Journal 2013.2014Die jährliche Hauszeitschrift der Konzertdirektion

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With the beginning of the new season, Hanover and Hamburg will move much closer
together. Konzertdirektion Schmid and Konzertdirektion Dr. Rudolf Goette, two distinguished,
long-established companies in the classical music sector, are entering into a
strategically important partnership, forming a business association that is both internally
and externally unique. “We are firmly convinced that this partnership will strengthen our
position in the increasingly competitive classical music market”, says owner Cornelia
Schmid.
Both companies have been successful players in the classical concert market for
decades: Konzertdirektion Schmid primarily in the areas of orchestral touring, artist
management, and public relations, with offices in Hanover, London, and Berlin; and
Konzertdirektion Dr. Rudolf Goette as a classical concert promoter based in Hamburg,
the future home of the Elbphilharmonie. Under the new partnership, Schmid’s Hanoverbased
Pro Musica concerts will be incorporated into Goette’s network of successful
concert series in Hamburg, Bremen, Braunschweig, and Osnabrück. Synergies can thus
be fully exploited, and each agency can concentrate more heavily on its core competencies.
“Our two companies complement each other perfectly in their respective areas of
expertise”, affirms Cornelia Schmid.
The fact that Burkhard Glashoff, former Vice President of Konzertdirektion Schmid, is
taking over the management of Konzertdirektion Goette further emphasizes their close
cooperation – and continues a long-standing tradition: Company founder Hans Ulrich
Schmid and Hans-Werner Funke, then director of Konzertdirektion Goette, also collaborated
successfully for many years. At the same time, Schmid was involved with several
German concert organizers, and always reached out to international partners. For a time,
he was the only German member of “European Artists Direct”, an initiative of the major
London agencies which was established in order to promote European artists in the
USA. In addition, Schmid was for many years owner of the Dutch concert agency Interartists,
based in Amsterdam. In 1998, Konzertdirektion Schmid launched its London
office under Managing Director Karen McDonald, which has since become a key component
of the company’s international focus.
Cornelia Schmid is optimistic in light of the current changes in the music market. In her
view, new markets are constantly emerging, and there is a trend towards building new
concert halls – not only Hamburg, but also in countries like the Czech Republic and
Hungary. Interest in concerts would thus continue to be strong, and the live concert
experience would become increasingly important, particularly in the digital age. Hence,
Schmid strongly disagrees with the cultural pessimists who predict that people will not
attend concerts ten years from now. Pascal Funke, Managing Director of Goette, agrees
and adds: “If there is a growing resource in Germany, it is active, elderly people.” Continuing
to appeal to them while at the same time attracting new, young audiences will
continue to be a challenge as well as an opportunity for both concert agencies.