primephonic: classical music in the digital age

primephonic
There is further room for change in
classical album art, not just conceptually
but even in terms of the
basics: typography and dimensions.
“There are very specific titles in
classical music, compared with any
other genre. Opus numbers, full
titles, conductor, soloist, sometimes
multiple composers, and all opus
numbers for each work listed. For
digital we should just cut it out. In
a thumbnail you don’t see anything
anyway – text can just look like a
white line. I create two versions of
every album cover – one for digital,
one for physical. When you buy it in
hard copy you have more text on
the cover, but in digital, this is not
necessary.”
“For streaming and downloading it
doesn’t even have to be a square
anymore. Your screen is a rectangle,
not a square. It can be changeable
so that when you download an
album, there can be a cover that
becomes interactive depending on
screen size. In the not-too-distant
future, album art could even have
moving images or exist in a virtual
reality. Square CD-size will still work
when it’s advertised in a magazine
or in thumbnail size, but it’s not the
only dimension we need to work
with. Vinyl on the other hand, is a
fixed size and is sold on a merchandise
level, so from a design point
of view, vinyl should be treated
separately, as a work of art, as with
posters and so on.”
So why is there so much brown in classical? This conversation confirmed
some of my suspicions of how sepia tones and ‘playing it safe’ can hinder
the perception of what is an extraordinary, exciting and vibrant genre. We
can rest assured though that the genre is already being shaken up and we
have lots more innovation to look forward to, not just in design but on multiple
levels of creativity.
Parsifal © Monika Rittershaus & Ruth Walz
JOOST DE BOO
Art Direction and Graphic Design at
Pentatone Music and primephonic.
Previously worked at design studios
in Utrecht, Toronto and New York.
Studied at the Rietveld Academie,
Utrecht School of the Arts and the
Rhode Island School of Design.
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