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DPO announces internet streaming of concerts
By Khalid Moss Staff Writer
Beginning Saturday, Feb. 21, fine music lovers will be able to stream Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra concerts online.
The DPO has reached an arrangement with WDPR-FM Classical 88.1 to broadcast the orchestra’s performances worldwide over the internet.
The partnership was made possible due to a substantial grant from the Miriam Rosenthal Memorial Trust Fund.
Classical 88.1 general manager, Georgie Woessner, said contractual issues prevented streaming in the past.
“Streaming means the radio station is accessible to people online around the world,” Woessner said. “But for the Musicians’ Federation Union, it is sometimes an issue because they want to protect their performance rights. Until this recent agreement, we have never had a contract with the musicians. The DPO had a contract but there wasn’t any money available for us to pay them for the right to stream their performances.”
The streaming of the DPO broadcasts will take place in real time, simultaneous with the radio broadcasts (per the schedule published in the DPO Program Book). It is not on-demand streaming, nor is it downloadable. It is live streaming, simultaneous with the radio broadcast.
“We are thrilled to partner with WDPR and the Miriam Rosenthal Memorial Trust Fund to stream concert broadcasts of the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra on the World Wide Web,” said Paul Helfrich, DPO Executive Director. “Now anyone with a high-speed internet connection, anywhere in the world, can listen to concerts of the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra. Live streaming of the Philharmonic’s broadcasts on WDPR opens the opportunity to hear these concert recordings, currently restricted to the local area, to the entire world. This is a simple way for our orchestra to immediately gain a national and indeed international platform.”
“We see web activity as an important area of focus for the Philharmonic,” said David Bukvic, DPO Director of Marketing & Public Relations. “Orchestras must change with the times and take advantage of new technologies, all in fulfillment of their mission of making great music widely available.”
Woessner said there have been several times previously when the inability to stream DPO performances has deflated a guest artist.
“There was a pianist from France who got all excited, briefly, thinking that her parents would hear her perform,” she said. “We had to tell her we didn’t have an agreement with the musicians.
“In the past we had to turn off the stream for two hours on Saturday morning during DPO broadcasts. Not any more.”
The first performance to be streamed will be “Portrait: William Grant Still” Classical Connections concert from Dec. 5, 2008.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2167 or kmoss@DaytonDailyNews.com.
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