Site connects performers with fans of classical music

We’ve seen myriad sites that aim to connect musical artists with their fans — whether for crowdfunding, for promotion help or for generalized band management, for example. Typically, however, classical music has not been part of the online action. Enter San Diego-based InstantEncore, which aims to tap the internet to keep classical music vital and accessible to modern audiences. InstantEncore’s mission is to be “the world’s leading resource for delivering and enjoying live classical music anywhere and anytime,” in its own words. Toward that end, the site provides tools to help classical music lovers, artists, composers, educators and concert presenters connect, enhance and extend the concert experience. Music lovers, for instance, can become fans of their favourite artists, track those artists via a “fan feed” and set up alerts for new music, videos, concerts and buzz. Some 2,500 presenters, 20,000 composers and 80,000 artists are currently on the free site along with a constantly updated assortment of high-quality live and recorded music. For artists and organizations, meanwhile, InstantEncore provides a variety of tools to help reach out to fans. Performers can create and maintain their own websites, mobile apps and social networks in minutes, for example. InstantEncore also offers a digital asset management system, daily internet crawler and classical music search engine that let artist partners enter and sync their events, music, video channels, blogs, podcasts and news all at once, with automatic publication in real-time to their own websites, mobile apps, social networks and email fan groups. Music sales, download cards and online donations can also be supported. Many of InstantEncore’s artist tools are free, while its iPhone app service, for example, starts at USD 19.99 per month. Now that popular music sites have become commonplace on the web, it’s time to bring classical music into the fold — a more natural fit than one might think, given that classical music lovers have long been exceptionally fond of the digital download, according to a report in The Guardian. One to regionalize for your part of the world? (Related: An iPhone app for every band — Community connects designers, fans and things.) Spotted by: Sutter Schumacher