my scholarship, I explore <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/arranging-gershwin-9780199978380">the legacy of musicians</a> – how their music reverberates and transforms over time, long after the works themselves came into the world.</p>
<p>What makes Joel such an interesting case study is his active role in shaping the life of music that he composed long ago.</p>
<p>Typically, the legacy of an artist of Joel’s stature comes into view after they pass away. But Joel has been in the “legacy making” phase of his career longer than the entirety of many other musician’s careers.</p>
<h2>Creative hibernation</h2>
<p>Between 1970 and 1993, Joel released a new album every 12 to 16 months, composing more than 120 songs. </p>
<p>But he hasn’t released a new album of popular music since 1993’s “River of Dreams.” That album concluded with a song titled “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEtcu-l9wDo">Famous Last Words</a>,” a straightforward rock song with a chorus that repeatedly intones, “These are the last words I have to say.” </p>
<p>From a distance, his fans came to understand this as a retirement from churning out hit albums. Since then, Joel – as timeless as some of his songs might be – has largely been an artist locked in time. </p>
<p>Even though he long ago quit recording new music, Joel has continued to fill stadiums. He toured “Face to Face” with Elton John for several years, and in 2014 he began a monthly residency at Madison Square Garden. That run will conclude <a href="https://www.billyjoel.com/news/billy-joel-announces-final-show-of-madison-square-garden-residency/">when he plays his 150th performance</a> in the iconic venue in July 2024. </p>
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<img alt="A man smiles and faces another man wearing black glasses who's howling with laughter." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572922/original/file-20240201-27-lsl8j9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/572922/original/file-20240201-27-lsl8j9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572922/original/file-20240201-27-lsl8j9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572922/original/file-20240201-27-lsl8j9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572922/original/file-20240201-27-lsl8j9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572922/original/file-20240201-27-lsl8j9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/572922/original/file-20240201-27-lsl8j9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=623&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Billy Joel and Ray Charles share a laugh in 1993, the year Joel released ‘River of Dreams,’ his most recent album of new music.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/billy-joel-and-ray-charles-during-songwriters-hall-of-fame-news-photo/105403617?adppopup=true">Ron Galella/Getty Images</a></span>
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</figure>
<p>These continual live performances have both extended the longevity of his songs and have allowed new generations to discover and enjoy his back catalog.</p>
<p>He’s sold <a href="https://www.billyjoel.com/biography/">more than 150 million albums</a>. Box sets, anthologies and special collector’s editions have long been a way to maintain and capitalize on an artist’s legacy – look no further than the steady line of <a href="https://variety.com/2022/music/reviews/the-beatles-revolver-deluxe-box-album-review-1235417007">50th anniversary reissues released by The Beatles</a>. In the absence of new music, Columbia Records has worked to maintain Joel’s presence by releasing Joel’s “Greatest Hits: Volume III” (1997) and “My Lives” (2005). </p>
<h2>A star’s last hurrah?</h2>
<p>Now it’s 2024, and Joel has been creatively dormant longer than he was active. </p>
<p>So what’s he doing with “Turn the Lights Back On”? Could a new compilation be in the works?</p>
<p><a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781793601810/">I’ve written elsewhere</a> about the arrangement of Joel’s life and career through greatest hits compilations.</p>
<p>To encourage the purchase of these compilations, they’re usually accompanied by the release of new material, whether it’s something from the archives that never made it onto one of his prior albums, or – on special occasions – <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Make_You_Feel_My_Love">a brand-new song</a>.</p>
<p>But in a streaming era replete with <a href="https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2WgQ96x6mlX6RMS2yuSmvp">accessible and customizable playlists</a>, promoting a forthcoming album doesn’t seem to be the motivation here. </p>
<p>Rather, Joel seems to be taking a cue from The Beatles. </p>
<p>Last November, they released “<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-now-and-then-really-a-beatles-song-the-fab-four-always-used-technology-to-create-new-music-216981">Now and Then</a>,” which was marketed as “the last Beatles song.” One month later, Joel wryly suggested during a Madison Square Garden residency concert that he might have something in the pipeline. The news spread via <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@billyjoel/video/7314822303660051758">his first-ever post to TikTok</a>.</p>
<p>In some ways, like “Now and Then,” the release of “Turn the Lights Back On” is a once-in-a-lifetime event – particularly for his younger fans. </p>
<p>Indeed, for millions of people this will be the first time many will have ever had the privilege of hearing a new song by an artist they’ve long admired. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IxMN3cW8DU">In the teaser video announcing this new song</a> on Jan. 22, 2024, you literally see Joel turn the page for this next chapter in his career. If you pay close attention, the page he flips is a waterlogged set of lyrics for “Famous Last Words.” </p>
<p>He’s making good on the promise of the lyrics from that song: “There will be other words some other day, Ain’t that the story of my life?”</p>
<p>Back in the 1990s, he got out of the business of making records <a href="https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/the-reason-why-billy-joel-stopped-writing-songs/">because he was in a rut</a>. It’s possible that the years hence haven’t been as fulfilling as he’d hoped.</p>
<p>Does “Turn the Lights Back On” hint at what comes next? Is this Joel ready to share new music with the world again? Or is it a wistful plea from a baby boomer artist to be remembered as his star dims? </p>
<p>Perhaps trying to derive meaning is beside the point. As he declares toward the end of the song, “I’m here right now.” </p>
<p>Maybe that’s all any of his fans can ask for.</p>
<p><em>This article has been updated to correct the years that have passed since Joel’s last new song. It’s been 17 years, not 15 years.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/222344/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ryan Raul Bañagale does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>In 1993, Joel sang, ‘These are the last words I have to say.’ What changed?Ryan Raul Bañagale, Associate Professor and Chair of Music, Colorado CollegeLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2212602024-01-22T16:32:50Z2024-01-22T16:32:50ZFour ways AI will impact music, from Elvis holograms to interactive soundscapes<p>In the heart of London, a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/jan/04/elvis-evolution-hologram-show-london-premiere">new kind of show</a> is unfolding. Elvis Presley, the king of rock ‘n’ roll, is to take to the stage once more – not in flesh and blood of course, but as a <a href="https://www.respeecher.com/blog/holograms-real-life-technology-works-industry-use-cases">hologram</a>. This spectacle, titled <a href="https://elvis.layeredreality.com/">Elvis Evolution</a>, is more than just a concert and offers a distinct experience from the likes of Abba’s digital avatars: it’s a testament to how artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping our experience of music and performance. </p>
<p>Unlike the <a href="https://abbavoyage.com/">Abba Voyage</a> hologram show, which primarily focuses on delivering a high-tech concert experience, Elvis Evolution aims to provide an <a href="https://news.sky.com/story/ai-elvis-presley-to-star-on-uk-stage-for-first-time-with-never-seen-before-performances-13041602">immersive journey</a> into Elvis’s life. It will feature interactive sets and multi-sensory elements to transport the audience back in time.</p>
<p>While Abba Voyage uses <a href="https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/abba-voyage-behind-the-scenes-secrets_uk_6290de90e4b0cda85dbdf503">motion-capture technology</a> for highly detailed avatars, Elvis Evolution will employ AI-generated animation for a more flexible and dynamic performance, potentially featuring different eras of Presley’s career.</p>
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<p>Crucially, this AI-powered Elvis offers the possibility of real-time interaction with the audience, unlike the prerecorded nature of Abba Voyage. This means that while both shows are remarkable in their own right, Elvis Evolution will offer a broader exploration of an artist’s life and career – a unique, multi-sensory holographic experience.</p>
<p>The application of AI in holographic projection is not an entirely recent development – indeed, this technology has been utilised for some years now. A notable example is the DJ Eric Prydz, who has been <a href="https://www.livedesignonline.com/news/eric-prydz-holo-stuns-holographic-3d-fx-powered-by-avolites-ai">incorporating AI-driven holographic projections</a> into his electronic dance music performances for more than 15 years.</p>
<p>But the Elvis hologram show serves as an impressive demonstration of AI’s capability to resurrect iconic artists more and more realistically. Utilising AI in conjunction with holographic projection, technicians and artists are able to forge an almost tangible representation of revered entertainers who are now long gone.</p>
<p>This method involves a detailed analysis of thousands of photographs and videos, enabling a recreation that captures the true spirit of the artist. This isn’t just a trip down memory lane – it’s a leap into a new era where technology bridges the gap between past and present, allowing fans to relive concerts that were once just a fleeting moment in time.</p>
<p>But how else will the rapidly accelerating technology of AI affect music and performance? </p>
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<h2>1. AI in music production</h2>
<p>Transitioning from the stage to the studio, AI’s role in music production is equally ground-breaking. As an <a href="https://www.siliconindia.com/news/general/ai-scientist-somdip-dey-aka-intelidey-breaks-ground-with-his-first-melodic-deep-house-release-warning-nid-225637-cid-1.html">AI music producer</a>, I have experienced firsthand how these algorithms can compose, create unique sounds and even foresee music trends.</p>
<p>AI tools analyse vast amounts of music data to learn patterns and styles, enabling them to generate compositions in any genre. This <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/a-window-to-the-tech-world/generative-ais-crescendo-in-music-production/">technology</a> is not just a tool, it’s a collaborator, opening doors to new soundscapes and musical possibilities.</p>
<h2>2. The future of live performance</h2>
<p>Beyond holograms, AI is poised to transform live performances in ways we’ve only begun to imagine. Picture a concert where the music adapts in real-time to the mood of the audience, or where immersive soundscapes change based on real-time interactions. </p>
<p>These AI-driven experiences promise to make live shows more dynamic and responsive, offering a level of personalisation that goes beyond a one-size-fits-all performance.</p>
<h2>3. Ethical and creative implications</h2>
<p>The use of AI to resurrect artists for posthumous performances sparks a profound ethical debate. This dilemma centres on the question: is it ethical to “resurrect” artists for performances they never consented to? </p>
<p>On the one hand, these technological marvels allow fans to relive the magic of legendary performers, creating new experiences with historical figures. On the other, it raises concerns about consent, authenticity and the moral rights of those who are no longer here to voice their opinions.</p>
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<p>Addressing these ethical dilemmas involves a multifaceted approach. First, the consent of the artist’s estate is critical. This includes respecting the wishes of the family and the legal entities that manage the artist’s legacy. However, legal consent is just one aspect. There’s also a moral responsibility to stay true to the artist’s style, ethos and message. This means not just recreating an artist’s likeness but capturing the essence of their artistry in a way that honours their legacy.</p>
<p>Another layer to this debate is the authenticity of the experience. While AI and holographic technology can create visually and sonically accurate representations, they cannot encapsulate the spontaneous, human nuances that defined many great performers. Preserving the integrity of the original performances becomes essential. It’s about striking a balance between innovation and respect, ensuring these recreations do not distort or oversimplify the artist’s contributions to their art.</p>
<p>So crucially, there’s a creative responsibility that comes with using AI in this context. It should be about more than just replicating past performances. These concerts should also explore how these artists might have evolved or collaborated with contemporary talents. </p>
<p>This approach not only pays homage to the artists’ past works but also imagines their potential future contributions, blending historical influence with modern creativity.</p>
<h2>4. Audience engagement</h2>
<p>Finally, AI is revolutionising how audiences engage with music. From virtual reality concerts offering a 360-degree sensory experience to <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2023/12/14/spotify-confirms-test-of-prompt-based-ai-playlists-feature/">AI-curated playlists</a> that understand our preferences better than we do, the future of music is not just about listening, it’s about experiencing. We are moving towards a world where music is not just heard but felt and lived in ways that transcend traditional boundaries.</p>
<p>As we stand at the crossroads of technology and creativity, the possibilities are as limitless as our imagination. The Elvis hologram show is just the beginning of the future of AI-led concerts. In this new landscape, AI is not just a tool – it’s a canvas, a stage and a new voice in the chorus of musical innovation.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=600&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/536131/original/file-20230706-17-460x2d.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=754&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<p><em>Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/newsletters/something-good-156">Sign up here</a>.</em></p>
<hr><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/221260/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Somdip Dey does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Thanks to AI, the future of music is not just about listening, it’s about experiencing.Somdip Dey, Embedded Artificial Intelligence Scientist & AI Music Producer, University of EssexLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2107172023-08-10T19:59:32Z2023-08-10T19:59:32ZThrowing things on stage is bad concert etiquette – but it’s also not a new trend<p>The recent spate of <a href="https://www.today.com/popculture/music/fans-throwing-objects-concerts-trend-2023-rcna93631">incidents</a> where objects have been thrown at musicians by people who paid to see them perform has generated comment, consternation and condemnation on media both mainstream and social.</p>
<p>One <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/cardi-b-police-report-microphone-las-vegas-rcna97344">recent case</a> involved liquid being thrown on stage during a performance by American rapper Cardi B. The singer retaliated by throwing her microphone into the crowd. Media accounts suggest the incident has resulted in a police complaint filed by someone in the audience.</p>
<p>With mobile phones, soft toys, flower arrangements and even <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2023/06/27/pink-concert-fan-throws-ashes-on-stage/70359893007/">cremains</a> raining down on the world’s most famous musicians, commentators and celebrities alike predict injury and interruption are inevitable. </p>
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<h2>Why has concert etiquette been forgotten?</h2>
<p>“Have you noticed how people are, like, forgetting fucking show etiquette at the moment?” <a href="https://themusic.com.au/news/adele-will-f-cking-kill-you-if-you-throw-anything-at-her-while-she-s-on-stage/LQCTISAjIiU/05-07-23">pointed out singer Adele</a> recently.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2023/07/11/concert-fan-bad-behavior">Some scholars</a> see this trend as a consequence of the suspension of live performances during COVID-19. The idea being that audiences – particularly those made up of large crowds – are out of practice when it comes to concert etiquette. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.rmit.edu.au/news/media-releases-and-expert-comments/2023/July/fans-throwing-things-at-artists">Others suggest</a> the behaviour represents an attempt by fans to interact with the performers they love and achieve status within fan communities through viral social media content.</p>
<p>It’s also possible we’ve overstated this phenomenon and that ravenous media, hungry for stories and scandal, are interpreting unrelated events as a trend. Motivation, for example, differs markedly. </p>
<p>The devoted fan who <a href="https://www.today.com/popculture/music/harry-styles-hit-face-concert-vienna-rcna93333">threw a rose at Harry Styles</a> is clearly not in the same category as the <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/bebe-rexha-stitches-hit-cell-phone-1234774163/">man who hit Bebe Rehxa</a> in the face with his mobile phone “because it would be funny”. </p>
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<h2>Throwing things historically</h2>
<p>Additionally, none of these incidents are without historical precedent. </p>
<p>Whether a bouquet of flowers <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292498073_The_operatic_event_Opera_houses_and_opera_audiences">tossed to an opera singer</a> to communicate delight at their performance or a story of <a href="http://journals.ed.ac.uk/forum/article/view/642">rotten fruit hurled at performers</a> to convey disdain at a disastrous opening night, history shows throwing things at live performances is nothing new. </p>
<p>Just as the social status of musicians has changed over time (in the late 18th century top-rank musicians gradually transitioned from <a href="https://www.perlego.com/book/801073/music-art-and-performance-from-liszt-to-riot-grrrl-the-musicalization-of-art-pdf">servants to celebrities</a>), so too has concert etiquette. Concert etiquette is a <a href="https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/978-3-319-99166-5_1?pdf=chapter%20toc">manifestation of the social contracts</a> that exist between musicians and their audiences. These are in a constant state of flux and differ wildly over time, place, style and genre. </p>
<p>For example, were I to attend the opera this weekend and spend the evening chatting to those around me, tapping my feet and shouting across the auditorium and at the performers, I’d be committing a major breach of etiquette. Indeed, I would quickly be escorted out. Were I to display these same behaviours in a mid-18th-century Parisian opera house, I would <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/3128412">fit right in</a>.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/im-going-to-a-classical-music-concert-for-the-first-time-what-should-i-know-195290">I'm going to a classical music concert for the first time. What should I know?</a>
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<h2>Flowers and souvenirs and mania</h2>
<p>In the same way, throwing items like flowers, love notes and handkerchiefs at musicians, in some settings at least, has transitioned from aberrant to ordinary. </p>
<p>Some 180 years before fans were casting flowers at Harry Styles, the composer and pianist <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Franz-Liszt">Franz Liszt</a> was the object of fanatical adoration. His 1841-42 tour of Germany saw crowds of mostly women shower him with flowers and other tokens, scramble for souvenirs, and throw themselves at his feet.</p>
<p>Soon dubbed “<a href="https://books.google.com.au/books/about/Liszt_in_Germany_1840_1845.html?id=5eaYF1v2S5cC&redir_esc=y">Lisztomania</a>”, this collective reaction to a musician by an audience was a relatively new phenomenon and one that was pathologised and criticised. In the words of the contemporary writer Heinrich Heine, Lisztomania was part of the “<a href="https://web.p.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=0&sid=219aa480-1756-49ce-a493-8b1ad12a72af%40redis">spiritual sickness of our time</a>”. </p>
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<span class="caption">Composer and pianist Franz Liszt (1858) by Franz Hanfstaengl.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Wikipedia</span></span>
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<p>Over time, these “manic” audience behaviours are, at least in some contexts, normalised and even celebrated. <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/254957654_We%27re_Going_to_See_the_Beatles_An_Oral_History_of_Beatlemania_as_Told_by_the_Fans_Who_Were_There_review">Beatlemania</a>, for example, is generally understood as a watershed moment of cultural exuberance. </p>
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<h2>Changing concert etiquette</h2>
<p>Musicians can be agents of change in relation to concert etiquette. Tom Jones, <a href="https://www.proquest.com/docview/2527891177?accountid=8194&forcedol=true&pq-origsite=primo">speaking in 2003</a>, recalls the first time a fan threw underwear at him. While performing and perspiring at the Copacabana in New York, audience members handed him napkins. One woman threw underwear. Jones explains that a newspaper report, combined with his “leaning in” to the audience behaviour, created a phenomenon. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I would pick them up and play around with them, you know, because you learn that whatever happens on stage, you try to turn it to your advantage and not get thrown by it.</p>
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<p>Jones’ engagement with this new mode of behaviour generated such a degree of positive reinforcement that it has become a clichéd fan behaviour employed in relation to numerous musicians. Jones came to view underwear throwing with a degree of ambivalence. He soon refrained from leaning in in the hope of moderating an act that became a parody of itself. </p>
<p>Throwing things at concerts goes both ways. Consider Adele firing a T-shirt gun into the crowd or Charlie Watts <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bszhqrybXnQ">throwing his drumsticks</a> to the audience after a performance. These acts are part of the performance and universally viewed as non-controversial. </p>
<p>Somewhat more controversial are mosh pits where performers sometimes even throw themselves into the audience. <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2018/sep/heavy-metal-music-inclusive-and-governed-rules-etiquette">Recent research</a> reveals a strict etiquette tied to this practice, founded on community and safety. </p>
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<p>Finally, no concert etiquette ever permits throwing something hazardous or throwing something with the intent to harm. If these incidents do trend towards violence in service of notoriety on social media, live music will suffer. </p>
<p>Measures such as added security, physical barriers, airport style screening and even audience vetting will quickly become commonplace. Remember, celebrities like Liszt and Tom Jones aren’t the only agents of change. We can be too.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210717/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Timothy McKenry does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Musician Cardi Bi is the latest victim in a spate of objects being thrown at musicians on stage – however, there are historical precedents for audiences doing this.Timothy McKenry, Professor of Music, Australian Catholic UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2104232023-08-09T16:31:17Z2023-08-09T16:31:17ZTaylor Swift tickets are pricey, but fans get a blockbuster show and intimate connection with their idol<p>The ticket scramble for Taylor Swift’s latest tour has caused such a furore that even the likes of Nobel prize-winning economist Paul Krugman have <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/20/opinion/taylor-swift-economics.html">weighed in on it</a>.</p>
<p>The shows on the Eras tour, which runs until August 2024, are undoubtedly expensive. And the sales process has been chaotic. On the day tickets went on sale in the US, the Ticketmaster website crashed – the company had prepared itself for 1.5 million fans, only to find that 15 million logged on. </p>
<p>But Swifties – the most dedicated of Swift’s fans – were willing to endure a process that was, to say the least, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/jul/17/taylor-swift-problems-in-concert-ticketing-and-how-to-fix-them">complicated</a>. Ticket prices can depend on how close to the stage fans want to get and what VIP add-ons they agree to, reportedly <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/jul/17/taylor-swift-problems-in-concert-ticketing-and-how-to-fix-them">ranging</a> from £78 to £600 for a single ticket for the London shows.</p>
<p>Krugman argued that, comparatively speaking, the shows were good value. For the money, fans gained access not just to Swift’s live performance, but to the full panoply of technological effects that are an integral part of stadium gigs in the 21st century.</p>
<p>One can imagine Swift’s fans, some of whom spent days online (and a fair amount of money) trying to get tickets, greeting his argument with an exasperated sigh. However, he does have a point. Any ticket for the Eras tour gives its bearer access, not just to their favourite artist, but to a show that is one of the most technologically advanced of recent times. </p>
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</figure>
<p>Large-scale performances like the Eras tour have tended not to feature in academic discussions of popular music. Thankfully, this is changing. Academics like me have <a href="https://research.birmingham.ac.uk/en/publications/planet-floyd-the-evolution-of-pink-floyds-live-performances">investigated</a> the development of live music in Britain and the US.</p>
<p>Studies have examined particular types of performance (in arenas and <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Music-Festivals-in-the-UK-Beyond-the-Carnivalesque/Anderton/p/book/9780367588571#:%7E:text=Music%20Festivals%20in%20the%20UK%20is%20the%20first%20extended%20investigation,attendances%20as%20small%20as%20250.">festivals</a>); looked at particular genres (metal, glam rock and <a href="https://www.sup.org/books/title/?id=29375">K-pop</a>, for example); and explored the work of individual artists (such as Lady Gaga and <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781315602134/prince-making-pop-music-phenomenon-sarah-niblock-stan-hawkins">Prince</a>). However, as yet, we have not dealt with these performances as theatre – as events designed to connect artist and audience, even in the largest venues. </p>
<h2>Big blockbuster stadium shows</h2>
<p>Since the 1970s, successful bands and artists have found a number of ingenious ways to construct shows that can fill the most cavernous arenas. The Eras tour is part of a stellar lineage that includes The Rolling Stones’ <a href="http://concertstagedesign.blogspot.com/2011/04/the-rolling-stones-tour-of-americas.html">unfolding lotus set</a> (1975-6); Pink Floyd’s <a href="https://durhamld.com/portfolio-item/the-wall-berlin-1990/">The Wall</a> (1980); the various MTV-influenced 1980s stage sets designed for <a href="https://www.dezeen.com/2016/04/22/prince-dies-aged-57-love-symbol-designer-mitch-monson/">Prince</a>, <a href="https://www.madonnatribe.com/ultimatemadonna/the-virgin-tour/">Madonna</a> and <a href="https://www.michaeljackson.com/news/did-you-know-mj-performed-5-off-wall-songs-triumph-tour/">Michael Jackson</a>; <a href="https://www.u2.com/tour/id/54">U2’s Zoo TV</a>; and big-spectacle contemporary sets like The Weeknd’s <a href="https://www.silasveta.com/projects/the-weeknd">After Hours Til Dawn tour</a> from 2022.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DGwKGHjDL8M?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>The technology used on these tours serves two purposes. First, it ensures that the artist can be heard and seen, even in the largest venues. Second, it transforms the space into a setting that reflects the audience’s perception of the artist: their music, their public persona, their history – all the raw material audiences use to fuel their fandom. </p>
<p>In Swift’s case, that transformation is signalled in the name of the tour. The technology used on the Eras show enables both the artist and the audience effectively to travel through time.</p>
<p>The show is arranged around each one of Swift’s ten albums. As it moves from album to album, the stage transforms (white frames and primary colours for the <a href="https://time.com/5651207/taylor-swift-lover-songs-explained/">Lover-era</a> songs, snake motifs for the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/nov/10/taylor-swift-reputation-review-superb-songcraft-meets-extreme-drama">Reputation</a> tracks, red costuming and stage lighting for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/oct/18/taylor-swift-red-review">Red</a>, a cottage backdrop for <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/aug/01/taylor-swift-folklore-review-love-and-loss-in-lockdown">Folklore</a>.</p>
<p>The audience is part of the spectacle: LED wristbands, cued by radio signals, illuminate the crowd in dramatically sequenced floods of colour. Carefully positioned <a href="https://www.streamingmedia.com/Producer/Articles/Editorial/What-Is-.../What-is-IMAG-84770.aspx#:%7E:text=IMAG%20is%20Image%20MAGnification.,can%20more%20easily%20see%20them.">IMAG (image magnification) screens</a> carry Swift’s image and the imagery associated with her music. The catwalk and the two secondary stages (commonly termed B stages) are themselves digital display screens. At one point Swift seems to dive into the B stage. Her digital image swims the length of the catwalk, and she reappears on the main stage as the song Lavender Haze begins. </p>
<p>The technology delivers all the spectacle needed to hold the audience’s attention as the three-hour show runs through Swift’s career. But it also delivers something else – something rather more unexpected.</p>
<p>As Swift starts the second verse of Anti Hero, an image of her dressed in the dowdy T-shirt and jeans she wears in the video swells to massive proportions on the giant screen at the rear of the main stage. She gingerly steps over tiny buildings, bats away intrusive helicopters and stares directly out at the audience, her face in huge close-up.</p>
<p>The song documents Swift’s insecurities; her face, magnified, has a trapped expression and she looks uncertain as her eyes sweep over the crowd. This moment of vulnerability and intimacy echoes others; moments where spotlights isolate the singer, or where the camera catches her in apparent joyous abandon, or reaching out and interacting with the crowd.</p>
<p>In gigs like this, technology earns back its cost, both by filling the space and by compressing it, creating an experience both spectacular and personal. Arenas and stadiums are designed for function, rather than aesthetics; they are not in themselves intimate spaces.</p>
<p>For Swift, the tickets her fans fight over help pay for technologies that transform the barest of venues into places where she and her fans can meet, connect and celebrate the history they share together.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210423/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Pattie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>One of the most technologically advanced stadium tours, Eras ticket prices are high, but for fans the payback is a close and cherished experience with Swift.David Pattie, Associate Professor of Drama, University of BirminghamLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1945372022-11-16T02:31:41Z2022-11-16T02:31:41ZPumping loud music is putting more than 1 billion young people at risk of hearing loss<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495510/original/file-20221115-23-66pold.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=4%2C39%2C3285%2C2134&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.pexels.com/photos/1190298/pexels-photo-1190298.jpeg?auto=compress&cs=tinysrgb&w=1260&h=750&dpr=2">Pexels/Wendy Wei</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Music is an integral part of human life. It’s all around us, just like sunshine, lifting our mood. We enjoy it so much that many of us take it with us everywhere on our phones or we spend weekends hitting the club scene, live-music venues or concerts.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, many of us may have felt annoyed by loud sound from music venues or remarked on sound emanating from someone else’s headphones. We’re probably aware we should prevent hearing loss from loud industrial noise at work or from using power tools at home. </p>
<p>A systematic review released today in <a href="https://globalhealth.bmj.com/lookup/doi/10.1136/bmjgh-2022-010501">BMJ Global Health</a> reports unsafe listening practices in adolescents and young adults from using personal listening devices (such as phones or digital music players) and going to loud clubs and gigs are common, and could be a major factor contributing to hearing loss. </p>
<p>In fact, the authors estimate the pumping tunes could be placing up to 1.35 billion young people at risk of hearing loss worldwide.</p>
<h2>What the study looked at</h2>
<p>Systematic analysis involves looking across multiple studies to identify consistent findings. In this study, the authors included 33 peer-reviewed studies published between 2000 and 2021, involving over 19,000 people, aged 12–34. </p>
<p>In the study, unsafe listening was identified as listening at levels above 80 decibels for over 40 hours per week. For context, this is the level above which most Australian states <a href="https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/safety-topic/hazards/noise/overview#:%7E:text=Workers%20must%20not%20be%20exposed,on%20decibels%20and%20time%20exposed.">require industry</a> to implement noise protection processes such as use of hearing protectors.</p>
<p>The study confirms the rate of unsafe listening practices is high in adolescents and young adults: 23.81% of them were listening to music on personal devices at unsafe levels and 48.2% at loud entertainment venues (though this rate is less certain). Based on global estimates of population, this translates to up to 1.35 billion young people at risk of hearing loss globally. The World Health Organization <a href="https://www.who.int/health-topics/hearing-loss#tab=tab_1">estimates</a> over 430 million people worldwide already have a disabling hearing loss and prevalence could double if hearing loss prevention is not prioritised.</p>
<p>The results tally with our previous studies conducted by Australia’s National Acoustic Laboratories and HEARing Cooperative Research Centre. </p>
<p>More than a decade ago we <a href="https://acc.hearingservices.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/hso/f1f6299d-96f3-408e-be4b-0775af6d7f41/Lifetime_profile_exposure_sound_what_safe_HLPP2.pdf?MOD=AJPERES">reported</a> a high potential for hearing loss from attendance at nightclubs, pubs and live concerts in young Australians aged between 18–35 years. </p>
<p>Back then, we found 13% of young Australians (aged 18–35) were getting a yearly noise dose from nightclubs, concerts and sporting activities that exceeded the maximum acceptable dose in industry. In 2015, the WHO launched the <a href="https://www.who.int/activities/making-listening-safe">Make listening Safe</a> initiative to encourage young people to protect their hearing.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="man in headphones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495299/original/file-20221115-14-x9me6j.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">You can monitor safe listening levels on your device.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://images.pexels.com/photos/374777/pexels-photo-374777.jpeg?auto=compress&cs=tinysrgb&w=1260&h=750&dpr=2">Pexels/Burst</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Why it’s bad for your hearing</h2>
<p>So what’s the problem with loud music? Like sunshine, overexposure can lead to harm. </p>
<p>Loud noise, including music, can <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/hearing_loss/how_does_loud_noise_cause_hearing_loss.html">kill off hair cells and membranes</a> in the inner ear (the cochlea). Once hearing is lost, a person mightn’t be able to hear or understand speech or sounds around them. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/noise-induced-hearing-loss">Research</a> shows hearing loss results from a combination of sound being too loud (and it doesn’t need to be painful to cause hearing damage), listening to loud sound too long (and the louder the sound, the less time you can listen before your hearing is at risk) and how often you are exposed (and hearing damage is cumulative over time). </p>
<p>A good “rule of ear” is that if you hear ringing in your ears at or after listening, you are at risk of damaging your hearing. This type of hearing loss is <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nceh/hearing_loss/how_does_loud_noise_cause_hearing_loss.html">permanent</a> and may require use of hearing aids or cochlear implants.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/dont-wear-earphones-all-day-your-ears-need-to-breathe-168742">Don't wear earphones all day – your ears need to breathe</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Wait, so no loud music at all?</h2>
<p>So what can we do, short of throwing away our headphones and avoiding clubbing and live music?</p>
<p>First, just like with the sun and skin, we need to be aware of the risks to our hearing and take the necessary steps to protect ourselves. We need to be aware of how loud sound is around us and how to keep our exposure within safe levels. We can do this by using personal hearing protection in clubs (such as <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-earplugs-for-concerts/">ear muffs or ear plugs</a> that are fit for purpose), or limiting how often we visit noisy music venues or how long we stay at really loud ones.</p>
<p>In Australia, people can access a free <a href="https://knowyournoise.nal.gov.au">noise risk calculator</a> to calculate their personal risk using an online sound level meter, and to explore how changes in lifestyle could protect their hearing while still allowing them to enjoy music.</p>
<p>Most phones now come with software that can <a href="https://www.headphonesty.com/2022/03/iphone-headphone-safety/#:%7E:text=Key%20features%20of%20the%20iPhone%20Headphone%20Safety%20feature&text=According%20to%20the%20WHO%20standard,risk%20of%20sustaining%20hearing%20damage.">monitor safe listening levels</a> and limit exposure.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="woman on bus with earphones" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/495301/original/file-20221115-25-vj95us.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Young people might damage their hearing with unsafe listening.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/smiling-young-woman-wearing-earphones-600w-1022345638.jpg">Shutterstock</a></span>
</figcaption>
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<p>Hearing protection at the venue level is more challenging and may require regulatory and industry-based approaches. Our <a href="https://academic.oup.com/annweh/article/64/4/342/5811673">2020 research</a> identified hazard controls for entertainment venues, such alternating volume between louder and softer levels, rotating staff, providing quiet rooms, and raising speaker locations above head height. We also showed DJs and venues were open to initiatives aimed at reducing the risk of hearing loss for their patrons and <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19338244.2020.1828241?journalCode=vaeh20">staff</a>. </p>
<p>Compromises are possible and they could enable enjoyment of music at live-music venues, while still protecting hearing. That way everyone will be able keep enjoying music for longer.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/is-it-possible-to-listen-to-too-much-music-each-day-173566">Is it possible to listen to too much music each day?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
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<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/194537/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Cowan has received funding from the Commonwealth Government's Cooperative Research Centres Program, The National Health and Medical Research Foundation, and the NSW Office of Medical Science and Research.
He was CEO and Principal Investigator of a number of studies addressing prevention of hearing loss in young people, in particular in relation to attendance at live music venues, and has co-authored publications in this area.</span></em></p>Using earbuds or headphones to play very loud music on devices and going to live gigs are putting up to 1.35 billion young people at risk of permanent hearing loss worldwide.Robert Cowan, Professorial Research Fellow, Audiology and Speech Pathology, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1713972021-11-08T07:30:39Z2021-11-08T07:30:39ZAstroworld tragedy: here’s how concert organisers can prevent big crowds turning deadly<p>A <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-08/astroworld-crowd-crush-deaths-travis-scott-kylie-jenner/100602042">fatal crowd surge</a> during a performance by US rapper Travis Scott on Friday night has become one of the deadliest live music incidents in <a href="https://theconversation.com/carnage-at-ariana-grande-concert-in-manchester-a-suspected-terrorist-attack-78187">recent years</a>. Crowd crushes during the Houston show, which was part of the Astroworld Music Festival, led to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/astroworld-festival-victims.html">eight deaths and dozens of injuries</a>. </p>
<p>The incident is still being investigated, with criminal investigations also underway. How does such catastrophe emerge in a space where people are supposed to be enjoying themselves? </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1457001681376452608"}"></div></p>
<p>I have been working in the area of crowd safety for several years. My expertise focuses on ways of boosting safety at large events such as Schoolies, outdoor music festivals and sporting tournaments. Based on reports, it seems several factors — compounded by mismanagement — led to an environment that was not conducive to what we call “cooperative crowding”. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/friday-essay-the-sound-of-fear-65230">Friday essay: the sound of fear</a>
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</em>
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<hr>
<h2>An unsettled start</h2>
<p>In a successfully managed event, organisers will create an atmosphere in which people are relaxed and feel part of a collective. Reports of early pushing and shoving at Scott’s show are a bad sign. </p>
<p>Adding to this, several witnesses reported they were unable to persuade event organisers to take action once the disaster was unfolding. It may be the music was too loud, although such details won’t be known until investigations finish. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/06/us/travis-scott-crowd-surge.html">According to the New York Times</a> and several other outlets, Scott’s show continued for 40 minutes after city officials reported on the “mass casualty event” — with the show finishing just half an hour earlier than planned.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1456969797552463876"}"></div></p>
<h2>It’s all about event control</h2>
<p>Event managers will often turn the lights up, or play music with a slower tempo, to help tame a rowdy audience. Lighting conditions and music are both important <a href="https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/public-health-for-mass-gatherings-key-considerations">psychosocial considerations</a>.</p>
<p>In fact, there are several ways organisers and performers on stage can attempt to settle a crowd — even among audiences of high-intensity musical acts.</p>
<p>For instance, German heavy-metal band Rammstein can attract intense and sometimes aggressive crowds. When the band played the 2011 Big Day Out festival in Sydney, <a href="https://doi.org/10.3727/152599518X15346132863157">managers put on a pyrotechnic display</a> and ambient music between sets to helps shift and control the crowd’s mood. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Gv9BgkaCcrc?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Rammstein played in Sydney in 2001 for the Big Day Out music festival.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It’s about knowing your audience and the environment they are likely to create. The <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/263332870_Developments_in_the_real-time_evaluation_of_audience_behaviour_at_planned_events">genre will determine the demographic</a> and the expectation of the crowd’s behaviour. If it’s expected a particular show will attract a high-energy demographic, this needs to be prepared for in advance. Effective crowd control is preemptive, not reactive. </p>
<p>At music festivals, the acts in the lineup can also have a direct influence on the audience’s behaviour. Festival-goers can be persuaded to participate in activities and behaviours at the performer(s) request, abandoning safety restrictions put in place by event management. </p>
<p>As such, performers can create a calming environment through their interaction with the audience and have a positive influence on the crowd.</p>
<h2>What measures are in place?</h2>
<p>Despite widespread coverage of the Astroworld incident, the reality is that deadly crowd surges are not common. Australia’s most recent crowd-related music festival fatality was during a <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/doublej/music-reads/features/how-the-big-day-out-lost-its-innocence/11606956">Limp Bizkit performance</a>, during the Big Day Out event in 2001.</p>
<p>On the whole, event managers put a lot of work into making sure crowds are looked after. Investment in crowd care can come through venue “chill-out spaces”, and granting different levels of access such as ground level versus stalls, or VIP seating. This is because events both in Australia and internationally are <a href="https://www.dpc.nsw.gov.au/tools-and-resources/event-starter-guide/risk-assessment-and-risk-management/">heavily</a> <a href="https://knowledge.aidr.org.au/media/1959/manual-12-safe-and-healthy-mass-gatherings.pdf">legislated</a>. </p>
<p>On-the-ground security guards matter a lot, as they help ensure the crowd is sufficiently spread out and safe. The layout and design of the venue is also crucial, and the space should be able to handle the expected number of attendees. </p>
<p>The 2010 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Parade_disaster">Love Parade disaster</a> in Germany is one example of a chaotic crowd surge in which there were several systemic issues. The events communications system went down and there was only only one entry and exit – a catastrophic situation that <a href="https://epjdatascience.springeropen.com/articles/10.1140/epjds7">culminated</a> in 21 deaths in a crush inside a tunnel.</p>
<p>Closer to home, in 2016 attendees at the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-12-31/falls-festival-stampede-leaves-80-injured/8155392">Falls Festival</a> had to rush from one stage to another, which resulted in about 80 people being injured, including 20 hospital admissions. </p>
<p>On the other hand, there are plenty of well-organised events that manage to accommodate hundreds of thousands of people, such as the <a href="https://www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/somerset-news/how-many-people-attend-glastonbury-4166109">Glastonbury festival</a>. </p>
<h2>What can I do in this situation?</h2>
<p>As concerts and shows start to resume, you may wonder how you can stay safe in a volatile crowd. The reality is, there is not much someone can do if they find themselves stuck deep in a dense mosh pit which is out of control, and the risk in this scenario is great. </p>
<p>The best way to avoid danger is to stay on the fringes, well away from the most congested sections of the crowd. If you have concert plans, ask yourself: what kind of people might I expect? Will people be drinking? Will it be family-friendly? Common sense will go a long way. </p>
<p>If, despite your planning, you find yourself in a crowd situation where you don’t feel safe, you should immediately report to security if you can. If you’re near the stage, you might also be able to get the performer’s attention. The performer has lot of power and, as several incidents in the <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/placebo-stops-newcastle-gig-to-kick-out-fighting-crowd-members-20170913-gygauy.html">past have shown us</a>, they can shut things down until the crowd starts to cooperate. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1457092638302220289"}"></div></p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/computing-the-chances-of-olympic-crowd-chaos-8066">Computing the chances of Olympic crowd chaos</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/171397/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alison Hutton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Investigations are being conducted to figure out what led to the death of eight people during a crowd surge at Travis Scott’s show.Alison Hutton, Professor , University of NewcastleLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1568812021-03-12T13:50:49Z2021-03-12T13:50:49ZMusic fans shouldn’t have to wait much longer for live gigs – here’s why<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389018/original/file-20210311-24-7tbkrq.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=431%2C8%2C5344%2C3898&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A Liverpool busker in July 2020.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/royal-albert-dock-liverpoolmerseysideengland-3007-man-1867684738">Shutterstock/Mark D Bailey</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As vaccination programmes allow for the gradual lifting of social restrictions, the revival of the live music industry <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-56159302">is low</a> on the list of priorities. This is perhaps understandable when you think of the risks associated with a small music venue crammed with people dancing and singing along to a band.</p>
<p>But the delay could be disastrous for both the economic and cultural value that live music brings. In the UK, nearly half of all <a href="https://musiciansunion.org.uk/">Musicians’ Union</a> members <a href="https://musiciansunion.org.uk/all-news-and-features/an-urgent-letter-to-the-chancellor">are reportedly ineligible</a> for any of the government’s financial support schemes, and it is estimated that as <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56193714">many as 50% of the UK’s clubs</a> will not reopen. </p>
<p>As things stand, small and medium sized venues (and the musicians themselves) will continue to hurt even as other small businesses like restaurants and shops welcome back customers. Yet there could be a safe way for musicians and venue operators to get back in business sooner. </p>
<p>For if we think about the space in which a group of people gather to appreciate live music, it doesn’t have to be in a sweaty windowless cellar. </p>
<p>Indeed, throughout the pandemic, musicians have embraced online events which at least found them a virtual live audience. And in the summer of 2020, when some restaurants and pubs reopened using outside spaces, informal live performances swiftly followed, as musicians took to busking in the streets. </p>
<p>So with a proactive local government approach, and a <a href="https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/this-must-be-the-place-9781501319280/">re-imagining of our urban public space</a>, live music with audiences might be able to return much sooner than fans – and governments – think.</p>
<p>The key to this possibility is innovative use of city streets, squares and parks. <a href="https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/architecture/research/live/">My research</a> examines live music venues and investigates how musical performances can be a core feature in defining the urban identity of cities. They can have a marked effect on planning policy, the way public space is used, and even influence large scale urban design projects. </p>
<h2>Party in the park</h2>
<p>Liverpool, <a href="https://historicengland.org.uk/images-books/publications/liverpools-musical-landscapes/">well known</a> around the world for its Merseybeat heritage, still has a vibrant grassroots music scene. The city also has an exemplary track record of opening up urban spaces for live music performance. In the summer of 2020, it was amongst the first places in the UK to close off central streets to traffic, encouraging the growth of new outdoor eateries which in turn provided sedentary audiences for buskers.</p>
<p>Before the pandemic, the annual <a href="https://www.limfestival.com/about-limf-2020/">Liverpool International Music Festival</a> (successor to the Matthew Street Festival, once the largest <a href="https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/whatever-happened-mathew-street-festival-15542831">free music event</a> in Europe) took place in the city’s largest park with multiple stages and a <a href="https://www.limfestival.com/about-limf-2020/">huge audience</a>. </p>
<p>And each year <a href="https://www.soundcity.uk.com">Sound City</a> takes over dozens of redundant buildings and sites, city squares and streets, as well as clubs and bars for three days of industry workshops and artist performances. In 2020, both festivals substituted live virtual events for their usual format. Sound City have recently announced the <a href="https://www.soundcity.uk.com/news/sound-city-2021-in-october!">event will take place in October 2021</a>, in the hope that legal restrictions on social contact will have been removed. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1365240522210750464"}"></div></p>
<p>A dedicated council office coordinates these festivals (and others) by organising public transport, rubbish collection and security, easing the whole process for the music promoters. </p>
<p>In the coming months, with sponsorship from local and national government, a similar approach could see small scale music events take place across the country. With far less organisation and investment required, a temporary outdoor club for 100 people is a lot easier and cheaper to organise than a major festival.</p>
<h2>Safe city gigs</h2>
<p>Temporary and mobile stage design is a well practised skill in the music industry, so providing staging, amplification and lighting would not be a problem, and provide welcome employment. The new issue, as in so many other sectors, is how to safely organise the audience. </p>
<p>To address this, one <a href="http://wherewestand.co.uk">project</a> has invited designers from around the world to investigate how city spaces might be reorganised to provide visual systems that enable social distancing. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A band plays under a gazebo on a street closed to traffic." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389120/original/file-20210311-17-1vu2cao.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/389120/original/file-20210311-17-1vu2cao.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389120/original/file-20210311-17-1vu2cao.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389120/original/file-20210311-17-1vu2cao.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389120/original/file-20210311-17-1vu2cao.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389120/original/file-20210311-17-1vu2cao.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/389120/original/file-20210311-17-1vu2cao.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A street gig in Seattle.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Robert Kronenburg</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Potential solutions include ground marking, seating, and sculptures that encourage people to occupy public space in a safe way. Interventions might include selecting areas in parks and other public spaces for performers and audiences with new temporary facilities and bespoke staging, accessed with contact free ticketing. </p>
<p>These instant outdoor venues could be hired by venue organisers while their own space cannot be used, or by groups of collaborating musicians. Then, by the time shops, takeaways and pubs reopen, city squares, streets, and parks could become safe spaces for live music. </p>
<p>This would be of great value to music fans, and a vital boost for events organisers, musicians, and security, stage and equipment suppliers, who would all have income generating work. With the online and unofficial live events that have continued during lockdown, performers and audiences have shown that there is a social and cultural need for these events to take place. </p>
<p>The economic need is even more important, if we are to sustain a vibrant UK live music industry which employs hundreds of thousands of people and generates over <a href="https://www.ukmusic.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Music_By_Numbers_2019_Report.pdf">£1 billion</a> every year.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/156881/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Kronenburg received funding from the British Academy/Leverhulme Trust in support of this research. </span></em></p>Performances could return sooner than planned if cities are ready to adapt.Robert Kronenburg, Roscoe Professor of Architecture, University of LiverpoolLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1491682021-03-07T19:06:21Z2021-03-07T19:06:21ZElectronic cities: between COVID and gentrification, dance music is struggling to find its groove again<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/387916/original/file-20210305-13-1oca9su.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=6%2C0%2C4187%2C2797&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/energetic-deejay-standing-front-dancing-people-337411088">Shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><a>Electronic music</a> is the <a href="https://www.internationalmusicsummit.com/ims-business-report-2020-analyses-the-impact-of-the-global-pandemic-on-the-electronic-music-sector/">fifth-most-popular music genre</a> globally. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has been devastating for the electronic music industry. Its <a href="https://www.internationalmusicsummit.com/ims-business-report-2020-analyses-the-impact-of-the-global-pandemic-on-the-electronic-music-sector/">estimated value</a> fell from US$7.3 billion in 2019 to US$3.3 billion in 2020.</p>
<p>Hundreds of electronic festivals around the world have been cancelled. Some events have gone <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55513167">underground</a>. In one case, more than 1,200 people were charged over an illegal rave party in Brittany that violated France’s <a href="https://www.voanews.com/covid-19-pandemic/hundreds-charged-covid-violations-after-french-new-years-rave">COVID restrictions</a>.</p>
<p>Electronic dance music uses specific spaces in a city, so it’s heavily affected by both cultural and planning policies. Our new book, <a href="https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9789813347403">Electronic Cities</a>, studies these scenes. The contributors focus on 18 cities across the world as case studies in the development of electronic music. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.davehaslam.com/#/adventures-on-the-wheels-of-steel-the-rise-of-the-superstar-djs/">world of DJs</a> has been studied before, but not the impacts of city policies on such a global scale. The book shows electronic music is not well integrated in cultural policies and gets little support. <a href="https://www.sounddiplomacy.com/music-city-infographic">Music city policies</a> often do not include this music genre.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yCIMrKLji_M?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<p>Live venues are often not well protected by planning frameworks. This puts underground scenes that rely on small clubs at risk. </p>
<p>In Australia, we have seen some positive strategies, such as <a href="https://www.livetoolkit.com.au/guide/agent-of-change">Agent of Change</a> in Victoria, to protect inner-city live venues. Overall, though, electronic music is not well integrated in city policies. </p>
<h2>The rise of a global phenomenon</h2>
<p>Electronic music has grown from its origins in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgard_Var%C3%A8se">composers</a>’ <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Musique_concr%C3%A8te">experimentation</a> in the 1950s to encompass as many as 153 different <a href="https://music.ishkur.com/">genres</a>. These range from commercial dance music and film soundtracks to niche/underground electronic music. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WK977rQKHOo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The pulsating score of Midnight Express (1978) by Giorgio Moroder is a seminal piece of electronic music.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Broadly speaking, we can make a distinction between electronic dance music (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_dance_music">EDM</a>), also known as club music and made for dancing, and the more downtempo, conceptual intelligent dance music (<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intelligent_dance_music">IDM</a>) made for listening at home. </p>
<p>Underground styles like acid techno are created by DJs, rather than musicians/producers, and are connected to specific clubs and audiences. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EJAtMIhnKkI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Acid techno emerged in London at underground clubs such as Club 414 in Brixton.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Australian dance music has been driven by an <a href="https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9789813347403">attitude of DIY self-reliance</a>. Local producers such as Flume, Alison Wonderland, Will Sparks and Nervo have had international success.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FBBvgSgA1jg?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Alison Wonderland exemplifies a new generation of artists who are moving away from the cliches of the rave culture.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>All these different styles are sometimes grouped under the label of “<a href="https://highlark.com/edmc-the-expanding-of-social-understanding-and-acceptance-of-electronic-dance-music-culture/#:%7E:text=The%20Electronic%20Dance%20Music%20Culture,the%20participants%20within%20the%20culture.">electronic dance music culture</a>”. </p>
<h2>What role do cities have?</h2>
<p>The first hubs for electronic music were in the US (<a href="https://medium.com/@SupperMagazine/know-your-edm-history-chicago-house-and-detroit-techno-2e2ac15a5a9a">Chicago and Detroit</a>) and Germany (Dusseldorf and Berlin). Today, the culture has a global spread. Our book <a href="https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9789813347403">Electronic Cities</a> analyses emerging electronic dance music cultures in places like <a href="https://www.thatsmags.com/shenzhen/post/26478/history-behind-shenzhens-blossoming-underground-electronic-scene">Shenzhen</a> in China, <a href="https://www.electronicbeats.net/the-feed/raving-iran-documentary-teherans-techno-scene/">Tehran</a> in Iran and <a href="https://djmag.com/content/how-electronic-artists-are-reshaping-ghanian-music-scene">Accra in Ghana</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Poster for MUTEK Festival" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=849&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/378741/original/file-20210114-14-1hy658m.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1067&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The long-running MUTEK Montreal electronic music festival is integrated with the city’s cultural policies.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Affiche_MUTEK_2011.png">MUTEKFestival/Wikipedia Commons</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Cities have used the music as a tool for city branding, to promote international tourism and to develop nightlife economies. <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2016/6/2/11840650/movement-festival-detroit-demf-electronic-music-techno">Techno Week</a> in Detroit, for instance, is a major drawcard for the city. In Cluj-Napoca, Romania, the <a href="https://g.co/kgs/CbnnYJ">Untold EDM Festival</a> has been central to a strategy to attract tourists to this rural area. </p>
<p>Although some governments have embraced the industry, it has also suffered from official neglect. In large cities, small underground clubs, such as the former <a href="https://brixtonblog.com/2019/08/brixton-market-owners-buy-home-of-414-club/?cn-reloaded=1">Club 414</a> in <a href="https://www.brixtonbuzz.com/2020/08/gentrification-pop-brixton-the-battle-of-brixton-and-the-london-dream/#:%7E:text=In%20Brixton%2C%20house%20prices%20increased,a%20'global%20reserve%20currency'.">Brixton</a>, are constantly under threat from <a href="https://brixtonblog.com/2020/12/building-owners-cold-shoulder-creators-of-club-414/">redevelopment</a>. These clubs have unique historic and cultural value but are not well protected by planning regulations.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=403&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/366904/original/file-20201102-23-1s6nbm1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=506&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Club 414 fell victim to the gentrification of Brixton in London.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Tony Pommell (ex-Club 414 owner)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What next?</h2>
<p>Musician and record producer <a href="https://mfsberlin.com/mark-reeder">Mark Reeder</a> lives in Berlin, a world centre for clubbing. He has seen the disruptions caused by the pandemic unfold. In an interview for <a href="https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9789813347403">Electronic Cities</a>, he said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>This is the turning point that I thought would eventually happen. After 30 years of techno, it was on the brink. I believed something new was on the horizon. Obviously, I didn’t think it would be exactly like this.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Paul Curtis, the manager of Australian band <a href="https://www.regurgitator.net/">Regurgitator</a>, which straddles punk rock and electronica, had a similar vision:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>We’d already been thinking for the last bunch of years - how the hell do we continue to do what we do in a world that we have to change?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The band had been operating for some time as a kind of small-scale economy, with sustainability as a focus. The collapse of venues in the wake of COVID forced some of their plans to change, but they started to rethink options.</p>
<p>Curtis was puzzled by the attitude of some music business colleagues:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>They were saying, ‘As soon as this is over, and we get back to normal’, and I’m thinking, well that’s just delusion.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Curtis used the pandemic quiet to finish a <a href="http://lunapalace.com.au/special-events+3939+unit20-regurgitator-plays-unit-and-moreat-the-movies">live concert film</a> of the band. He has been distributing it through independent cinemas and music venues that have geared up for screenings. </p>
<p>Australia responded to the economic impacts of the pandemic by introducing the JobKeeper payment to help businesses retain staff. But many venues and most <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-government-says-artists-should-be-able-to-access-jobkeeper-payments-its-not-that-simple-138530">artists and arts workers were ineligible</a>. </p>
<p>Artists globally had similar experiences. In Helsinki, Finland, as <a href="https://giacomobotta.wordpress.com/">Giacomo Botta</a> explains in <a href="https://www.palgrave.com/gp/book/9789813347403">Electronic Cities</a>, public support during the pandemic went only to recognised electronic dance music organisations. More marginal and underground communities, often most affected by the pandemic, were ignored. </p>
<p>On a more positive note, Sara Ross, speaking as part of a panel at <a href="https://www.ctm-festival.de/festival-2021/theme">CTM Festival 2021</a>, explained that switching to online platforms such as <a href="https://www.twitch.tv/">Twitch</a> – usually used by gamers – might help Toronto DJs widen their audience. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/tDhAn30t7NQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">At CTM Berlin, contributors to the Electronic Cities book talk about electronic music, urban policies and the pandemic.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Reeder reflects on Berlin and what the future might look like:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I think this situation is having a profound effect on the way people consume contemporary music and especially what we perceived as the club scene.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>He notes the desperation of <a href="https://theconversation.com/clubbing-at-home-how-live-streaming-made-dj-sets-more-inclusive-149931">DJs streaming from home</a>, and the emphasis on nostalgia – “sounds of the past becoming the sounds of the future”.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/149168/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Urban planning and cultural policies often neglect electronic dance music. Now the pandemic is forcing the EDM world to come up with new strategies to survive.Sebastien Darchen, Senior Lecturer in Planning, The University of QueenslandDamien Charrieras, Associate Professor, School of Creative Media, City University of Hong KongJohn Willsteed, Senior lecturer, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1514842020-12-08T14:46:09Z2020-12-08T14:46:09ZNearly half of South Africa’s live music workers may quit the industry for good<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373322/original/file-20201207-17-1giqgk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Drummer Jason Moser records a live-streamed performance in a South African theatre during lockdown.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source"> Alet Pretorius/Gallo Images via Getty Images</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>For people working in South Africa’s live music sector, 2020 has been “devastating”. That was the term that researchers read most frequently in responses to the country’s largest-ever live music and COVID-19 <a href="https://www.southafricanculturalobservatory.org.za/article/sa-cultural-observatory-releases-report-on-the-impact-of-covid-19-live-music-sector">survey</a>, published in November. As one respondent put it:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I have lost everything. All income, accommodation – everything.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The study, called Impact Analysis: Live Music and its Venues and the South African Economy During COVID-19, was undertaken by the <a href="https://www.southafricanculturalobservatory.org.za/about-us">South African Cultural Observatory</a>, a government project hosted at Nelson Mandela University in Port Elizabeth. Its job is to track the socio-economic impact of the arts and creative industries. <a href="https://www.iksafrica.com">IKS Cultural Consulting</a> was commissioned to carry out the survey and Andre le Roux and I were the lead researchers.</p>
<p>We created an online questionnaire that built on the Cultural Observatory’s early <a href="https://www.southafricanculturalobservatory.org.za/article/an-early-assessment-of-the-impact-of-the-covid-19-crisis-on-the-cultural-and-creative-industries-in-south-africa">assessment</a> of the pandemic’s impact on the country’s cultural and creative industries. </p>
<p>The study was both quantitative – to determine larger trends and numbers – and qualitative, including questionnaire items and eight in-depth case studies. We received 697 responses. These provided detailed information about live music workers’ experiences and their sense-making. We found that nearly half our respondents contemplate quitting live music for good.</p>
<h2>A devastated value chain</h2>
<p>The people we surveyed worry about the longer term impact of the pandemic on audiences and society, and about their own ability to operate in the absence of an integrated national recovery plan. Of the musicians surveyed, 41% report selling their instruments and equipment to pay their bills; others are living on loans that will need to be repaid.</p>
<p>Our respondents come from all South Africa’s provinces (with Gauteng, the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal dominating). They work along all segments of the music value chain (from musicians, organisers, roadies and sound engineers to key venue workers). They cover all music genres. They include respondents like one, whose “bread and butter activity” is recording choirs and traditional music groups who travel from distant provinces. But all activity stopped and “the entire fraternity is at home wearing a mask”. </p>
<p>Our data presents a highly interconnected value chain, where single venues and other music delivery mechanisms such as cultural tourism operations and music circuit organisers serve as hubs for multiple artists. The loss of one venue has an impact on work and revenue opportunities for musicians as well as related service workers. Work creation (and recovery) depends on a large cohort of small and often informal employers initiating a sustained series of short-term projects.</p>
<p>From March until very recently, most of that stopped and 90% of the live music industry lost income due to COVID-19. Says one musician:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>It was like skittles going down. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>One in four respondents said they weren’t able to continue with any elements of their business under lockdown. Even with the current easing of lockdown, which post-dates the survey, venues – which often also serve as restaurants and bars – are constrained by <a href="https://www.gov.za/covid-19/resources/regulations-and-guidelines-coronavirus-covid-19">rules</a> on admissions, hours and service.</p>
<p>Most respondents have been in the industry for more than five years, but experience has proved no protection.</p>
<h2>Imperfect new digital strategies</h2>
<p>There’s a stereotype of the music industry as sleepy. We found the opposite. Musicians, promoters and venue owners responded to the crisis fast and flexibly. Like their overseas counterparts, 88% are adopting new online music strategies. One gospel promoter said they would use online platforms to sell and distribute music, “but it will not yield the same amount of revenue we are used to”. Their audience is often rural and elderly, with limited access to digital networks for live streaming music.</p>
<p>Despite this agility, many of those who are employers have had to end short term contracts (23%), retrench employees (13%) or cut salaries (18%). Only 6% say they can continue to pay everybody they work with.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="In a village square, people sit wearing masks at a distance from one another, their seating area marketed by ropes." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/373578/original/file-20201208-22-zh9006.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">Capetonians attend a socially distanced jazz event in November.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Nic Bothma/EPA-EFE</span></span>
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<p>Government COVID-19 <a href="https://www.gov.za/covid-19/companies-and-employees/support-business">relief support</a> requires formal documentation. But because of the predominantly informal and project-based nature of music-related work, many people were unable or ineligible to apply. Asks one:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>All of my work was confirmed on email with contracts pending … how can I claim any proof? </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Only 7% reported successful applications for the various small to medium enterprise support mechanisms and only 21% for the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture <a href="http://www.dac.gov.za/content/department-sport-arts-and-culture-covid-19-relief-fund-update">relief</a> <a href="https://www.gov.za/speeches/arts-and-culture-extends-applications-submissions-covid-19-relief-fund-9-sep-2020-0000">funding</a>.</p>
<h2>Conditionally hopeful</h2>
<p>Yet close to half of our respondents, perhaps surprisingly, categorise themselves as conditionally hopeful.</p>
<p>What they need, they say, is flexible, integrated support (both financial and in-kind) across administrative boundaries and government portfolios. In contrast to prevailing official practice, weighted towards prestigious mega events, they want decentralisation of programmes, projects and infrastructure. They stress a need to focus on the local – from <a href="https://www.news24.com/citypress/trending/artists-up-in-arms-over-local-content-quota-on-radio-20200503">compliance</a> with local content quotas to funding of local music initiatives and performance spaces. “Restart community initiatives,” pleads one. </p>
<p>National and local governments and parastatals control many spaces – recording studios for live streaming; parks and squares for safer open-air concerts – our respondents point out. Granting bureaucracy-free access to these could kick-start revenue generation, particularly if accompanied by support to access digital equipment and training in using it.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/are-lockdown-live-streams-working-for-south-africas-musicians-144946">Are lockdown live streams working for South Africa's musicians?</a>
</strong>
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<p>But <a href="http://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/Report-03-10-19/Report-03-10-192017.pdf">inequality</a>, and especially the country’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/digital-equality-south-africa-still-has-a-long-way-to-go-131864">digital divide</a>, bar many respondents from such innovation, especially those in rural areas. An organiser of live music in township communities says: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Our modus operandi is to bring music to the people. And if you think about where the people are, internet isn’t great there.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>What’s to be done?</h2>
<p>To remedy all this, our respondents say they desperately need an informed, listening ear from government as much as they need financial grants. </p>
<p>Many responses describe perceptions and experiences of inefficiency, ineffectiveness and lack of practical industry understanding among officials at all levels, in all structures, as well as concerns about corruption and bias. </p>
<p>But it’s not only government that needs to be listening.</p>
<p>The plight of live music mapped in the South African Cultural Observatory study should concern anyone looking to the return of South Africa’s diverse live music scene, and the employment, <a href="https://www.southafricanculturalobservatory.org.za/article/sa-s-cultural-goods-exports-growing-faster-than-imports-research">export revenue</a> and joy it creates. </p>
<p>In South Africa’s live music industry, January to Easter is always the dry season. People normally survive by setting aside earnings from the previous three quarters. The unique circumstances of 2020 sabotaged this in two big ways. </p>
<p>Relief funding was designed to cover cancellations in the first quarter – but most musicians hadn’t confirmed all their bookings by then. And from April onwards, during lockdown, there have been minimal earnings. If 2020 was dry, January to Easter 2021 will be the Sahara desert.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/151484/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Gwen Ansell consults to IKS Cultural Consulting, which was commissioned by the South African Cultural Observatory to conduct and report on this research. She co-led the IKS research team </span></em></p>The plight of live music mapped in the new survey should concern anyone looking to the return of the country’s diverse live music scene.Gwen Ansell, Associate of the Gordon Institute for Business Science, University of PretoriaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1465002020-09-25T12:18:28Z2020-09-25T12:18:28ZLive venues are the lifeblood of music culture and must survive<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/360007/original/file-20200925-24-12hjsvv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=272%2C191%2C4500%2C2706&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/cheering-crowd-concert-91770806">Shutterstock/dwphotos</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>People use live music as a resource to help feed and nourish their emotions, for heightening or changing their energy levels and as a platform to escape the constraints of everyday life. Live music venues are quite often tied up with <a href="https://amp.theguardian.com/music/2019/oct/09/the-glue-that-ties-communities-why-regional-venues-are-vital?CMP=twt_a-culture_b-gdnculture&">local scenes and communities</a> and the ambience of these spaces allows people to delve deeper into the music they love and experience it in a totally different way.</p>
<p>But in light of COVID-19 and the growing popularity of <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/354f05c7-8418-4d2b-bd56-3d8dd65d2bde">streaming services</a>, virtual concerts and other digital music offerings, there is now a question mark over the survival of live music as a viable business.</p>
<p>In the last few years, a number of changes have occurred which have had a significant impact upon how fans engage with music. The music market has undergone <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1469540510390499">a period of transformation</a>, mainly due to the explosion of digital forms of listening and the development of digital music providers, such as Spotify and Pandora. The music industry has shifted from material artefacts such cassettes and CDs to more fluid and intangible digital formats. </p>
<p>This shift has been momentous for the industry as it has totally changed the way people consume music. But <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0038038519860399">my research</a> shows that live venues are, in fact, the <a href="https://amp.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/30/music-venues-british-culture-taskforce?">lifeblood of British music culture</a>. </p>
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<p>Music lovers establish lasting, significant and memorable connections with the artists they love when they go to see them perform live. These experiences form part of the meaning which informs their engagement with that music. So places like clubs, venues and festivals become an intrinsic part of the story of that particular band or artist in the mind of the gig-goer.</p>
<p>Experiences like these then help to form a “live culture” or scene.
One of my <a href="https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/news/manchester-produces-indie-music-fans-just-by-being-manchester">studies</a> illustrates how indie music fans in Manchester draw upon upon the live music culture of the city. Manchester has long been inspired by its music heritage, having produced globally popular bands such as Joy Division and The Smiths. Venues, including the Hacienda and the Free Trade Hall (where The Sex Pistols and Bob Dylan famously played) and music scenes like “Madchester” all add to this “live culture”. </p>
<h2>Crisis and uncertainity</h2>
<p>But the UK live music industry is facing <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/may/13/uk-live-music-festivals-sector-at-risk-coronavirus">a crisis</a>. Uncertainty is looming with no end to social distancing in the near future or any significant financial support from the government. According to <a href="https://www.ukmusic.org/policy/let-the-music-play">recent estimates</a>, the live music industry is set to lose more than £900 million while 30-50% of its workforce are facing unemployment if things remain unchanged until the end of the year. </p>
<p>This situation is particularly exemplified in <a href="https://news.liverpool.ac.uk/2020/09/04/survey-reveals-catastrophic-impact-of-covid-19-on-local-music-scene/">local music scenes and communities</a> which have been heavily affected by COVID-19. Many independent music venues worldwide <a href="https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/how-independent-live-music-venues-are-fighting-for-their-existence-coronavirus/?utm_social-">are fighting</a> to keep afloat.</p>
<p>For instance, popular music venues The Deaf Institute and Gorilla in Manchester, recently <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-manchester-53493070">had to be saved from closure</a> due to financial constraints. Tim Burgess, of The Charlatans, <a href="https://twitter.com/Tim_Burgess/status/1283785610835169281?s=20">summed it up when he said</a>: “I’ve played and watched gigs in both and they were the lifeblood of Manchester’s vital network of venues. It’s awful news but seems inevitable that so many more independent venues will be lost.”</p>
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<p>In an attempt to bridge the gap between themselves and the fans, artists have been switching to <a href="https://www.npr.org/2020/03/17/816504058/a-list-of-live-virtual-concerts-to-watch-during-the-coronavirus-shutdown?t=1600701307753">“live” digital concerts and events</a> such as <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/jul/23/nick-cave-idiot-prayer-review-livestreamed-gig-alexandra-palace">Nick Cave’s Idiot Prayer gig</a> in an empty Alexandra Palace with just a piano and his voice. This was live-streamed and will be also released in cinemas. </p>
<p>The live music industry has also been experimenting with other digital formats such as Glastonbury’s attempt to launch a <a href="https://amp.independent.ie/entertainment/music/glastonburys-shangri-la-team-launches-virtual-reality-festival-39268865.html#click=https://t.co/KuFfBEgI">virtual reality festival</a>. <a href="https://www.nme.com/features/lost-horizon-virtual-reality-glastonbury-2020-shangri-la-2693862">Lost Horizon</a> is being streamed on Twitch and YouTube and the organisers invite attendees to fully immerse themselves by either using a desktop PC or a VR headset. </p>
<p>Other digital “live” events involve music fans consuming “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-12-2014-0775">real and fantastic</a>” time and space through virtual imaginary settings and the use of digital avatars. Examples include VR-driven concerts by <a href="https://www.roadtovr.com/john-legend-wave-concert-june/">John Legend</a>, <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-52410647">Travis Scott</a> and <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/pro/features/virtual-reality-livestreams-covid-1021683/">Jean-Michel Jarre</a>. </p>
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<p>But are these experiences an authentic way of experiencing live music? Or do they indicate a transition towards a <a href="https://theconversation.com/virtual-reality-has-been-boosted-by-coronavirus-heres-how-to-avoid-it-leading-us-to-dystopia-141073">dystopian cultural milieu</a>? In this scenario, we might end up losing sight of the multi-sensory and collective aspects of live music and experience it instead alone at home through a VR headset or a similar technological device.</p>
<p>We need to safeguard the cultural heritage of the live music industry and support local spaces, events and communities in the delivery of innovative cultural offerings in a post-COVID era. More <a href="https://pitchfork.com/news/watch-flaming-lips-perform-race-for-the-prize-in-bubbles-on-colbert/">creative initiatives</a> are needed if we were to blend the physical and digital aspects without downplaying the significance of real live music. </p>
<p>The Flaming Lips have experimented with one such innovative approach. They did a live gig where both the band and the audience were “enclosed” in individual bubbles. It might not be the perfect solution – but I bet everyone who attended that gig will remember it for the rest of their lives.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/146500/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexandros Skandalis does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Live music venues must be helped to survive the COVID-19 era.Alexandros Skandalis, Lecturer in Marketing and Consumer Culture, Lancaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1374442020-05-01T12:02:21Z2020-05-01T12:02:21ZFive ways musicians are responding to the coronavirus crisis<p>Amid wider devastation, the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the musical world. Although online consumption has risen – <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/354f05c7-8418-4d2b-bd56-3d8dd65d2bde">Spotify, for instance, has seen large growth in paid subscriptions</a> – music-makers are still suffering. Many receive only <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/mar/19/musicians-ask-spotify-to-triple-payments-to-cover-lost-concert-revenue">tiny payouts</a> from streaming sites. And with public gatherings curtailed, concerts, tours and festivals are currently ruled out, jeopardising employment prospects for musicians and the future of shuttered venues. </p>
<p>At the same time, people around the world <a href="http://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2020-03-27-covid-19-bears-out-research-music-brings-people-together">have turned to music</a> to <a href="https://theconversation.com/lockdown-singing-the-science-of-why-music-helps-us-connect-in-isolation-137312">help them through</a> the crisis. From <a href="https://theconversation.com/singing-away-the-coronavirus-blues-making-music-in-a-time-of-crisis-reminds-us-we-belong-133790">balcony-based sing-alongs</a> to <a href="https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/connect/togetherathome/">megastar global broadcasts</a>, music has become embedded in our responses to disrupted lives. With creators and lovers of music depending on digital mediation, a wide range of approaches to making, sharing and experience music have arisen. Here are five such musical responses.</p>
<h2>Music about the crisis</h2>
<p>Living In A Ghost Town is the Rolling Stone’s first single in four years and their first new original material since 2012. Although the world has changed so much since then, it’s perhaps unsurprising that the response from the venerable Stones to COVID-19 remains fairly close to previous practice. </p>
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<p>Written a year ago – and largely drawn from 2019 recording sessions for a forthcoming album – Living In A Ghost Town was rushed into release due to its resonance with the quiet city-centres of the current lockdown, albeit after some re-writing and remote recording. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/pop-culture-news/rolling-stones-coronavirus-lockdown-single-living-ghost-town-hits-no-n1192936">Topping the iTunes chart in 20 countries</a> could be an early indicator of wider success for the song. And if it’s not quite “business as usual” for the Stones, the release via the Polydor label and canny marketing suggest that established practices haven’t fallen completely by the wayside, and that the old guard have a couple more tricks up their sleeve.</p>
<h2>Collaborating at a distance</h2>
<p>The Stones may be musical veterans, but they have nevertheless been beaten into the record books by <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2020/apr/30/captain-tom-promoted-to-colonel-on-100th-birthday-in-flood-of-cards">Colonel Tom Moore</a>. Following another record-breaking effort by fundraising more than £29 million for the NHS through walking <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/52277760">100 laps of his garden</a>, the second world war veteran – <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-52433007">who turned 100 this week</a> – became <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-52415966">the oldest person to top the UK charts</a>. </p>
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<p>His cover of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV5_LQArLa0">Gerry and the Pacemakers’ You’ll Never Walk Alone</a> – with Michael Ball and the NHS Voices of Care Choir – was an example of how musicians are circumventing the physical restrictions of lockdown to <a href="https://online.berklee.edu/takenote/5-ways-for-musicians-to-collaborate-while-practicing-social-distancing-amid-the-coronavirus-outbreak/">collaborate online</a>. Ensembles of all sizes, from bands to <a href="https://www.makingmusic.org.uk/resource/covid-19-staying-connected">local choirs</a> and all the way up to <a href="https://twitter.com/Reuters/status/1243734556777250817">symphony orchestras</a>, have refused to let COVID-19 stand in the way of playing together, turning to a host of software platforms to maintain their collective creativity.</p>
<h2>Rediscovering old music together</h2>
<p>Collective experience isn’t restricted to musicians, or to the latest <a href="https://www.music.ox.ac.uk/about/facilities/music-technology/tools-for-collaboration-and-recording-during-the-covid-19-crisis/">online collaboration platforms</a>. It spreads across more widely established social media platforms too. Tim Burgess, lead singer of the Charlatans, has been hosting <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/apr/10/tim-burgess-twitter-listening-parties">nightly listening parties</a> on Twitter under the hashtag <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/timstwitterlisteningparties?src=hashtag_click">#timstwitterlisteningparties</a>. </p>
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<p>Each session takes a classic album for participants <a href="https://timstwitterlisteningparty.com/index.html">on Twitter</a> to discuss and reminisce about communally as they listen at home. With musicians from the albums in question – such as members of Blur and Oasis – joining in sharing their memories and pictures, Burgess’s listening parties occupy a space between fan engagement, a pub conversation and private listening.</p>
<h2>Public service announcements</h2>
<p>Not every new release is a career milestone publicity coup like the Stones’ new single, or a record-breaking deployment of the latest communications technology like Captain Moore’s chart topper. Randy Newman’s new song, Stay Away – was a more homespun affair. It was a response to <a href="https://www.poynter.org/business-work/2020/kpcc-asked-randy-newman-to-share-social-distancing-tips-he-wrote-a-song-instead/">a request from Southern California public radio station KPCC</a> to, as he put it, “say some words about social distancing – because of my scientific background, because apparently there’s some disease that’s going around”.</p>
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<p>Celebrities of all stripes, have been using their platforms to reinforce local and national governments’ safety messaging. Newman opted to do so musically, with a characteristically wry combination of public service announcement and love song. Proceeds from the song are donated to a New Orleans music charity founded by jazz legend <a href="https://www.ellismarsaliscenter.org/">Ellis Marsalis</a>, who passed away from COVID-19 at the start of the month.</p>
<h2>Livestreams for venues</h2>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/jo-cox-charity-single-theres-no-going-back-in-the-merging-of-pop-and-politics-70615">Charity records</a> are not a new development, of course. Charity concerts go as far back as the 18th century and <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/734040.pdf">Handel’s fundraising performances</a> of his anthem for the Foundling Hospital in Bloomsbury. </p>
<p>Now, however, it’s music venues that are riven by the current crisis. Hundreds of venues are <a href="http://musicvenuetrust.com/2020/04/music-venue-trust-launches-saveourvenues-campaign/">at risk of permanent closure in the UK alone</a>, with government support <a href="https://completemusicupdate.com/article/music-venue-trust-says-a-million-in-emergency-funding-is-needed-to-ensure-grassroots-venues-can-survive-the-covid-19-shutdown/">not plugging the gap</a>. The question has been one of how to make the broadly distributed experience of online streaming work locally. </p>
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<p>Punk-folk singer Frank Turner, a patron of the Music Venue Trust, turned his attention to a specific venue with personal significance for him – The Joiners in Southampton – playing a gig from his home via a Facebook Watch Party that <a href="https://www.nme.com/news/music/frank-turner-saves-southampton-joiners-with-livestream-gig-as-venues-ask-artists-for-help-2640491">raised over £10,000 for the venue</a>, and staved off its imminent closure.</p>
<p>This has flowered into the Music Venue Trust’s <a href="https://saveourvenues.co.uk/">Save Our Venues</a> initiative, which partners venues with artists for targeted fundraising streams that go out on venue, artist and the Save Our Venues websites and social media accounts.</p>
<p>Music makers everywhere have risen to the challenge of COVID-19, providing emotional, financial and cultural resources for quarantined populations. Now though, more than ever before in previous public crises, amongst those whose livelihoods they need to protect are their own.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/137444/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adam Behr has received funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council </span></em></p>Music lovers and creator have devised new ways to create, experience and fund music.Adam Behr, Senior Lecturer in Popular and Contemporary Music, Newcastle UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1339612020-03-20T09:02:43Z2020-03-20T09:02:43ZCoronavirus: for performers in lockdown, online is becoming the new live<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321576/original/file-20200319-22602-1x4x21b.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4583%2C3009&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Closed for the duration: the Royal Opera House, London.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Willy Barton via Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>There’s still a great deal of uncertainty as to what impact the <a href="https://theconversation.com/uk/topics/covid-19-82431">coronavirus pandemic</a> will have on the UK’s cultural life. More and more people are now choosing to self-isolate and theatres, cinemas, clubs and concert halls are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2020/mar/13/coronavirus-culture-arts-films-gigs-festivals-cancellations">closing down for the duration</a> with talk that an enforced lockdown is ever more imminent. </p>
<p>While initially presented as voluntary, cancellations of performances, conferences and other events were formalised on March 16 by the UK’s prime minister, Boris Johnson. Johnson <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/pm-statement-on-coronavirus-16-march-2020">advised citizens</a> to “avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues” as part of a larger strategy to suppress the spread of coronavirus. People working in the arts sector are <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/mar/17/leading-arts-figures-demand-clarity-over-compensation-for-coronavirus-closures">understandably concerned</a> about what this might mean for the UK’s <a href="http://uklivemusiccensus.org">diverse community</a> of artists and performers – as well as all those in the sector who support those performers. </p>
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<p>The government has introduced some measures that aim to support the arts sector, both at a <a href="https://twitter.com/ChloeLaversuch/status/1239965135348752385?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22">local</a> and a <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-employees-employers-and-businesses">national level</a>. But a number of artists are trying to find ways to work from home by livestreaming their performances online. Such a shift forces artists to consider technological, economic and aesthetic issues – and may signal the dawning of a new era in live performance.</p>
<h2>Have broadband, will perform</h2>
<p>The livestreaming of artistic performances is not new – but until now the practice has not been a significant alternative to the live music economy at large. Perhaps the most common form of livestreaming has been through videos taken at gigs or festivals by audience members who want to <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1468797619885954">share their experience</a> of the live performance via footage shot on their smartphones. </p>
<p>But there have also been concentrated efforts by venues and artists to reach online audiences. A number of well-established organisations such as the <a href="https://wigmore-hall.org.uk/watch-listen/live-stream">Wigmore Hall</a> and <a href="https://www.rsc.org.uk/news/archive/summer-shakespeares-coming-to-cinemas">the Royal Shakespeare Company</a> regularly complement existing performance series with livestreaming to reach wider audiences or as educational outreach.</p>
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<p>Independent artists such as bass guitarist <a href="https://www.stevelawson.net">Steve Lawson</a>, on the other hand, include livestreaming as part of a portfolio of online activity – which also include delivering lessons or masterclasses via video or the now-commonplace selling of albums online.</p>
<h2>Virtual gigs</h2>
<p>The vast amount of livestreaming that takes place in the arts sector is in parallel with (or contingent upon) face-to-face performance. There are signs that this is already changing as social restrictions around the coronavirus pandemic become more widespread. </p>
<p>In the US, <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/coronavirus-livestreaming-concerts-967169/">Rolling Stone magazine</a> has highlighted how larger bands and venues are working to quickly provide online alternatives to gigs and tours that have now been cancelled due to lockdowns. </p>
<p>The move towards online live performance is even attracting artists who might not be thought of as natural users of digital technology. As many New York City venues <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/mar/12/broadway-shuts-down-coronavirus">were closed</a> in the week preceding St Patrick’s Day, musicians involved in the Irish trad scene formed <a href="https://tune.supply">Tune Supply</a> – a platform by which they could provide “customised traditional music and dance performance and instruction delivered digitally for the socially distanced world”. </p>
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<p>Similarly, Celtic punk band Dropkick Murphys <a href="http://www.dropkickmurphys.com/2020/03/14/streaming-up-from-boston-free-st-patricks-day-live-stream/">livestreamed a concert from Boston</a> on March 17 to make up for the first time in the band’s history that it hasn’t played on St Patrick’s Day.</p>
<p>As livestreaming concerts has historically been used to <a href="https://www.musictank.co.uk/product/the-live-music-industry-in-the-digital-environment-transcript/">complement or advertise</a> existing live events, the void left by the cancellation or indefinite postponement of these events forces online alternatives into greater importance. This shift in performance practice has logistical, financial, and artistic implications.</p>
<h2>We have the technology</h2>
<p>The infrastructure needed to livestream performances is readily available through consumer-level products. Modern smartphones are <a href="https://momofilmfest.com/best-smartphone-for-video-recording-filmmaking-2019/">more than capable of generating high-definition videos</a>, and the software needed to record and edit sound – something that was once the preserve of professional recording studios – has become relatively commonplace.</p>
<p>There’s obviously something of a learning curve involved in using this software adeptly, but there is a wealth of online resources for musicians to become more proficient producers. But beyond actually organising the performance, artists need to be able to ensure they have adequate bandwidth to transmit that performance to audiences. With <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-50865443">increasing access to high-speed internet</a>, the stage is set for potential viewers to access content with minimal lag and disruption.</p>
<h2>Who’s making all the money?</h2>
<p>Financially, artists will have to determine how they monetise these performances. Several models already exist to do so, each with unique features. Platforms such as <a href="https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/72857">YouTube</a> allow artists to livestream performances and upload other videos, with income being generated through ad revenue. The amount of profit relies heavily on the amount of advertising and number of viewers – videos under ten minutes make, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/youtube-creator-doubled-ad-money-by-making-longer-videos-2020-1?r=US&IR=T">on average</a>, about US$2.00 (£1.70) for every 1,000 views.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.twitch.tv/p/partners/">Twitch</a>, on the other hand, works on a subscription basis – audiences pay set fees to access broadcasts of events. At the moment, this platform caters more towards <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/1369118X.2017.1386229?casa_token=Mc7q9_3X5yUAAAAA:vOeM2mWSPbodK3xYuPupRVbyrc3X-KtySKYjZ9L5GscC7Kcz9WnKM_dPc33o6OkOF4inZz5Mcv76bQ">professional online gaming</a>, but there are also communities around the performing arts as well. <a href="https://www.patreon.com/c/music">Patreon</a> also works on a subscription basis, but is more closely tied to crowdfunding. Generating work through the financial support of their audiences, artists often benefit from establishing <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10824-020-09381-5">positive relationships with them</a>.</p>
<h2>That ‘live’ feeling</h2>
<p>Beyond the technological and financial logistics of livestreaming performances is a greater aesthetic issue. Livestreaming technically provides all of the ingredients to allow live music to persist in an era of social distancing. Artists can still provide high-quality audio and visual experiences to their audiences and audiences can still enjoy new music or their favourite hits, all without leaving their comfort of their own homes. </p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/321634/original/file-20200319-22618-61dheg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Glastonbury Festival has been cancelled, despite it being the 50th year.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">marietta peros via Shutterstock.</span></span>
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<p>What may be harder to replicate is that electric vibe of being with other people in that moment. The audience can make or break a gig – not necessarily through sheer numbers, but in terms of what the relationship between them, the artist, and the music is like. For performers, reproducing that “live” feeling out of context can be a significant challenge. </p>
<p>As increasing numbers of musicians and audiences adopt this way of making and enjoying music together, I suspect all participants will develop a new set of expectations around where aesthetic value is placed in the performance. </p>
<p>This unprecedented global crisis provides an opportunity for artists to develop new ways of working with audiences and content to replicate that sense of “liveness” and connectivity found in a concert hall. Who knows? This might become an enduring part of a new reality.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133961/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>J Murphy McCaleb does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Will a coronavirus lockdown prompt a permanent change in the way we experience live performance?J Murphy McCaleb, Senior Lecturer of Music, York St John UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1211172019-08-14T19:58:44Z2019-08-14T19:58:44ZTighter alcohol licensing hasn’t killed live music, but it’s harder for emerging artists<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287327/original/file-20190808-144862-49ovmf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Fortitude Valley is unique in Australia for its concentration of live music venues, like The Valley Drive In, in one small neighbourhood.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.facebook.com/thevalleydrivein/">The Valley Drive In/Facebook</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>This is the fourth in a <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/quantem-74665">series of articles</a> discussing a <a href="http://statements.qld.gov.au/Statement/2019/7/26/evaluation-of-measures-to-tackle-alcoholfuelled-violence">recently released</a> <a href="https://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/tableOffice/TabledPapers/2019/5619T1074.pdf">comprehensive evaluation</a> of the Queensland government’s <a href="https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/html/asmade/act-2016-004#">2016 policy reforms to tackle alcohol-fuelled violence</a> and the implications for liquor regulation and the night-time economy in Queensland and Australia. A <a href="http://quantem.info/">summary report</a> is also available.</em></p>
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<p>The effect on live music of changes to trading conditions in nightlife precincts <a href="https://theconversation.com/beyond-lockouts-sydney-needs-to-become-a-more-inclusive-city-55821">generates heated debate</a>. That’s because live music matters. It is a unique and important part of the <a href="https://theconversation.com/is-melbourne-the-music-capital-of-australia-sydney-or-adelaide-might-pip-it-to-the-post-77087">late-night rhythm and culture of the city</a>.</p>
<p>In both <a href="https://theconversation.com/melbourne-music-week-rocks-but-dont-take-the-feedback-for-granted-19147">Melbourne</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/lockout-laws-repeat-centuries-old-mistake-of-denying-value-of-cities-as-messy-places-58281">Sydney</a>, we’ve seen sustained debate about how urban development and regulation of licensed venues affect opportunities for live performance.</p>
<p>Contrary to some of the claims made in these debates, our evaluation of the Queensland government’s <a href="http://statements.qld.gov.au/Statement/2019/7/26/evaluation-of-measures-to-tackle-alcoholfuelled-violence">tightening of liquor licensing restrictions in 2016</a> suggests no change to the number of venues or impact on the overall trend of an increase in live music performances. </p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/lessons-from-queensland-on-alcohol-violence-and-the-night-time-economy-121114">Lessons from Queensland on alcohol, violence and the night-time economy</a>
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<p>But staging smaller shows by emerging artists has become more difficult because of the costs of new security requirements. The viability of the venues depends on selling alcohol. As a result, many venues depend on alcohol sales in late-night trade when they convert to being a bar or club with DJs.</p>
<h2>What happened in Fortitude Valley?</h2>
<p>In July 2016, the Queensland government <a href="https://theconversation.com/lessons-from-queensland-on-alcohol-violence-and-the-night-time-economy-121114">changed laws</a> affecting designated safe night precincts like Fortitude Valley in Brisbane. This included serving last drinks at 3am and mandatory ID scanning in venues trading after midnight.</p>
<p>We <a href="https://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/tableOffice/TabledPapers/2019/5619T1074.pdf">monitored what impact these changes to trading conditions might have on live music</a> in Fortitude Valley.</p>
<p>The Valley is unique in Australia for its concentration of live music venues in one small neighbourhood and the early development of <a href="https://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/planning-and-building/planning-guidelines-and-tools/other-plans-and-projects/valley-special-entertainment-precinct/valley-music-harmony-plan">policy </a> to protect and foster live music in the area. </p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/a-live-music-scene-needs-a-live-music-policy-20140">A live music scene needs a live music policy</a>
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<p>The Valley has two overlapping precincts. The special entertainment precinct was created in 2006 to provide regulatory certainty for live music venues. The safe night precinct is the area subject to the 2016 <a href="https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/html/asmade/act-2016-004#">Tackling Alcohol-Fuelled Violence legislation</a>. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=471&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=592&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=592&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286840/original/file-20190805-117871-6cnkl2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=592&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Map of the special entertainment precinct (red) and safe night precinct (blue) boundaries in Fortitude Valley. MPC = Monthly Percentage Change.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>Live music venues in the Valley compete with large clubs and pubs for space. They are subject to the regulatory and compliance frameworks introduced to contain harms in the precinct. As a result, they are having to rethink how they maintain their distinctive music scenes in rapidly changing neighbourhoods.</p>
<h2>Have live music venue numbers changed?</h2>
<p>Despite its cultural and economic importance of original live music venues, their numbers and performances are not systematically and independently monitored in Australia. Music industry bodies could work with performers and venues to publish independent and reliable information about the number and type of venues and gigs over time.</p>
<p>Music rights licensing organisation <a href="http://apraamcos.com.au/">APRA/AMCOS</a> asks live music performers to submit performance returns that document all their live performances. Our analysis of this data shows live music performances in The Valley have been trending upward since 2001. Our evaluation suggests the Tackling Alcohol-Fuelled Violence policy measures had no impact on this trend. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=393&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/286842/original/file-20190805-117910-1szi7jw.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=494&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">The number of live music performances per month in Fortitude Valley between the 2001 and 2018 financial years. MPC refers to Monthly Percentage Change.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This APRA/AMCOS performance data, however, cover everything from cover bands, DJs and ambient music in restaurants and bars to original live music performances in small venues through to stadium rock shows.</p>
<p>We also used a combination of precinct walk-throughs (where we observed original live music venues trading on Saturday nights), street press and social media. We found the number of original live music venues in the Valley has not changed since last drinks and ID scanner regulations were introduced in 2016. While original live music venues come and go, change owners and change names, the overall number in the area has been stable for much of the past 15 years.</p>
<h2>Live music is dependent on late-night trade</h2>
<p>While the trading pattern of venues on Saturday nights has not changed, in interviews we conducted venue owners and managers reported various ways they subsidised or supplemented the income from live music.</p>
<p>Nearly all original live music venues only generate income from bar sales. Proceeds from tickets and the door go to production costs and the musicians. The viability of the venues depends on selling alcohol before, during and after performances.</p>
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<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/queenslanders-are-among-our-heaviest-drinkers-on-nights-out-and-changing-that-culture-is-a-challenge-121115">Queenslanders are among our heaviest drinkers on nights out, and changing that culture is a challenge</a>
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<p>Some venues used profit generated on large weekend shows to subsidise smaller local weeknight shows. These shows matter because they provide opportunities for emerging artists to hone their craft and are part of the distinctive cultural fabric of the city.</p>
<p>However, venue owners indicated that staging these smaller shows has become more difficult because of the prohibitive cost of employing security to operate the mandatory ID scanners. This illustrates how, according to venue owners, efforts to contain harm in the nightlife economy can have unintended damaging effects on cultural scenes.</p>
<p>The majority of venues that support original live music in the precinct are less than ten years old. Many seem well adapted to the commercialised late-night precinct because they combine live music with late-night trade. They put on a show early in the evening and then by midnight convert to a late-night bar or club with DJs.</p>
<p>Some of these venues claimed they would not be commercially viable if they only put on original live music before midnight and then closed. Others indicated live music enabled them to generate revenue earlier in the evening - before a clubbing crowd comes in.</p>
<h2>A policy dilemma</h2>
<p>This kind of adaptation is what you’d expect to see in a market as it reacts to changes in both consumer culture and policy. But it raises thorny questions for cultural and public health policy.</p>
<p>From a public health perspective we might be concerned about original live music becoming dependent on late-night trade and mass alcohol consumption in nightlife precincts. From a cultural policy perspective the ingenuity of venues using the earlier hours of an evening to stage original live music is something to encourage.</p>
<p>The Valley has a unique concentration of live music venues, and cultural policy has played a role in fostering and sustaining this vibrant cultural scene. In one sense that’s a success story the city should celebrate and look to capitalise on alongside the effort to reduce harms in nightlife precincts. But, in another sense, a critical issue is that the effort to both maintain cultural vibrancy and reduce harms is potentially thwarted by venues shifting to a homogenous late-night clubbing model.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/121117/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Nicholas Carah's research has been funded by Queensland state government. He is affiliated with the Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education as a non-executive director. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jason Ferris receives funding from from Australian Research Council and Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, grants from State (Tasmania, Victoria, Queensland) and Federal Governments, National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund, Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education, University of Queensland, National Institute of Health, Global Drug Survey. He is affiliated with the Global Drug Survey and the Queensland Mental Health Commission.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Lachlan Goold and Scott Regan do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The good news is that the growth of live music continued under Queensland’s liquor licensing reforms. The bad news is that venues rely on late-night alcohol sales to cover costs.Nicholas Carah, Senior Lecturer in Communication, The University of QueenslandJason Ferris, Associate Professor, Program Leader for Research and Statistical Support Service and Program Leader for Substance Use and Mental Health, Centre for Health Services Research, The University of QueenslandLachlan Goold, Head of Audio Engineering and Sound Production (Brisbane), JMC AcademyScott Regan, Lecturer in Music and Sound, Queensland University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1207172019-08-14T12:31:04Z2019-08-14T12:31:04Z50 years ago, Jimi Hendrix’s Woodstock anthem expressed the hopes and fears of a nation<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287709/original/file-20190812-71897-1jd1uqn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Hendrix's version of the National Anthem combined reverence and revolution.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.needpix.com/photo/425355/jimi-guitarist-woodstock-photomontage-free-pictures-free-photos-free-images-royalty-free">nelag0/pixabay</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>One of the most powerful, searing renditions of the national anthem ever recorded, Jimi Hendrix’s iconic Woodstock anthem, almost never happened. </p>
<p>In his memoir, Hendrix’s drummer, Mitch Mitchell, <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=aJkHAAAACAAJ&dq=%22mitch+mitchell%22+hendrix&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjh1Lq9jYDkAhXnYt8KHSxrAmsQ6AEwAHoECAEQAg">admitted</a> that the band “hadn’t rehearsed … or planned to do ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ at Woodstock.”</p>
<p>The festival was supposed to wrap up on Sunday night, but a series of delays, traffic jams and rainstorms had postponed the closing set until 9:00 a.m. the next day. Hendrix hadn’t slept the night before.</p>
<p>Hendrix played for more than an hour that Monday morning before introducing his regular concert-closer, “Voodoo Child (Slight Return).” </p>
<p>“Thank you very much and goodnight,” <a href="https://www.justasktheaxis.org.uk/anfons/1120.asp">he said</a>, as the band continued to jam. “I’d like to say peace, yeah, and happiness.” </p>
<p>But then, instead of wrapping up his set, he launched into his iconic take on Francis Scott Key’s song.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MwIymq0iTsw?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Hendrix performed the anthem as an encore.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Fifty years after Hendrix performed “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Woodstock, the rendition still serves as an exemplar of music’s political potency. It inspired <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-the-society-for-american-music/article/this-is-america-jimi-hendrixs-star-spangled-banner-journey-as-psychedelic-citizenship/0029FB312D1A8A9C61C0345C6DB59525">my own scholarship</a> on the past, present and future of the national <a href="http://starspangledmusic.org/">anthem</a>. </p>
<p>What made Hendrix’s rendition so remarkable was his ability to fuse protest and horror with patriotism and hope.</p>
<h2>A living, breathing anthem</h2>
<p>Roused by the heroism of the soldiers who repelled the British attack on Baltimore’s Fort McHenry during the War of 1812, Francis Scott Key wrote the song in September 1814. <a href="https://youtu.be/3l-n64NWHS4?t=13">Using a well-known melody</a>, the lawyer-poet composed a new set of lyrics to fit the tune.</p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287928/original/file-20190813-9415-1frz5f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/287928/original/file-20190813-9415-1frz5f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287928/original/file-20190813-9415-1frz5f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287928/original/file-20190813-9415-1frz5f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=829&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287928/original/file-20190813-9415-1frz5f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1042&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287928/original/file-20190813-9415-1frz5f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1042&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/287928/original/file-20190813-9415-1frz5f9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1042&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Francis Scott Key.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Francis_Scott_Key_by_Joseph_Wood_c1825.jpg">Walters Art Museum</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In the 19th century, it was common practice to write new lyrics to old songs as a way to comment on politics and culture – a tradition known as <a href="https://ebba.english.ucsb.edu/page/heyday-of-the-broadside-ballad">broadside balladry</a>. So far my research has identified roughly 200 songs written to the tune of “The Star-Spangled Banner.” The abolitionist lyric “<a href="http://starspangledmusic.org/abolitionist-star-spangled-banner-oh-say-do-you-hear-1844/">Oh Say, Do You Hear?</a>” is one particularly powerful example.</p>
<p>Hendrix, in a way, continued this tradition, updating the tune to say something about the world around him. </p>
<p>Rather than change the words, however, Hendrix transformed the musical arrangement. </p>
<h2>Mining the anthem’s many meanings</h2>
<p>Some might think Hendrix’s Woodstock Banner was an on-the-spot improvisation. But he had actually been experimenting with the song for over a year, and he would continue to perform the anthem up until his untimely death in September 1970. </p>
<p>In all, <a href="http://journals.cambridge.org/Hendrix_ThisIsAmerica">Hendrix performed the piece at least 70 times</a>, with his last known performance taking place almost a year after Woodstock – in Hawaii, on Aug. 1, 1970.</p>
<p>Hendrix sometimes titled his anthem renditions “This Is America,” and his arrangements were as flexible as they were potent. They could be as short as three minutes or as long as six-and-a-half. </p>
<p>Building off the traditional melody, Hendrix could paint a picture of patriotic pride or commercial corruption. </p>
<p>Hendrix knew how to celebrate the nation. For example, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/track/4nAYisEOs1gXH8slCqsGfI?si=MyA3MRzdSEijaSfZ_s2ZDw">his studio version of the anthem</a> is a patriotic fireworks display, bursting with overlapping layers of the traditional melody. It’s decorated with sparkling trills, extra melodic passing tones and extreme octave shifts.</p>
<p>At the other end of the symbolic spectrum are his <a href="https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2012/03/jimi-hendrix-experience-this-is-america.html">four anthem renditions that he recorded live at San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom</a> in October 1968. They begin with dark, atmospheric improvisations, punctuated by Mitchell’s explosive drums, and include raucous quotes of TV advertising jingles and a distorted, out-of-tune version of the melody that devolves into the Civil War lament “Taps.”</p>
<p>Hendrix also knew how to blow up the anthem. </p>
<h2>Fusing horror with hope</h2>
<p>Woodstock was a social experiment – a cultural response to a decade of protest and fear. </p>
<p>On one side, there was America’s youth, outraged by racial injustice and war in Vietnam. On the other side, there was an establishment terrified by the social revolution taking place: new attitudes about sex, drugs, spirituality, racial equality and communal living.</p>
<p>This generational collision came to a head on the wooden stage built at Max Yasgur’s farm.</p>
<p>Hendrix was an unlikely countercultural hero. He was a mixed-race, rock icon <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/stars-who-served-in-the-military/11/">who had served in the U.S. Army’s 101st Airborne</a>, earning his “Screaming Eagles” patch as a paratrooper. While he escaped the military to pursue his musical career, he still had friends in Vietnam. </p>
<p>In his Woodstock anthem, Hendrix seems to mimics explosions, machine gunfire and a wailing emergency siren – musical images of horror. </p>
<p>But these departures from the traditional melody don’t dismantle the anthem. Instead, he plays notes that intone the words “bombs bursting in air” and “rockets red glare.” He depicts, rather than destroys, the song.</p>
<p>Hendrix then plays the “<a href="https://www.dictionary.com/browse/taps">Taps</a>” melody, a tune traditionally performed at military funerals to honor the sacrifice of service.</p>
<p>Finally, he returns to the traditional anthem melody, offering a full and faithful conclusion to the song. He lingers on several words, extending the note sounding the word “free” for six full seconds. His musical conclusion seems to echo the optimistic, if not triumphant, themes of the festival. </p>
<p>When 400,000 arrived for a concert designed for, at most, half that number, a public health disaster loomed. Shortages of food, water, gas, and medical supplies, compounded by an impassable traffic jam foretold of suffering if not <a href="https://www.upi.com/Archives/1969/08/16/Thousands-flee-Woodstock-chaos-mud/5321502589701/">violence</a>. Yet the community pulled together and a temporary city appeared. Rivers of mud made utopia impossible, but attendees persevered. Extra food was donated, volunteer doctors from the U.S. Army and Red Cross were flown in by helicopter, patience and peace reigned. Music held the world <a href="https://www.loudersound.com/features/desolation-row-what-really-happened-at-the-woodstock-festival-of-1969">together</a>.</p>
<p>Hendrix used Key’s anthem to reflect the America he experienced at Woodstock that weekend. It was a nation mired in contradiction, but also a community capable of pulling together. </p>
<p>It was a cry of anguish and a vision of “peace, yeah, and happiness.”</p>
<p>[ <em>You’re smart and curious about the world. So are The Conversation’s authors and editors.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=youresmart">You can read us daily by subscribing to our newsletter</a>. ]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/120717/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark Clague receives funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the University of Michigan Humanities Institute.</span></em></p>Before an exhausted crowd, Hendrix fused protest and horror with patriotism and optimism.Mark Clague, Associate Professor of Musicology, University of MichiganLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1115902019-03-04T11:38:43Z2019-03-04T11:38:43ZFyre debacle shows how smaller acts can get burned in modern music festival economy<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261693/original/file-20190301-110140-1s8nci3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Festivals can offer great exposure for smaller acts, but the competition for slots is fierce.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/silhouettes-concert-crowd-front-bright-stage-281954864">dwphotos/Shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The Fyre documentaries on <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7843600/?ref_=tt_rec_tt">Hulu</a> and <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9412098/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1">Netflix</a> gave a behind-the-scenes look into an ill-planned music festival and its aftermath. </p>
<p>Both films tell the story of how co-producers Billy McFarland and Ja Rule convinced investors and festival goers into forking over millions of dollars for what promised to be a luxurious, music-filled getaway on an island in the Bahamas. The festival, which was supposed to be headlined by Blink-182 and Major Lazer, ended up being canceled at the last minute, leaving audiences stranded, local workers unpaid and the producers in legal jeopardy.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"857834476050812928"}"></div></p>
<p>Most viewers probably enjoyed seeing the producers receive their comeuppance and <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/news/fyre-festival-instagram-friendly-music-event-12000-tickets-turns/">snickered at the millennials</a> lured to the event by Instagram influencers. </p>
<p>But as scholars who study <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=vAgVzVAAAAAJ&hl=en">festivals</a>, musicians and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=pwShwJgAAAAJ&hl=en">the careers of creative people</a>, we thought of the lower-tier musicians who rely on events like Fyre.</p>
<p>For every Blink-182, thousands of smaller acts hope to hit the stage. With musicians increasingly dependent upon live performances, how can these smaller acts thrive under the festival model?</p>
<h2>A synergistic relationship</h2>
<p>Fyre isn’t the only recent festival debacle. Last year, the Bay Area’s XO Music Festival was canceled after <a href="https://www.spin.com/2018/07/xo-music-festival-scam-canceled-fyre-fest/">low ticket sales</a>, <a href="https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2018/07/10/xo-music-festival-artists-bay-area/">artists dropped out</a> and <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/fraud-from-the-start-a-music-festival-is-canceled-and-accused-of-deceit-again-698237/">various legal issues</a>. </p>
<p>A high-profile band can afford the occasional misfire, but what about the others? Of the 33 announced acts at Fyre, only one band performed: a “<a href="https://nypost.com/2019/01/15/hulu-scoops-netflix-with-rival-fyre-fest-scam-documentary/">local no name band</a>” that was never on the bill.</p>
<p>The relationship between festivals and talent seems straightforward. Larger acts cost more but draw ticket sales and media attention. Smaller acts work for producers in three ways: They are cheaper, fill the bill and lend festivals some authenticity.</p>
<p>The book “<a href="http://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/M/bo21803778.html">Music/City</a>” explores the balance between corporate interests and the spirit of creating unique music-driven experiences. Austin’s <a href="https://www.sxsw.com">South by Southwest festival</a>, for example, is unique in that it was founded on the idea of giving a platform for unknown acts to perform before New York and Los Angeles record executives. </p>
<p>In the book, a singer-songwriter explained that festivals work for musicians because they get to perform for fans but also help “find people who have never heard of you.” Musicians are, she said, trapped in “taste silos”; festivals can broaden their audiences.</p>
<p>Festival organizers see value in smaller acts too. One producer explained that they lend authenticity by “representing the city’s culture.” For a producer who schedules performers at a major country music festival, he balances “legend type artists” with smaller, cheaper and promising acts.</p>
<h2>A disease of excess supply</h2>
<p>But when it comes to getting paid, there’s vast inequality.</p>
<p>Festival headliners can make millions. For example, Beyoncé, Radiohead and Kendrick Lamar <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/17/the-mastermind-behind-coachella">made between US$3 million and $4 million at the 2017 Coachella festival</a>. Lower-tier acts can expect to <a href="https://www.laweekly.com/music/the-economics-of-music-festivals-whos-getting-rich-whos-going-broke-4167927">make around $15,000</a> per performance at a major music festival.</p>
<p>For smaller acts, this is still a significant amount, especially when you consider how difficult it is to make a living as a musician. </p>
<p>A 2018 <a href="https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/53aaa2d4-793a-4400-b6c9-95d6618809f9/downloads/1cgjrbs3b_761615.pdf">survey of over 1,200 U.S. musicians</a> found that 42 percent of their income came from performances, while only 5 percent came from recorded music and streaming services. The average U.S. musician, however, earns under $25,000 a year, and over 60 percent of them say their music income isn’t enough to make ends meet. The <a href="https://www.arts.gov/sites/default/files/unemployment-rates-2004-2013.pdf">National Endowment for the Arts</a> found that musicians are more than twice as likely to be unemployed than other professionals.</p>
<p>Why is a music career so challenging? </p>
<p>One reason is that aspiring musicians contend with what French sociologist Pierre-Michel Menger <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1574067606010222">refers to</a> as the disease of “excess supply.” In other words, there is a permanent oversupply of musicians, which leads to a lot of <a href="http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674724563">underemployed performers</a>. Data from <a href="http://snaap.indiana.edu/pdf/2016/SNAAP_Annual_Report_2016_FINAL.pdf">The Strategic National Arts Alumni Project</a> show that career musicians are likely to hold multiple jobs at once, combine arts- and non-arts-related work and moonlight in other creative fields.</p>
<p>Even successful acts that headline festivals and venues gigs make only a sliver of the profits. A <a href="https://ir.citi.com/NhxmHW7xb0tkWiqOOG0NuPDM3pVGJpVzXMw7n%2BZg4AfFFX%2BeFqDYNfND%2B0hUxxXA">2018 report on the music industry</a> shows how ticket profits are divided, with artists taking home 30 percent of the profits at best. While fans spend more on music than ever, artists – both big and small – still only make <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/music-artists-make-12-percent-from-music-sales-706746/">12 percent</a> of the $43 billion in total revenue in the music industry.</p>
<h2>Hope lies in smaller festivals</h2>
<p>One of the issues with larger festivals is that they’re all beginning to look strikingly similar.</p>
<p>In 2017, 40 percent of the Boston Calling Music Festival’s 47 bands performed at New York’s Governor’s Ball, Tennessee’s Bonnaroo or California’s Coachella. The online music magazine Pitchfork <a href="https://pitchfork.com/features/festival-report/10059-are-music-festival-lineups-getting-worse/?mbid=homepage-more-latest-and-video">described</a> Boston Calling as the <a href="http://diegoolano.com/robmitchum/pitchfork/festivals.html">least unique</a> of the nation’s top 19 festivals.</p>
<p>Perhaps that’s because a handful of corporations now own most of the festivals.</p>
<p>For example, the Madison Square Garden Company recently purchased a controlling share of the company that produces Boston Calling. Coachella was bought by the <a href="https://www.aegworldwide.com/index.php/divisions/music/festivals">conglomerate</a> that also puts on Bumbershoot, Firefly and Bayou Country Superfest. And Live Nation now owns a controlling stake in Bonnaroo, Austin City Limits and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/29/business/media/live-nation-takes-control-of-bonnaroo-festival.html">60 other festivals around the world</a>. </p>
<p>On the other hand, smaller, niche festivals tend to have more variety than splashy, more corporate mega-events. </p>
<p>Staying in Massachusetts, smaller festivals like Wilco’s <a href="https://solidsoundfestival.com">Solid Sound</a>, the <a href="https://www.greenriverfestival.com">Green River Festival</a>, the <a href="https://springfieldjazzfest.com">Springfield Jazz Festival</a> and <a href="https://freshgrass.com">Fresh Grass</a> display a wider array of artists. Last year, an attendee of all four festivals would not see the same act twice. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261732/original/file-20190301-110123-qzttk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261732/original/file-20190301-110123-qzttk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261732/original/file-20190301-110123-qzttk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261732/original/file-20190301-110123-qzttk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=355&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261732/original/file-20190301-110123-qzttk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261732/original/file-20190301-110123-qzttk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261732/original/file-20190301-110123-qzttk0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=446&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Wilco performs at Solid Sound in 2017.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/pneyu/34814676743">Uyen/flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/">CC BY-NC-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Green River producer Jim Olsen told us that he looks for acts that aren’t a natural fit for mega-events, like his 2019 headliner, the Swedish folk duo First Aid Kit. Olsen said his mid- and lower-tier acts can expect to earn roughly two to three times more than their regular concert fee.</p>
<p>As the summer festival season approaches, audiences should consider checking out smaller events. Sure, they garner fewer headlines than the massive mega festivals. But attendees will see more variety, pay less money and will be able to support a greater number of emerging acts.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/111590/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Alexandre Frenette has received funding from the National Endowment for the Arts</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Wynn does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Live performances account for more than 40 percent of their income, while profits from streaming and record sales amount to only 5 percent of their earnings.Jonathan Wynn, Associate Professor of Sociology, UMass AmherstAlexandre Frenette, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Associate Director of The Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, and Public Policy, Vanderbilt UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1104852019-02-07T11:35:20Z2019-02-07T11:35:20ZDid academia kill jazz?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/257519/original/file-20190206-174870-4y3nux.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">At some point, jazz went from the music of youthful rebellion to that of the cultured elite.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/abstract-photo-music-small-metal-piano-1074336500">Freedom Master/shutterstock</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Jazz seems to be experiencing a bit of a renaissance among movie directors – look no further than documentaries such as “<a href="https://www.sundance.org/projects/miles-davis-birth-of-the-cool">Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool</a>,” which just premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, biopics such as “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2133196/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1">Born to Be Blue</a>,” and recent Oscar winners like “<a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2582802/">Whiplash</a>.” </p>
<p>While films about jazz are everywhere, evidence suggests that fewer people are <a href="https://www.arts.gov/artistic-fields/research-analysis/arts-data-profiles/arts-data-profile-18">actually consuming the music, putting the genre more on par with classical music</a> than with today’s pop artists.</p>
<p>There are a host of reasons for the decline of jazz as a popular music, but the one that interests me <a href="https://harrisburg.psu.edu/faculty-and-staff/adam-gustafson">as a music historian</a> is the role that academics played. </p>
<p>In our attempt to elevate jazz to the ivory tower, we may have inadvertently helped to kill it as a popular style.</p>
<p>However, all is not lost. While the genre might seem destined for academic obscurity, jazz continues to kick around in popular music – just in subtler ways.</p>
<h2>Jazz captivates the country</h2>
<p>In the 1920s, during the early years of <a href="https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/great-migration">the Great Migration</a>, waves of black Americans migrated from the South into the industrial cities of the North. Black jazz musicians, particularly those from New Orleans, brought their sound with them. They moved to neighborhoods such as <a href="http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1212.html">The Stroll in Chicago</a>, <a href="https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/black-bottom-neighborhood">Black Bottom in Detroit</a>, <a href="https://americanjazzmuseum.org/content/neon-signs-18th-vine">12th Street and Vine</a> in Kansas City and, of course, Harlem. This occurred just as the record industry blossomed and radios became mainstays in American homes. </p>
<p>Jazz was well-positioned to become the most popular genre of music in the nation. </p>
<p>Over the next decade, the genre underwent a transformation. Artists began to amass larger ensembles, fusing the energy of jazz with the volume of dance bands. <a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Billboard_Illustrated_Encyclopedia_o.html?id=w51ptGAeszIC&source=kp_book_description">The Swing Era</a> was born, and jazz orchestras dominated pop charts.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/257525/original/file-20190206-174894-mvf5jz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/257525/original/file-20190206-174894-mvf5jz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/257525/original/file-20190206-174894-mvf5jz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/257525/original/file-20190206-174894-mvf5jz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=461&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/257525/original/file-20190206-174894-mvf5jz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/257525/original/file-20190206-174894-mvf5jz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/257525/original/file-20190206-174894-mvf5jz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=580&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">During the Swing Era, the Lindy Hop was a popular dance.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e1/Dancing_the_jitterbug.jpg">UCLA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These developments led to a new set of issues. Larger bands meant less freedom to improvise, the cornerstone of jazz. During the 1940s, music recordings became increasingly important, and jazz musicians found themselves frustrated with how little they were being paid, resulting in a <a href="https://www.afm.org/about/history-2/">series of strikes</a> by the American Federation of Musicians.</p>
<p>By the time these problems were resolved, America’s youth had already begun gravitating toward new styles of R&B and country, which would eventually morph into rock ‘n’ roll: </p>
<p>After that, jazz never really recovered. </p>
<h2>From the club to the classroom</h2>
<p>Jazz underwent another, more subtle, shift during that same time period: It left the club and went to college. </p>
<p>After World War II, jazz genres fractured and the music became more complex. It also became popular among college students. Dave Brubeck Quartet released several albums in the early 1950s that acknowledged the group’s popularity with the college crowd, including “Jazz at Oberlin” and “Jazz at the College of the Pacific.” </p>
<p>Perhaps university administrators wanted to elevate a distinctly American genre to a status of “high art.” Or, maybe they just wanted to capitalize on jazz’s popularity among college students. Either way, universities started to create curriculums geared towards the genre, and by the end of the 1950s, several institutions, such as the <a href="https://jazz.unt.edu/history">University of North Texas</a> and the <a href="https://www.berklee.edu/about/brief-history">Berklee College of Music,</a> had jazz programs up and running.</p>
<p>In the classroom, jazz was explored in a new way. Rather than hearing jazz played while grinding on a dance floor, it became something to dissect. In one of the earliest jazz histories, “<a href="https://books.google.com/books/about/The_Story_of_Jazz.html?id=tDQrHw5zNaYC">The Story of Jazz</a>,” musicologist Marshall Stearns captures this shift. He begins his book by explaining how difficult it is to categorize the spirit of jazz. He then spends over 300 pages trying to do just that.</p>
<p>Popular culture began to reflect jazz’s shifting identity as the music of educated people. The 1953 film “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCENBce_dls">The Wild One</a>” features a bouncing big band soundtrack that underscores the shenanigans of a motorcycle gang led by Marlon Brando. </p>
<p>Just two years later, “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7CGVPYIk54">Blackboard Jungle</a>,” also features delinquent kids – except this time, they prefer the sound of <a href="https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/bill-haley">Bill Haley</a>. In one scene, their math teacher tries to get the kids to appreciate his collection of jazz records. The scene ends with the kids beating the teacher and breaking his records. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/O7CGVPYIk54?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">‘Music is based on mathematics, and – it’s just, the next class is a little more advanced.’</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Jazz had gone from the music of youthful rebellion to that of the cultured elite. </p>
<p>During the 1960s, jazz may have been as eclectic as ever. But academics like historian Neil Leonard continued to push for jazz to be made into a serious subject of academic inquiry, as he argued in his book “<a href="https://academic.oup.com/jah/article/49/4/727/823999">Jazz and the White Americans</a>.” Professional groups devoted to the study of jazz education were founded, such as the <a href="https://www.apassion4jazz.net/iaje.html">National Association for Jazz Education</a>.</p>
<p>During the 1970s and 1980s, introductory jazz courses started to reach critical mass and led to the growth of what jazz critic Nate Chinen dubbed the “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/07/arts/music/07chin.html">jazz-education industry</a>.” Playing jazz required a college degree. Jazz had become the music of the educated. It was the music of Cliff and Clair Huxtable, one a doctor and the other a lawyer, from “The Cosby Show.” </p>
<h2>Just don’t call it ‘jazz’</h2>
<p>In the last 20 years, jazz’s identity as an academic art form has only grown. At my institution, almost all of the non-classical course offerings in the music school are about jazz. </p>
<p>Today, in any given semester on any given campus, you can find college students sitting in classrooms at 9 a.m. on a Tuesday trying to absorb the importance and complexity of a music meant to be heard in a club at 2 a.m. on a Saturday. It’s become brussels sprouts for budding music aficionados: You know it’s good for you, but it doesn’t necessarily taste all that great. </p>
<p>Outside of the classroom, a dwindling audience base has forced traditional jazz venues to play into the notion of jazz as an educated person’s music. The current iteration of <a href="http://mintonsharlem.com/about-mintons/">Minton’s Playhouse</a>, a club that was once a bastion of jazz energy, now calls jazz “America’s classical music” in an attempt to raise the profile of the genre (and perhaps justify the cost of the steaks being served there). </p>
<p>Other venues have minimized jazz. This year’s New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival <a href="https://www.nojazzfest.com/lineup/#/">will feature</a> decidedly non-jazz artists such as Katy Perry, The Rolling Stones and Chris Stapleton. </p>
<p>Despite jazz’s distance from its popular roots, a little digging shows that we still like listening to jazz more than we think. We just stopped openly calling it jazz.</p>
<p>Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album “<a href="https://medium.com/cuepoint/the-oral-history-of-kendrick-lamar-s-to-pimp-a-butterfly-622f725c3fde">To Pimp a Butterfly</a>” is every bit as much a jazz album as it is a rap album, thanks to Lamar’s collaboration with the saxophonist <a href="https://www.complex.com/music/2017/10/kamasi-washington-on-kendrick-lamar-to-pimp-butterfly">Kamasi Washington</a>. Washington also had a short film, “As Told to G/D Thyself,” based on his album, “Heaven and Earth,” at Sundance. </p>
<p>Lamar’s album was such a revelation that it inspired David Bowie to feature a jazz ensemble as his backing band for his final rock album, “<a href="https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/obituary/6836599/david-bowie-blackstar-jazz-musicians-remember">Blackstar</a>.” </p>
<p>Meanwhile, the music collective <a href="http://snarkypuppy.com/about">Snarky Puppy</a> has become an international sensation by creating <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_XJ_s5IsQc">long-form jazz works</a> while avoiding any specific labels. Another music collective, Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox, has found a way to keep the sound of jazz alive – and to embrace jazz’s lighter side – by transforming contemporary pop songs into historical <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLnZ1NQm2uk">jazz genres</a>. </p>
<p>With academia positioning jazz as art music, the genre is unlikely to experience a popular resurgence any time soon. </p>
<p>But today’s artists are proving that the spirit of jazz is alive and well, and that jazz is much more than its name. </p>
<p>Maybe this is fitting: The earliest jazz musicians didn’t call their music “jazz” either. Instead, they blended their sound with pre-existing pop genres, and, in doing so, created one of the most distinct forms of music in American history.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/110485/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Adam Gustafson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Jazz used to be experienced on a dance floor. But over time, it became something to dissect and analyze.Adam Gustafson, Instructor in Music, Penn StateLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/954712018-04-26T10:13:38Z2018-04-26T10:13:38ZNick Cave sets out for a Distant Sky hand-in-hand with his audience<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/216465/original/file-20180426-175061-1tsxm5v.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Screenshot from Distant Sky (2018).</span> </figcaption></figure><p>It’s October 2017 and a crowd has filled the Royal Arena in Copenhagen for a performance by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Fans crowded at the edge of the stage applaud feverishly when Cave appears. The singer has the microphone in his right hand and gestures with the left. Standing almost directly above the audience, his hands hover over spectators’ heads, inviting them to reach out to him – his body almost touches them. And when he sings “Can you feel my heart beat?”, Cave grasps spectators’ hands and brings them to his chest. After a brief moment of puzzlement, the audience responds, offering him their hands. </p>
<p>This is not just another rock concert. This is the band’s first concert tour after the loss of Cave’s 15-year-old son Arthur, who <a href="http://www.nme.com/news/music/nick-cave-talks-death-of-son-arthur-2066069">died in July 2015</a>. The audience is well aware of the traumatic effect on Cave – he shared this in the 2016 film One More Time With Feeling. </p>
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<blockquote>
<p>You change from a known person to an unknown person. So that when you look at yourself in the mirror, you recognise the person that you were, but the person inside the skin is a different person.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>On stage, Cave’s hands run the show – the hands that hold the microphone and give it to spectators to hold while he rhythmically claps. The hands that play the piano, that touch, grab, grasp, hold spectators’ hands. The hands that grab towels to wipe his sweat, the hands that hug a young spectator. The hands that the audience hold so tight, as if they are helping to keep him on his feet, to keep going.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/216205/original/file-20180424-57614-1dd0ccz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/216205/original/file-20180424-57614-1dd0ccz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/216205/original/file-20180424-57614-1dd0ccz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/216205/original/file-20180424-57614-1dd0ccz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/216205/original/file-20180424-57614-1dd0ccz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/216205/original/file-20180424-57614-1dd0ccz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/216205/original/file-20180424-57614-1dd0ccz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Movie poster for Cave’s Distant Sky concert film.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sylvia Solakidi</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>But how about the others that Cave cannot physically touch? The Royal Arena has a capacity of 12,500 people. How can someone – like myself – seated among 20,000 spectators near the back row of the O2 Arena in London a few days before the Copenhagen concert, get touched by this? But I did. And I felt that touch again just recently, while sitting in a movie theatre watching a recording of the Copenhagen concert in the <a href="https://www.nickcave.com/news/new-nick-cave-bad-seeds-live-concert-film-distant-sky/">film Distant Sky</a>.</p>
<p>I could hear Cave’s voice. I could see his body and the handclasps. I could see others hearing and seeing him. And I held and was held by the performer’s and spectators’ hands. Magic?</p>
<h2>Communication and empathy</h2>
<p>Touch is remarkable in the way it connects. According to the French philosopher <a href="https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/merleau-ponty/">Maurice Merleau-Ponty</a> (1908-1961), when my two hands clasp each other, or one of my hands clasps yours, both hands are touching and are touched and they establish a connection between them, between us. But who is touching who – and who is holding who? Me or you, Cave or his spectators? This is mutual communication without words. I reach out to you and I take the risk that you may withdraw your hand, refuse touch, refuse connection.</p>
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<p>When Cave sings “With my voice I am calling you’, he invites spectators to touch his hand, when he demands "Look at me now!” he grasps their hands. While the body of the singer sings of his need for connection, spectators touch by seeing and hearing. According to Merleau-Ponty, touch is a model sense and different senses interrelate like “hands” – they “touch” each other and through their interweaving, they allow people to connect. </p>
<p>Influenced by Merleau-Ponty, in the 1990s, the Italian neurophysiologist Giacomo Rizzolatti discovered <a href="http://www.gocognitive.net/interviews/giacomo-rizzolatti-mirror-neurons">mirror neurons</a>, which are activated both when we see and when we act. He conducted experiments showing that empathy is possible because when we see a gesture being performed, it is as if we are doing it ourselves. In this way, touch can “touch” other people. </p>
<h2>Intense emotion</h2>
<p>The effect of Cave’s handclasp with one person is amplified through seeing and hearing – and the intensity of their connection explodes in the huge concert venues making them “smoking, boiling, melting, burning” – to quote the words stencilled on his concert piano. We experienced the same intensity sitting in our seats in the movie theatre. When the camera switches from close-ups or medium shots of the first rows to long shots of the Royal Arena, the audience exploded just as if they were in the venue itself.</p>
<p>When Cave sings “I need you” and his body and voice crack, the audience sees the trauma of his son’s death. He transforms the music into “a weeping song” – but it isn’t for his son alone. We respond because we all have a precious person, that – in Cave’s words from his song Girl in Amber – we wish that “no part of her go unremembered”. Together we are a strong body of hearing, seeing and touching that makes an event of togetherness happen. In the end, when we “push the sky away” with our raised arms, we also push grief away, we are filled with delight and gratitude. </p>
<p>In his live performance documented in the film Distant Sky, Cave has revealed the power of the familiar – more often than not underrated – format of the rock concert, through the unexpected element of touch that “gets you right down to your soul”.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/95471/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sylvia Solakidi receives funding from TECHNE-AHRC Doctoral Training Partnership. She is a second year PhD student at the University of Surrey</span></em></p>The film of Cave’s first tour since the death of his son is powerful and evocative.Sylvia Solakidi, PhD Researcher in Performance Philosophy, University of SurreyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/897582018-01-09T19:38:03Z2018-01-09T19:38:03ZHow music festivals can change the tune on sexual violence<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201259/original/file-20180108-83550-1bifvxa.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Music festivals tend to be geared toward young audiences, and may constitute the site of sexual harassment and assault against younger women.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">AAP/Damian Shaw</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>This year’s summer music festival season has again been marred by <a href="http://musicfeeds.com.au/news/man-charged-sexually-assaulting-teenager-falls-festival-mosh-pit/">several incidents of sexual assault</a>. Three incidents of sexual assault were reported at the Falls Festival at Tasmania’s Marion Bay, in a repeat of similar incidents <a href="http://musicfeeds.com.au/news/falls-festival-responds-multiple-alleged-sexual-assaults-tasmania/">at last year’s festival</a>. And <a href="http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/music-festivals/woman-retaliates-after-man-grabs-her-breast-at-a-music-festival/news-story/f4d3cab8bd1dbed05dcea7c48df9a638">disturbing footage</a> of a man groping a woman at the Rhythm and Vines Festival in New Zealand on New Year’s Eve quickly went viral.</p>
<p>A groundswell of activism around sexual harassment and assault at music festivals is taking place. Australian band <a href="https://campcope.bandcamp.com/">Camp Cope’s</a> <a href="http://themusic.com.au/news/all/2016/09/08/camp-cope-spearhead-it-takes-one-campaign-to-improve-gig-saftey/">It Takes One</a> campaign is calling on organisers and artists to change the culture underpinning sexual violence at festivals. </p>
<p>Similarly, the <a href="https://your-choice.net.au/">Your Choice</a> movement, which was launched in 2017, promotes cultural change and encourages bystander intervention at music events.</p>
<p>Internationally, the UK-based <a href="https://sgfw.org.uk">Safe Gigs for Women</a> works with venues and festivals to eliminate sexual harassment and assault. </p>
<p>All of these developments are occurring alongside an <a href="http://www.socialjusticejournal.org/metoo-rape-culture-and-the-paradoxes-of-social-media-campaigns/">increasing public outcry</a> about the pervasive and systemic nature of sexual violence. But what do we actually know about sexual violence at music festivals? And what is it about these spaces (and their patrons) that facilitate acts of sexual violence?</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Camp Cope’s It Takes One campaign.</span></figcaption>
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<h2>How common is sexual violence and harassment?</h2>
<p>Social media campaigns like #MeToo have demonstrated that sexual harassment and assault are widespread and not limited to any one social or cultural setting. Nonetheless, a string of high-profile incidents and campaigns suggests that music festivals could be a hotspot for this type of violence.</p>
<p>There is virtually no research on sexual violence at music festivals; we are aiming to change this with our <a href="https://www.facebook.com/safemusicfestivals/">current research project</a>. This lack of research makes it difficult to know how prevalent sexual violence at festivals is beyond high-profile, anecdotal cases that have been picked up by the media.</p>
<p>However, we can draw on research on sexual violence and harassment from other settings to gain some insight into what might be happening at festivals. </p>
<p>Young women are consistently identified as the age group most at risk of being sexually harassed or assaulted. In Australia, women aged 18-34 are the most likely to have <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/4906.0%7E2016%7EMain%20Features%7EExperience%20of%20Sexual%20Harassment%7E29">experienced sexual harassment</a> in the past 12 months. Also, 38% of 18-24-year-olds and 25% of 25-34-year-olds have experienced sexual harassment in the past year.</p>
<p>Gender- and sexuality-diverse people also face <a href="https://aifs.gov.au/publications/sexual-violence-and-gay-lesbian-bisexual-trans-intersex-and-queer-communiti">disproportionately high rates</a> of sexual harassment and assault.</p>
<p>These statistics suggest we need to look at the social and cultural locations that young people inhabit when thinking about sexual violence. </p>
<p>Although most sexual assault takes place in private, residential locations between people who know each other, younger people are more likely to experience sexual assault in a wider range of locations and to be assaulted by someone other than an intimate partner. </p>
<p>So, sexual harassment and assault are common experiences in general. There is no reason to assume this is any different at music festivals. Music festivals tend to be geared toward young audiences, and, as such, may constitute the site of sexual harassment and assault against younger women, and gender- and sexuality-diverse people. </p>
<p>Research in analogous settings, such as licensed venues, suggests that sexual harassment and assault are commonplace. One of the co-authors’ research on unwanted sexual attention in <a href="https://theconversation.com/sexual-violence-in-pubs-and-clubs-just-a-normal-night-out-25156">licensed venues in Melbourne</a> found that young people perceived this behaviour as being pervasive and commonplace.</p>
<hr>
<p><em><strong>Further reading: <a href="https://theconversation.com/sexual-violence-in-pubs-and-clubs-just-a-normal-night-out-25156">Sexual violence in pubs and clubs: just a normal night out?</a></strong></em></p>
<hr>
<p>A <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1077801216661037">Canadian study</a> similarly reported that 75% of women in their sample had experienced unwanted sexual touching or persistence in bar-room environments. </p>
<p>Music festivals share many features with licensed venues that are likely to facilitate sexual violence. Large crowds of patrons, and the anonymity this provides, can enable perpetrators to sexually harass with apparent impunity. </p>
<p>Consumption of drugs and alcohol in these settings can also work to perpetrators’ advantage. For example, it can help downplay their own behaviour (“they were drunk and didn’t know what they were doing”), or target those who may have overindulged and become incapacitated.</p>
<h2>Gender inequality</h2>
<p>Australia’s music industry is male-dominated; male artists tend to <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com.au/2018/01/04/aussie-musicians-back-camp-cope-in-fight-over-gender-representation-on-festivals_a_23324435/?utm_hp_ref=au-homepage&ncid=tweetlnkauhpmg00000001">dominate festival line-ups</a>.</p>
<p>Gender inequality permeates the entire industry. <a href="http://sydney.edu.au/business/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/315275/Skipping-a-Beat_FINAL_210717.pdf">Research shows</a> that women (and, almost certainly, gender-diverse people) are underrepresented, undervalued and underpaid in virtually all facets of the Australian music industry.</p>
<p>Sexual violence is known to be more likely to occur in <a href="https://www.vichealth.vic.gov.au/programs-and-projects/vichealth-framework-for-preventing-violence-against-women">contexts of gender inequality</a>. This suggests music festivals – and the Australian music industry generally – may provide a cultural context in which the preconditions for sexual and gender-based violence abound.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"949055532198801409"}"></div></p>
<h2>Changing the beat</h2>
<p>Given all this, it’s reassuring that efforts to prevent sexual violence at festivals, and to generate broader cultural change within the industry, are taking place. However, change is slow, and pockets of resistance persist within the sector. This has led some to call for <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/news-and-views/why-ill-be-boycotting-music-festivals-this-year-20171227-h0afuy.html">festival boycotts</a> or to <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/music/2017/oct/09/women-only-music-festival-sweden-crowdfunding-statement">ban men from festivals</a>. </p>
<p>The current campaigns feature some promising elements, particularly in their focus on bystander intervention, and encouraging influential artists and industry leaders to call out inappropriate behaviour and take a stand against sexual violence. </p>
<p>However, there are many other steps festival organisers could take to prevent or reduce sexual violence, and to ensure they respond appropriately when it occurs. These include:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>introducing a policy on sexual harassment and assault that takes a zero-tolerance stance against this behaviour. This should include specifying consequences for perpetrators (like being ejected or banned from the festival, and potential legal ramifications). This should be clearly communicated to festival patrons, staff and volunteers, and consistently enforced;</p></li>
<li><p>training all festival staff, security and volunteers to identify and respond appropriately to incidents of sexual harassment and assault;</p></li>
<li><p>encouraging artists to take a stand against sexual violence, and to call out any bad behaviour they witness from the stage;</p></li>
<li><p>running high-profile prevention and bystander intervention campaigns; and</p></li>
<li><p>ensuring there are clear avenues for patrons to report incidents that occur at festivals.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Such actions need to occur alongside more widespread efforts and interventions. Ensuring all young people receive comprehensive <a href="https://theconversation.com/forget-the-pick-up-lines-heres-how-to-talk-about-your-sexual-desires-and-boundaries-53291">sexuality and respectful relationships education</a> is vital. And continued efforts to tackle the broader issue of gender inequality in the music industry are required.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>We’d like to talk to people who have experienced sexual harassment or assault at an Australian music festival. You can find out more about our project <a href="https://www.facebook.com/safemusicfestivals/">here</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>If you require support for sexual harassment or assault, contact details for national services are available <a href="https://www.humanrights.gov.au/list-sexual-assault-services">here</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/89758/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Bianca Fileborn receives funding from UNSW to undertake research on sexual violence at music festivals. She is affiliated with the Victorian Sexual Harassment and Assault at Live Music Venues Taskforce. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Phillip Wadds received funding from UNSW to undertake research on sexual violence at music festivals. He also receives funding from the NSW Department of Justice to evaluate the Take Kare Safe Space Program operating in Sydney's night-time economy.</span></em></p>Sexual harassment and assault are common experiences in general: there is no reason to assume this is any different at music festivals.Bianca Fileborn, Lecturer in Criminology, UNSW SydneyPhillip Wadds, Lecturer in Criminology, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/834342017-09-10T19:44:24Z2017-09-10T19:44:24ZThe economics of ticket scalping<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/185026/original/file-20170907-8393-3n36jx.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Event promoters are underpricing and undersupplying tickets.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-08-30/afl-finals-tickets-scalped-online/8856440">Allegations</a> that tickets to recent AFL and NRL finals matches were being resold for up to three times their initial price raises questions of why ticket scalping happens, and whether anything can be done about it.</p>
<p>To an economist, the existence of a secondary market - where tickets are resold - is a sign that they have been undersupplied, underpriced or a combination of the two. </p>
<p>Event promoters, for example, are incentivised to sell as many tickets as possible so they can profit off sales of food, drinks and other concession stand items. This leads them to price tickets low.</p>
<p>Scalpers thrive off such conditions as it presents them with an arbitrage opportunity (the chance to make a profit from buying and selling the same thing) that would never have existed in a world where tickets were plentiful and priced in line with demand.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coming-soon-to-a-cinema-near-you-ticket-prices-shaped-by-demand-72260">Coming soon to a cinema near you? Ticket prices shaped by demand</a>
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</em>
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<p><a href="http://resale.ticketmaster.com.au/">Online reselling platforms</a> also put upward pressure on prices by making tickets easier to re-sell, while simultaneously allowing ticketing companies to double dip on commissions and booking fees. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is taking ticket re-seller Viagogo to the <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/accc-takes-ticket-reseller-viagogo-to-court">Federal Court</a>, alleging the company engaged in deceptive pricing. </p>
<p>While <a href="https://www.legislation.sa.gov.au/LZ/C/A/MAJOR%20EVENTS%20ACT%202013.aspx">some Australian states</a> have introduced legislation to limit the amount that tickets can be resold for, promoters and policymakers are struggling to keep up with <a href="https://thump.vice.com/en_au/article/ae8j4z/how-new-scalping-technology-is-keeping-you-out-of-concerts">advances in technology</a> that make scalping tickets easier than ever. </p>
<h2>Why is there scalping?</h2>
<p>The continued existence of scalping and resale markets is puzzling to economists. If tickets to major events are consistently undervalued, to the point that there is an entire industry based on resale, why do promoters continue to price tickets so low? </p>
<p>One argument is that event promoters are <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/109114219902700504">risk averse</a>, preferring the certainty of a guaranteed sell-out over the uncertainty of potentially over-valuing tickets. </p>
<p>This fits with <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/2937660?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">research</a> that suggests people prefer to attend events in a packed-out venue, as opposed to a sparsely attended one. This incentivises event promoters to sell out venues as people’s demand for tickets depends, to some extent, on the demands of others.</p>
<p>There is also the somewhat idealistic idea that <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/1806070?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents">fairness</a> stops event promoters from setting prices too high. This is the idea, often <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-27/midnight-oil-warns-fans-not-to-buy-tickets-from-scalpers/8308210">voiced in the media</a>, that tickets should end up in the hands of “true fans”. </p>
<h2>The pros and cons of scalping and reselling</h2>
<p>But there is an argument that ticket scalping actually enhances the total welfare of concert goers and sports fans. Scalpers act to distribute tickets to those who value them the most, or, as economists’ would say, they increase the <a href="http://www.investopedia.com/terms/a/allocationalefficiency.asp">allocative efficiency</a> of the market. </p>
<p><a href="http://resale.ticketmaster.com.au/">Secondary markets for tickets</a> allow potential buyers to indicate how much they want to go to the event – their “<a href="http://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/demand.asp">willingness to pay</a>”. If tickets can only be bought at a single price on a first come first serve basis, then some people who really want to go will be left out. Secondary markets permit these mutually beneficial exchanges to take place.</p>
<p>Online platforms for buying and selling tickets actually <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-oxford-handbook-of-sports-economics-volume-2-9780195387780?cc=au&lang=en&">increase this allocative efficiency</a>. These platforms arm buyers and sellers with ever increasing amounts of information, and the time and expenses associated with the purchase of each resold ticket (known as “<a href="http://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/transactioncosts.asp">transaction costs</a>”) are greatly reduced. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/london-olympics-tickets-will-the-poor-get-through-the-door-7997">London Olympics tickets: will the poor get through the door?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>But scalping and secondary ticket markets are not without their downsides. Enterprising scalpers may be encouraged to buy up large proportions of available tickets in order to maximise their profits.</p>
<p>This is called “rent seeking” and <a href="https://academic.oup.com/restud/article/81/1/266/1730966/Resale-and-Rent-Seeking-An-Application-to-Ticket">has been shown</a> to potentially reduce (or even eliminate) any gains in allocative efficiency.</p>
<p>There is also the issue of fairness, and whether “<a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-27/midnight-oil-warns-fans-not-to-buy-tickets-from-scalpers/8308210">true fans</a>” will be priced out of going to see their favourite performer or team. And then there is the issue that scalpers take away profits that could have instead accrued to the very artists, entertainers or sporting personalities on show. </p>
<h2>Can anything be done about scalping?</h2>
<p>As demonstrated by the likes of Taxi competitor <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-economics-behind-ubers-new-pricing-model-78180">Uber</a> (and soon to be found in some <a href="https://theconversation.com/coming-soon-to-a-cinema-near-you-ticket-prices-shaped-by-demand-72260">Australian cinemas</a>), “pricing bots” can adjust prices in real time based on demand or other consumer characteristics. </p>
<p>Such technology could reduce ticket scalping by putting pricing power in the hands of event promoters. But as previously noted, there is a reluctance to increase prices, and so some artists and groups have begun a series of blunt measures designed to tackle the problem. </p>
<p>Kid Rock, for example, has embarked on a number of “<a href="https://kidrock.com/blog/blog/342023/the-20-ticket-is-back">US$20 Best Night Ever</a>” tours. As the name suggests, almost all tickets are sold for US$20 at supermarkets and venue box offices. Making the ticket price clear and transparent up front is a rather neat trick to try and stop tickets from being sold above face value.</p>
<p>Kid Rock also <a href="http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/detroit/index.ssf/2015/02/post_125.html">tends to perform</a> many shows at the same venue. This increases the total supply of tickets on offer in a single city, reducing the premium that can be placed on a ticket in the secondary market. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-economics-behind-ubers-new-pricing-model-78180">The economics behind Uber’s new pricing model</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The Glastonbury music festival has begun <a href="http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/information/tickets/ticket-info/">printing pictures</a> of the ticket purchaser on every ticket. This may ensure the purchaser of the ticket and the attendee are the same person. However, the high cost of administering such tight controls make them viable to only the most profitable of events. </p>
<p>A similar system will be in place when former 1-Directioner, Harry Styles, plays Sydney’s Enmore Theatre later this year. Ticket holders will be required to attend a “<a href="http://www.enmoretheatre.com.au/events/2017/11/26/harry-styles">check-in</a>” before entering the venue. </p>
<p>Meanwhile Taylor Swift has <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i5B1asvFxY">announced</a> that fans can “boost” their place in the virtual ticketing queue by participating in a range of Swift related activities such as watching music videos and purchasing her music.</p>
<p>While Swift’s <a href="https://tickets.taylorswift.com/faq">stated goal</a> of “getting tickets into the hands of fans…NOT scalpers or bots” is admirable, this has been viewed by many as nothing more than an <a href="https://twitter.com/RouReynolds/status/902470255796248577">opportunistic cash grab</a> from her most loyal fans.</p>
<p>Measures such as these are more likely to inconvenience ardent ticket scalpers rather than deter them. As long as tickets to major events are being systematically under-priced, scalpers have an incentive to bypass tighter controls and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2017/jan/16/hamilton-west-end-tickets-found-on-resale-sites-viagogo-despite-anti-tout-measures">headlines</a> <a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bruce-springsteen-broadway-tickets-sell-for-7500-so-the-boss-extends-to-february-2017-08-30?mod=MW_story_latest_news">bemoaning</a> “inflated” prices will continue.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/83434/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Ticket scalpers thrive because tickets are underpriced and undersupplied.Paul Crosby, PhD Scholar in the Department of Economics, Macquarie UniversityJordi McKenzie, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics, Macquarie UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/801452017-06-27T20:07:27Z2017-06-27T20:07:27ZCreative country: 98% of Australians engage with the arts<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175789/original/file-20170627-6086-adpiti.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Nearly three-quarters of Australians go to live art events, such as Dark Mofo in Hobart. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Stefan Karpiniec/Flickr</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The arts play a role in the lives of 98% of the Australian population, according to a new survey, <a href="http://www.australiacouncil.gov.au/research/">Connecting Australians</a>, released by the Australia Council today. That is, the majority of Australians from all walks of life – different ages, genders, cultures and backgrounds – participate and engage with the arts on some level.</p>
<p>While this figure is consistent with previous surveys, one major change is the national impact of new technologies on the experiencing and making of arts practice. For example, the survey found that 97% of all Australians aged between 15 and 24 engage with the arts online and 81% of Australians overall, up from 49% in 2009 and 73% in 2013. The major areas of engagement are listening to music (97%), reading books (79%) and going to live events (72%).</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=495&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=622&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=622&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175784/original/file-20170627-29088-1kvkehx.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=622&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Australia’s arts engagement 2016.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Australia Council</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The latest report is a follow-up to surveys in <a href="http://www.australiacouncil.gov.au/workspace/uploads/files/research/full_report_more_than_bums_on_-54325919b74d6.pdf">2009</a> and <a href="http://www.australiacouncil.gov.au/workspace/uploads/files/research/arts-in-daily-life-australian-5432524d0f2f0.pdf">2013</a> that tracked the way Australians engage with the arts. The data are derived from a nationally representative sample of 7,537 Australians aged 15 years and over. The researchers also did studies with several focus groups within particular demographics to develop a deeper understanding of community attitudes and values.</p>
<h2>Young engaging with the arts</h2>
<p>Another important discovery in the survey is that both First Nations people and those from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds are more likely to engage with the arts online (at 90%) relative to the general population (just over 80%).</p>
<p>This online participation compares with 72% of people attending arts events in person. While this might be a problem if fewer people were attending arts events, it appears that many of those experiencing the arts online are in fact new audiences – no doubt the 15-24 age group as noted above. Thus there may not be a reduction in attendance; rather, we are seeing an increase in other forms of participation.</p>
<p>An important change is the recognition by an increased number of people that the arts have a positive impact on their lives. Young people, again, are the group that recognises this most. This effect appears to decrease with age, as do most kinds of arts engagement.</p>
<p>Both aspects of this finding are surprising given that the audience age at particular forms of arts practice such as classical music or opera is older. It would seem from this data that as the population ages, there is less engagement with the arts and those engaging feel less of a positive benefit.</p>
<h2>Signs of discontent?</h2>
<p>There are some other areas of concern too that seem to reflect broader social disengagement patterns in the Australian population and culture. For example, there is an increased ambivalence towards public funding of the arts from around 13% of the population in 2013 to 25% in 2016 (they answered “neither agree nor disagree” to the statement that the arts should receive public funding).</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175792/original/file-20170627-29070-1bn84qj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Some 76% of Australians listened to recorded music online.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock.com</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The percentage of those who think the arts are too expensive has also increased (from 36% to 43%). Likewise, more people think the arts attract people who are somewhat elitist, and more people think the arts aren’t for people “like them”. </p>
<p>The report authors see this changing perception as possibly reflecting a particular framing of the “arts” – that is, the arts are interpreted only as the “high” arts. If this is the case, there is a need for further work around how the arts are defined, as well as more consideration of skewed funding patterns versus broader cultural preferences. The survey shows that this elitist framing is generally age-defined, with younger people seeing the arts from a broader perspective. </p>
<p>More people see the arts as a way of improving cultural understanding and tolerance, with an increase from 36% of the population in 2013 to 64% in 2016. There is also an increase in those who believe the arts are more truly reflective of Australia’s cultural diversity – from 64% in 2013 to 75% in 2016.</p>
<p>The survey demonstrates the changing way that people now engage and participate in the arts. Researcher John Holden has talked at length about this with his framing of <a href="http://apjacm.arts.unimelb.edu.au/article/view/18/14">three forms of culture</a> – publicly funded, homemade and commercial. </p>
<p>One of the survey researchers notes that the boundaries between art appreciation and art making are increasingly blurred. This is evidence of greater engagement in art making, especially by young people, using platforms such as Youtube, Instagram and Spotify. </p>
<p>Technology has been a democratising force in encouraging and enabling more people to both appreciate and participate in all forms of arts practice. It is likely this will continue and that is good for both arts engagement and how we value arts practices.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/80145/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jo Caust has received funding from the Australia Council. She is a member of the Arts Industry Council (SA) and NAVA. </span></em></p>New survey from the Australia Council shows pretty much all Australians engage with the arts, and 8-in-10 do so online. However more people are ambivalent about public arts funding, and more people think the arts are too expensive.Jo Caust, Associate Professor and Principal Fellow (Hon), The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/770872017-05-15T20:11:17Z2017-05-15T20:11:17ZIs Melbourne the music capital of Australia? Sydney or Adelaide might pip it to the post<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/169250/original/file-20170515-3659-5tnk9v.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Melbourne's Flinders Street station is transformed into a stage for the 2013 White Night. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/sweeoon/13717082123/in/photolist-mU8CBV-R2dNgP-mU8Au8-QYBJMs-yuJDTf-kkUsj8-dXnyrd-SgeJ3M-dXgGHv-dXnm89-dXnmLs-kmN2tG-SgezzK-kmMXry-kmN69N-knwJte-rifLSX-pS4urx-qmjYPN-knBtwt-ngtQRm-knxbUF-dXH59y-dXnqRu-rfotpC-dXBowF-ks6kmb-knZBUC-kDX1L9-kDVnEX-dXBou4-bYobEJ-cBi6rE-pZzbFS-knkppe-RFvYzj-kDVkHR-knXycH-rhmTGs-SgeEyx-R2dS9Z-knXmuy-knW2tD-SgemiV-dXBohV-kDX1Qh-dXBoBz-dXBokv-knNcLt-knNpKZ">Gav Owen/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Melbourne’s successful bid to host a <a href="http://www.musiccitiesconvention.com/">prestigious international conference</a> on music cities in 2018 has been hailed as a golden opportunity for it to cement its status as “<a href="http://themusic.com.au/news/all/2017/05/03/melbourne-stamps-itself-as-australias-music-capital-by-hosting-major-global-event/">Australia’s music capital</a>”, and “a global music city”.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.citylab.com/cityfixer/2015/10/what-does-it-take-to-make-a-music-city/413011">Music Cities Convention</a> brings together global music players from government, industry and the academy and aims to “create a tool-kit” about how to “cultivate [a] vibrant and lucrative music city”. </p>
<p>But is Melbourne really Australia’s music capital? In a <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2158244017691801">recent paper</a>, I crunched the numbers to find that the jury is still out on this claim. Indeed arch rival, Sydney (or even Adelaide) have a chance to claim this title. </p>
<p>UNESCO, the United Nations’ education, science and culture body, offers the only <a href="http://en.unesco.org/creative-cities/home">official accreditation</a> of a music city. For a city to be awarded this title, it needs to have a strong music heritage, an excellent background in music-making, education, community involvement and regular high-profile local and international music events. </p>
<p>UNESCO has designated Melbourne a city of literature, and Sydney a city of film. But Adelaide that was recognised as <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-12-12/adelaide-unesco-city-of-music/7023412">Australia’s only city of music</a> in 2015. Adelaide plays host to numerous international festivals including the annual WOMADelaide, and the OzAsia Festival. </p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zXKN_IBdhRA?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Adelaide-based Tkay Maidza in Carry On.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Arguably Melbourne fulfils this criteria, however UNESCO does not allow for cities to hold more than one title in different creative industries. This leaves Melbourne and its music capital status in the dubious land of self-branding. </p>
<h2>Show us the money</h2>
<p>After extensive data mining I found <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2158244017691801">three ways of assessing the vitality of a city’s music scene</a>: economics, creativity, and heritage, although the data are patchy.</p>
<p>Firstly, we can look at the economics of music, including revenue from music, employment, audience participation, and the number of music venues. As the 2015 <a href="http://www.ifpi.org/downloads/The-Mastering-of-a-Music-City.pdf">Mastering of a Music City report</a> suggest, a “music city” is defined as an urban area with a “vibrant music economy”. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=896&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1126&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1126&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169247/original/file-20170515-3659-qmb40i.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1126&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A piece of music history at Melbourne’s ACDC lane.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/geoftheref/5915052320/">Geof Wilson/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>According to <a href="http://musicvictoria.com.au/assets/Documents/DAE_Live_music_report_2011.pdf">Victorian</a> <a href="http://www.musicvictoria.com.au/assets/Documents/Victorian_Live_Music_Census_2012.pdf">reports</a>, Melbourne has 465 live music venues and its music industry earns more than A$1.04 billion each year. Although not included in the <a href="http://www.worldcitiescultureforum.com/news/world-cities-culture-report-2015-now-published">2015 World Cities Cultural Report</a>, this puts Melbourne ahead of Sydney with 435 venues. Adelaide, which was given music city status by UNESCO, has about 208 live music venues. Therefore Melbourne (and even Sydney) compares favourably with Los Angeles (510 venues), New York City (453), Tokyo (385), and London (245).</p>
<p>However a <a href="http://livemusicoffice.com.au/research">national study</a> in 2015 suggest that NSW leads the way in music employment (13,832 jobs in NSW and 11,117 jobs in Victoria), audience participation, measured in live music ticket sales (A$342,544 million in NSW; A$275,748 million in Victoria), and music revenue annually (A$1.8 billion in NSW; A$1.4 billion in Victora). </p>
<p>As <a href="http://www.dunstan.org.au/docs/elbournereport2013.pdf">Martin Elbourne</a>, co-founder of the inaugural Music Conventions, contends, most of the commercial music business is based in Sydney. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=398&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/169248/original/file-20170515-3652-fev71m.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=501&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Sydney and NSW bring in most of Australia’s music revenue.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/paxtonscameravideodigital/14030732459/">Paxtons Camera Video Digital/Flickr</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Creative cities</h2>
<p>We can also consider a city’s creativity, calculated through measures such as technology, talent, tolerance and territorial assets. As US urban economist Richard Florida would argue, these measures show that a <a href="http://www.ifpi.org/downloads/The-Mastering-of-a-Music-City.pdf">city is welcoming to the music industry</a>. </p>
<p>The <a href="https://startupgenome.com/">2017 Start-up Genome project</a>, which assesses the success rate of start-ups and their link to job creation and economic growth, ranked Melbourne 22nd in the world for technology and music start-up culture, just pipped by Sydney at 21st.</p>
<p>However Melbourne comes up trumps on musical talent. As <a href="http://apraamcos.com.au/media/corporate/postcode-rankings-whitepaper.pdf">2003-2013 postcode data</a> show, Melbourne had the most songwriters in the nation, with Sydney coming a close second. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/o-nr1nNC3ds?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Melbourne has the most songwriters in the country, including Courtney Barnett.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Tolerance is harder to measure, because it is linked to lifestyle choices. <a href="http://www.tourism.vic.gov.au/images/stories/Documents/StrategiesandPlans/TV_annual_report_09_complete.pdf">Tourism Victoria</a> contends that Melbourne is renowned for its creative leaders, who are community minded with a progressive mindset.</p>
<p>Melbourne has also earned the title of <a href="http://pages.eiu.com/rs/783-XMC-194/images/Liveability_August2016.pdf">most liveable city</a> in the world for the past six years. Adelaide was ranked fifth in the world, while Sydney came in seventh. </p>
<p>However, transport problems, housing affordability and geographical isolation from the Northern Hemisphere are points against Melbourne’s liveability.</p>
<p>Whether Melbourne is Australia’s music capital remains up for debate because the many different ways we can measure music activity in cities paint different pictures. </p>
<p>But to date, the claims that Melbourne is Australia’s music capital remain an abstract notion coined by cultural groups that have a vested interest in pursuing a policy agenda: to sell their city as a national and global music city. </p>
<hr>
<p><em>Will Melbourne claim the national music crown? This will be discussed in Andrea Baker’s next book, The Great Music City, Music, Space and Identity, (Palgrave Macmillan: London) due for release next year</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/77087/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrea Jean Baker is the academic representative on the City of Melbourne, Music Advisory Board, 2013-2017.</span></em></p>Melbourne may be the self-proclaimed music capital of Australia, but industry data suggests Sydney may have the upper hand. Meanwhile the UN recognises Adelaide as the country’s only city of music.Andrea Jean Baker, Senior Lecturer in Journalism, Monash UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.