Statement on the Irish Music Industry
On the 29th January, 2003, Minister John O'Donoghue spoke at the launch of two important documents commissioned by the Music Board of Ireland, an interim body established by Síle de Valera during her tenure as Minister for the the then Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands. The documents, entitled a Strategic Plan for the Development of the Music Industry and the Economic Significance of the Irish Music Industry, portrayed an industry of economic significance both domestically and internationally in 2001, the year the reports were drawn-up. Irish artisits' CD sales that year represented a massive 2.3 per cent of world CD sales and over 0.5 per cent of Ireland's G.D.P. (ahead of dairy processing and newspaper and magazine publishing).
However there is a huge disparity in the distribution of earnings in the industry, 93.6 per cent of recording artist's income being generated by the top 20 artists. This imbalance needs to be addressed urgently. Unlike our European counterparts, Irish artists do not have the benefit of high sales in their domestic market to launch their careers. Anecdotal evidence has shown that competition amongst artists in Ireland has created a very high standard of product (songwriting, performance etc.) However, as has been identified by the report of 2001, there is no support industry here in the form of management, business guidance, proper representation abroad and so on. It has been left to the few bodies that are in existence, like Irish Music Rights Organisation, to try and showcase new acts. Despite the admirable effort, it is not the body's main remit and so it has been executed in a lacklustre and ineffective manner.
What did the last Minister do in his years with the portfolio to show support for the 8,000 equivalent full-time workers identified in these reports? Since their publication there has been even more growth in the popular or contemprary music genre, with artists like Damien Rice, The Thrills and Snow Patrol adding to the list of Irish successes at an international level. What part can the Minister say he has played in aiding this success? A simplified BES scheme, a scheme originally designed for hotel investment, is not a sufficient response to the facts which have been laid bare by the reports and by anecdotal evidence.
Tuning In – A Summary of a Study on the Swedish Music Export Successes, states the following as “essential ingredients” in explaining the excellent export performance of Swedish music:
1. Broad music education: Municipal music schools create a more ‘sophisticated' audience. ‘Sopisticated' consumers are generally held to be instrumental in sharpening the competence and competitiveness of an industry and there is no reason to believe that the music industry is an exception.
2.The emergence of industrial clusters in the music industry: Industrial competitiveness often develops in clusters; that is it takes several firms that are both competing and cooperating with each other to trigger growth.
3.There is a public interest in promoting Swedish pop music and musicians abroad. The most effective means to increase and sustain Swedish music exports is to continue financing the municipal music schools, to welcome foreign investment in the music business, and to facilitate the establishment of new firms in music publishing, recording studios, independent labels etc.
The film industry in Ireland enjoys great support in the form of Bord Scannan na hEireann, Film Base and Section 481. These elements have allowed that industry to grow evenly, from the courses, equipment hire, knowledge resources and small grants of Film Base, to the Microbudgets, matched financing loans and expertise of Bord Scannan na hEireann. S481 has attracted important foreign investment into Irish productions and coproductions. The industry is also supported by European grants and funding available through the MEDIA network.
In the years between the reports' publication and now, the music industry has changed greatly due to the advancement of new technology. Recording costs have decreased, music distribution has been revolutionised through the internet, more live music venues than ever are opening up in Ireland and there has been a considerable increase in the amounts of festivals and concerts held in a year. There is a perfect opportunity now to take advantage of the shifting trends in the international and domestic markets to redress the imbalance within the Irish music industry.
It is time the new Minister and Government showed the respect due to the thousands of workers and artists in the Irish Music Industry by:
1.Establishing and funding a proper and permanent Irish Music Board in the same vein as Bord Scannan na hEireann
2.Creating a specific tax incentive to leverage foreign investment into all levels of the industry
3.Develop an industry cluster (possibly in the area of The Digital Hub where suppliers of content such as music, videos etc may be of benefit)
4.Ensure the industry has ongoing monitoring of its trends and figures, which can be done through The Irish Music Board and other already established organisations such as IMRO, Mechanical Copyright Protection Society etc.
5.Develop audiences for Irish contemporary and popular music, as in the Sweedish model noted above, through an Irish Music Board
6.Establish proper representation abroad to promote new Irish music and attract investors
7.Act on the reccommendations of the last commissioned reports on the industry
Irish musicians play a major role on the international stage, and create work that has communicated to millions of people the world over, yet our government still shows little support for Irish artists in the music industry. Despite the huge financial and cultural contribution of Irish musicians to the nation, and the continuing support of the growing domestic audience, the state still continues to exploit them.
This exploitation must stop and the imbalance within the industry be redressed. I call on the new government and specifically the new Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, Séamus Brennan, to respond urgently and comprehensively to this statement with a set of real initiatives, financing and deadlines for implimentation of these initiatives. The time has come to stop paying lip service and show the respect due to those thousands of young, talented, educated artists and music industry entrepreneurs that currently struggle unnecesssarly. It is time to act on their behalf for the financial and cultural benefit of the nation.