“While digital music streaming services compete for the headphones of young audiences, millions of Canadians still have their hands on the radio dial,” writes Vjosa Isai in Tuesday’s (8/15) Toronto Star (Canada). “In the GTA [Greater Toronto Area], more of these millennial listeners are tuning into classical music stations. The New Classical FM radio … has seen a 42-per-cent increase in their under-35 audience over the last two years…. ‘Movie music and video game soundtrack music has really exploded in popularity,’ said Paul Thomas, the station’s program and music director. ‘As more and more orchestras perform these live versions of Back to the Future, Raiders of the Lost Ark … it translates nicely if at the same time we’re playing it on the station.’ … The under-18 audience has also increased by 38 per cent … Britain’s Classic FM, billed as the biggest classical station in the world, reports a surge in the number of young listeners in the last year. Now, 1.2 million people out of its weekly audience of 5.8 million are under the age of 35. Classical music streaming has also increased at Spotify, but it’s unclear whether this is due to more fans coming onto streaming platforms.”
Posted August 15, 2017
