… for classical music and indie bands?

Amazingly, a special, vinyl release by the band Animal Collective almost made the Billboard 200 list. Which shows how many vinyl enthusiasts there are, but also how small your sales figures have to be to make such a list. Actually, only the top few entries are mega-platinum monsters. After that, the numbers drop pretty fast.

But is this a way for classical music to carve out a niche market as a one-of-a-kind specialty?

In classical music – at least in the US – I think limited edition special album packaging and then digital-only releases is the way of The Future. Audience members can take home true souvenirs of their concert experiences (get their discs signed by the artist, etc.), and record labels won’t have to worry about pitching physical product to a shrinking retail market. Additionally, the availability of special product at concerts gives marketing departments another reason to e mail out about their concerts to their lists – “this concert is the only place you can buy a physical copy of the new Hilary Hahn album” – and gives artist publicists and PR departments an interesting state-of-the-industry story to pitch as well.