New Amsterdam Records
Encyclopedia
New Amsterdam Records is a New York City based record label. It was formed in 2008 by Judd Greenstein
, Sarah Kirkland Snider
, and William Brittelle
to promote classically-trained musicians who fall in between traditional genre boundaries. Often abbreviated as NewAm, the organization has been hailed as a central force in creating the "indie classical" scene. Since its inception, New Amsterdam Records has released 17 records and 3 co-distributed albums (by massey
and So Percussion
).
NewAm has been described favorably by Seth Colter Walls in Newsweek
as breaking down genre boundaries, "making a nice little tradition out of breaking tradition," and striking a healthy balance between old traditions (such as classical and jazz) and contemporary music."
In an interview with mental floss magazine
, founder Judd Greenstein explains that they look for artists "whose work is a reflection of truly integrated musical influences. In other words, we don’t want classical-goes-rock or electronic-music-with-some-violins – we want music where people are being as personal and honest as they can be, while opening themselves up fully to all the music that they love."
They are distributed by Naxos Records
in North America.
, music critic for New York magazine, says, "They're part of this generation of people who get out of music school with all of these incredible skills, and all of this culture, and all of this creativity — fully aware that nobody is going to hand them a career. There's no superstructure of an established music industry that is going to pay any attention to these people, because they're not even paying attention to the much more established, mainstream conductors and violinists and orchestras. The ability to get noticed by having some record executive take an interest in you and record you — you know, that's really practically a thing of the past. If you want to make recordings, you've really got to do it yourself."
NewAm have been compared to Bang on a Can
, who also built their own label, community, and performance circuit, in a similar manner, 20 years ago. The difference, however, between the two is that Bang on a Can shared a common musical aesthetic - minimalism
- whereas NewAm is more of a musical umbrella. NemAm's artists have become increasingly popular among a broad public while Bang on a Can's primary supporters continue to be larger, more established cultural institutions. "The interesting thing about this group of people, and New Amsterdam, is the real lack of interest in anything that you could call aesthetic categories, or rules about what does and doesn't belong in their sphere of influence," Justin Davidson says.
Judd Greenstein
Judd Greenstein is an American composer of beat-driven contemporary classical music, and an avid promoter of new music in New York City. He is also a co-director of New Amsterdam Records.-Life and career:Judd Greenstein was born and raised in Manhattan...
, Sarah Kirkland Snider
Sarah Kirkland Snider
Sarah Kirkland Snider is a composer of art songs that straddle the border "between richly orchestrated indie rock and straight chamber music," and a co-director of New Amsterdam Records.-Life and career:...
, and William Brittelle
William Brittelle
William Brittelle is a composer and multi-instrumentalist devoted to bridging the gap between pop music and New York's downtown classical scene, and a co-director of New Amsterdam Records. He currently lives in Brooklyn.-Biography:...
to promote classically-trained musicians who fall in between traditional genre boundaries. Often abbreviated as NewAm, the organization has been hailed as a central force in creating the "indie classical" scene. Since its inception, New Amsterdam Records has released 17 records and 3 co-distributed albums (by massey
Massey
Massey may refer to:In places:* Massey, New Zealand, a suburb Auckland* Massey, Ontario, Canada* Massey Island, Nunavut, Canada* Massey, Maryland, United StatesPeople with the surname:* Massey In education:...
and So Percussion
So Percussion
So Percussion is an American percussion quartet based in New York City.Composed of Josh Quillen, Adam Sliwinski, Jason Treuting, and Eric Beach, the group is well known for recording and touring internationally and for its work with composers such as Steve Reich, David Lang, Paul Lansky, Martin...
).
Background
New Amsterdam Records was founded to support the developing genre of music coming from people with great educations in composition who were also influenced by pop and jazz music and did not fit into the music industry binary of classical or pop.NewAm has been described favorably by Seth Colter Walls in Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
as breaking down genre boundaries, "making a nice little tradition out of breaking tradition," and striking a healthy balance between old traditions (such as classical and jazz) and contemporary music."
In an interview with mental floss magazine
Mental floss
Mental Floss is a bi-monthly American magazine, launched in 2001 in Birmingham, Alabama, that presents facts and trivia in a humorous way...
, founder Judd Greenstein explains that they look for artists "whose work is a reflection of truly integrated musical influences. In other words, we don’t want classical-goes-rock or electronic-music-with-some-violins – we want music where people are being as personal and honest as they can be, while opening themselves up fully to all the music that they love."
Business model
New Amsterdam Records is modeled like a non-profit, calling themselves a "pro-artist" label, where the majority of proceeds go directly to the artist, and New Amsterdam works mainly as a promoter/publicist. As outlined in their Artist Agreement, which they post online as a public document:- The artist retains full ownership of all material on their album, including the master recording itself.
- The gross proceeds New Amsterdam receives from album sales are split 80/20 until the artists' costs are recouped, at which point the split moves permanently to 50/50.
- Proceeds from live performances that are booked/presented by New Amsterdam, including ticket revenues, artists' fees, and CD/merch sales, are split 80/20 in favor of the artist, as are proceeds from grants submitted through the label. New Amsterdam gets nothing from shows that are booked/presented by the artists themselves or from grants submitted separately from our organization.
They are distributed by Naxos Records
Naxos Records
Naxos Records is a record label specializing in classical music. Through a number of imprints, Naxos also releases genres including Chinese music, jazz, world music, and early rock & roll. The company was founded in 1987 by Klaus Heymann, a German-born resident of Hong Kong.Naxos is the largest...
in North America.
Critical reception
Justin DavidsonJustin Davidson
Justin Davidson is a classical music and architecture critic. He began his journalism career as a local stringer for the Associated Press in Rome before moving to the United States to study music at Harvard...
, music critic for New York magazine, says, "They're part of this generation of people who get out of music school with all of these incredible skills, and all of this culture, and all of this creativity — fully aware that nobody is going to hand them a career. There's no superstructure of an established music industry that is going to pay any attention to these people, because they're not even paying attention to the much more established, mainstream conductors and violinists and orchestras. The ability to get noticed by having some record executive take an interest in you and record you — you know, that's really practically a thing of the past. If you want to make recordings, you've really got to do it yourself."
NewAm have been compared to Bang on a Can
Bang on a Can
Bang on a Can is a multi-faceted classical music organization based in New York City. It was founded in 1987 by three American composers who remain its artistic directors: Julia Wolfe, David Lang, and Michael Gordon...
, who also built their own label, community, and performance circuit, in a similar manner, 20 years ago. The difference, however, between the two is that Bang on a Can shared a common musical aesthetic - minimalism
Minimalism
Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
- whereas NewAm is more of a musical umbrella. NemAm's artists have become increasingly popular among a broad public while Bang on a Can's primary supporters continue to be larger, more established cultural institutions. "The interesting thing about this group of people, and New Amsterdam, is the real lack of interest in anything that you could call aesthetic categories, or rules about what does and doesn't belong in their sphere of influence," Justin Davidson says.
Selected Discography
| Release Date | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| November 16, 2010 | Janus | I am (not) |
| November 16, 2010 | Newspeak | Sweet Light Crude |
| October 26, 2010 | Sarah Kirkland Snider | Penelope |
| September 28, 2010 | Victoire | Cathedral City |
| June 29, 2010 | William Brittelle | Television Landscape |
| May 25, 2010 | Matt Marks | The Little Death: Vol. 1 |
| May 25, 2010 | Corey Dargel Corey Dargel Corey Dargel is a composer, lyricist, and singer of electronic art songs that "smartly and impishly blur the boundaries between contemporary classical idioms and pop" . Dargel has also sung music by other living composers, including Eve Beglarian, k. terumi shorb, Phil Kline, Nick Brooke, and... |
Someone Will Take Care of Me |
| January 26, 2010 | itsnotyouitsme | Fallen monuments |
| January 26, 2010 | Sam Sadigursky Sam Sadigursky Sam Sadigursky is a saxophonist, multi-reedist, and composer currently residing in Brooklyn, New York. Sam studied jazz at William Paterson University, and has played with the Mingus Orchestra, Gabrial Kahane, Darcy James Argue, Ray Brown, and Brad Mehldau... |
words project iii: miniatures |
| May 19, 2009 | Nadia Sirota | First things first |
| May 12, 2009 | Darcy James Argue's Secret Society Darcy James Argue Darcy James Argue is a Canadian jazz composer and bandleader.-Biography:Originally from Vancouver, British Columbia, Argue came to the United States in 2000 to study composition at the New England Conservatory... |
Infernal Machines Infernal Machines Infernal Machines is the first studio album by Darcy James Argue's Secret Society. The album was released May 12, 2009 by New Amsterdam Records.-Track listing:# "Phobos" 11:02# "Zeno" 7:14# "Transit" 7:01# "Redeye" 10:12# "Jacobin Club" 10:55... |
| January 27, 2009 | QQQ | Unpacking the Trailer... |
| January 27, 2009 | Andrew McKenna Lee | Gravity and Air |
| September 9, 2008 | Sam Sadigursky | Words Project II |
| October 28, 2008 | Corey Dargel | Other People's Love Songs |
| August 29, 2008 | Ted Hearne | Katrina Ballads |
| June 6, 2008 | Build | Build |
| May 1, 2008 | William Brittelle | Mohair Time Warp |
| January 8, 2008 | itsnotyouitsme | walled gardens |
| January 8, 2008 | NOW Ensemble | NOW |
| May 26, 2007 | Sam Sadigursky | The Words Project |
| February 1, 2007 | Jody Redhage | All Summer in a Day |
External links
- https://www.newamsterdamrecords.com/ New Amsterdam Records official website
- http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dgrq58h3_54f742rh5r New Amsterdam Records artist agreement
- http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90951497 NPR's All Things Considered feature
- http://indigestmag.com/blog/?p=6789 An interview of New Amsterdam Records founder Judd Greenstein with publisher J.A. Tyler