Photo Credit: Deutsche Grammophon
The world’s oldest record label and a division of Universal Music Group, Deutsche Grammophon, launches a classical music streaming service.
Deutsche Grammophon announces the launch of STAGE+, a classical music subscription service that offers livestreams, an impressive video archive, and new audio releases on one platform. STAGE+ will be available as a mobile, web, and TV app for subscribers, with much of its video content offered in 4K and Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res Lossless audio “virtually indistinguishable from the original studio recording.”
Subscribers will receive access to UMG’s roster of world-class artists through a wide variety of content, including live premieres, long-form concert and opera programs, music videos, documentaries, and behind-the-scenes interviews. Subscribers can enjoy new audio releases and albums from the legendary Deutsche Grammophon catalogs, with all content available in the highest possible quality, including Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res.
STAGE+ will showcase the best new performances each week thanks to partnerships with leading international opera companies, orchestras, concert halls, and festivals.
Bayreuth will be one of the initially featured festivals, while the first premiere stream on the platform will feature Vikingur Olafsson performing music from his latest album, From Afar. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio performed at St Martin-in-the-Fields in London will feature in the coming weeks, followed by many more livestreamed events and cycles.
“We are about to enter an exciting new era for streamed classical performances,” says Deutsche Grammophon’s Vice President of Consumer Business, Robert Zimmerman. “STAGE+ will explore the limitless creative and curatorial possibilities that digital technologies have to offer to bring the creative work of DG’s artists — and beyond — closer to their audience.”
“STAGE+ uniquely immerses the fan in a dedicated multi-dimensional classical experience of the highest quality, complementing the breadth of our repertoire presented on our partners’ services,” says Dickon Stainer, President and CEO of Global Classics & Jazz and Verve Label Group.
“It offers artists the place for their live and filmed performances to sit directly alongside their studio recordings, enabling an integrated experience for classical artist discovery by devoted fans of the genre.”
Optimized metadata enables users to search quickly and easily. Every search is linked to all relevant audio and video content available for a particular artist, composer, work, venue, or partner organization. Classical music fans can save their favorites and download content to mobile devices for offline viewing or listening.