Digitisation of orchestra brings more focus on music
With Podium, our orchestral management tool, Arctic Philharmonic takes full control and more focus on what matters: the music.
The Arctic Philharmonic, as its name suggests, is the northernmost professional orchestra in the world. The orchestra has locations in both Tromsø and Bodø, in addition to playing concerts in a number of other places both nationally and internationally.
The orchestra performs music both as a symphony, sinfonietta and chamber orchestra, as well as staging opera productions. In other words, there are a lot of moving parts to keep track of. Increo has been given the opportunity to help them with that, through Podium.
Orchestral Management Tools
Podium is a tool for orchestra management that we have developed in collaboration with Trondheim Symphony Orchestra and Opera (TSO). It is based on their need for facilitation and willingness to share their experiences around all the tasks to be solved and the roles to be filled in a large orchestra that we had the opportunity to adapt the solution for the Arctic Philharmonic.
“The Podium that the Arctic Philharmonic is working on now is the result of many thousands of hours of work together with TSO,” says Increo General Manager Morten Wikstrøm, who has followed the project since its infancy. “It is thanks to TSO's commitment to innovation and digital transformation to streamline the orchestra's operations and free up more time for what is important, namely music, that we now have the opportunity to offer this product to several.
Architecture
Podium is a headless system where the frontend, which is built in React, is separate from the back office, which is built with .NET. The solution is connected to ForScore for distributing sheet music to the musicians — from the Podium to the iPad that they use on stage. Podium can be connected to both accounting systems and any other subject systems such as Daniels' Orchestral Music.
Frontend is the musicians' interface. To make their everyday life as easy as possible, it is adapted for use from the mobile. In the backend, the administration and artistic management solve their tasks. Here they have access to all the resources required to manage an orchestra.
Individually customized
For the musicians, Podium appears as a web-based app. When they open it they have access to everything that has to do with their work in the orchestra. They have their calendar for the season, their sheet music, their travel plans and their outfits. They are kept up to date on both things happening in the productions they are going to participate in and can have a dialogue with the administration. All information related to the employment relationship, such as insurance and salary slips, can also be found in Podium.
All in one place
In the back office, the solution is built around the orchestra's seasons, which are filled with productions. A production consists of a program and a crew. The program is the works to be performed. They are stored in the solution's note archive/works database. Here, in addition to the sheet music, you will find information about the composer and statistics relevant to the orchestra. Based on the works to be performed, one knows which and how many musicians are needed in the production.
The musicians can be found in the personnel system. In addition to communicating their roles and schedule, this is where one defines what to see in their interface. The personnel system also contains information about the employment relationship.
Topical for many
Morten believes that Podium is a solution with a lot of potential: “Before the Arctic Philharmonic adopted Podium, the administration worked with an intricate system in Excel. This way of conducting is quite common in orchestras, and most likely in other cultural institutions as well. We see the possibility that through some tweaks we will make this a useful product for anyone working on ensemble-based productions, such as theatres.
Here you can read more about our Collaboration with TSO. If you work with digital transformation in the cultural industry and want to get to know Podium better, please feel free to contact us!
