Craig Havighurst

One of the educational highlights of IBMA’s Business Conference this year will be a thought-provoking, interactive session led by independent writer/producer Craig Havighurst and a panel of members from the worlds of recording, marketing and technology. Entitled “Bluegrass Summit: The Future of the Business,” the forum will take place Wednesday, Oct. 3 from 1:30-3:30 p.m. at the Nashville Convention Center in Nashville, Tenn. and will be open to all convention attendees.

Panelists will include producer/broadcaster Scott Rouse; technology & marketing consultant David Gales; Michael Harrington, Belmont Univ.; Brance Gillihan, The Bluegrass Blog; Mark Montgomery, Echomusic; publicist Kissy Black, Lotos Nile; Stephanie Taylor, MTSU; and SoundExchange Executive Director John Simson.

Current reports say CD sales are down 20-30% in all music genres. Although bluegrass consumers will most likely continue to purchase music on CDs longer than fans of other genres of music, it’s important that we as an industry recognize the #1 way to make money from recorded music is under serious threat. This event will provide a forum to anticipate trends, be prepared for the future and work together to develop the best combination of strategies for individual businesses.

Attendees will look at case studies from bluegrass and beyond in an effort to explore new ways to expand an artist’s content and brand, including music and other content for sale in new presentation formats that can take place between recording sessions and live shows. Discussion will cover terrain as diverse as online video, mobile content, collecting digital royalties, the future of fan clubs & fan-funded CDs, the DVD market and new videos for sale-along with an informal survey of bluegrass record labels regarding their plans for music delivery in the future.

Moderator Craig Havighurst is an independent journalist and producer based in Nashville. A former music writer for The Tennessean, he now reports for public radio and writes for print and television. As a freelance writer, Havighurst has contributed to The Oxford American, Entertainment Weekly, The Wall Street Journal, Acoustic Guitar and No Depression. His short documentary on the history of WSM radio for Nashville Public Television won a regional Emmy Award. His book, Air Castle of the South: WSM and the Making of Music City, will be published in the fall of 2007 by the University of Illinois Press. His blog, “String Theory,” can be found at StringTheoryMedia.com, the online home of Havighurst’s production company, which specialized in documentaries about music and musicians.