Business Innovation in Orchestra Organizations Supported by Digital Technologies: The Orchestra Mobile Case Study

Abstract

In an attempt to deal with challenges such as increased competition, the global economic crisis, and the pandemic crisis, cultural organizations increasingly tend to adopt business theories and tools. The present paper addresses this issue in an industry that is not very frequently discussed, that of orchestra, using Orchestra Mobile as the case study. Based on literature review and interviews, and with reference to some of the latest, innovative approaches to management and strategy supported by digital technologies, the paper examines how this new entry in the industry (in 2010): (i) not attached to a concert hall (and, therefore, dependent on others) and with no state funding, survived against established organizations of global recognition, who were attached to prestigious concert halls, and enjoyed strong funding on the part of the state; (ii) with no external support, succeeded within the peak of the global economic crisis; (iii) decided long before the pandemic crisis to operate mostly at a distance, based on geographically dispersed members and collaborators; and, more importantly, (iv) challenged the rules of an industry that were formed in the 18th and 19th centuries and have not been (substantially) challenged ever since. The conclusions on the complex relationship of “sustainability-innovation-digital technologies” could be of benefit to a wide range of cultural organizations and entrepreneurs.