Drew McManus and Molly Sheridan at NewMusicBox note that the Milwaukee Symphony is offering
live performances on iTunes — including the premiere of Roberto
Sierra’s Third Symphony, which took place in September. It’s
a great thing, first, that a new work can move into circulation
so soon after its premiere. (Sierra’s piece is a vibrant fantasy on
salsa themes. Tom Strini tells more.)
It’s also great that an orchestra has figured out how to put
recordings on the Internet. For some years, union requirements for advance
payments have made recording financially unviable. Milwaukee has capitalized on an
Internet policy that was set forth five years ago by the American
Federation of Musicians, but which no other orchestra has acted
upon; they’ve fashioned a revenue-sharing agreement among musicians,
conductors, soloists, and publishers. That agreement should become a
model for orchestras across the country. Notice, though, that in the comments section of Drew’s blog
some musicians have raised doubts about the Milwaukee plan; one
says that revenues will be minimal, and that musicians will therefore
"give away their compensation for the recordings." Minimal’s better
than nothing, right? Most orchestras are getting no compensation for recordings because no
recordings are taking place. This is progress. You can find
the MP3s by searching for "Milwaukee Symphony" in iTunes Store.