Artist managers: Crossing the pond

‘We don’t think there’s space for us in North America,’ insists Intermusica’s joint head of artist management, Aimee Chow, ‘we know there is. It’s a huge, huge market.’

The latter-day trend for larger UK artist managements to establish outposts in major musical centres abroad continues. Adding to its bases in Berlin and Munich, Intermusica (with its HQ in London) now has a New York wing, following the ‘integration’ into the company of the small-scale Wittenberg Artists business and its German-born creator, Martin Wittenberg. The news was released with the aid of a smart promotional video, complete with beguiling aerial footage of New York.

‘North America is hugely important for our industry and for our artists,’ reflects Intermusica chief executive, Stephen Lumsden. ‘We’ve been trading and working there for well over thirty years. We felt this was a good moment to expand and develop our activities there. It’s a really important market full of major orchestras, great concert halls and a tremendous number of concert series across the whole country… and not forgetting that North America includes Canada, a very interesting market as well.’

Location, location, location: The new office will be situated at New York's Columbus Circle © Adobe Stock

For the moment, Martin Wittenberg and his existing colleague, Rachel Feldhaus, will be the sole staff members of Intermusica New York, situated at the busy metropolitan hub of Columbus Circle. Their select list of artists includes British talent in the shape of cellist Steven Isserlis, alongside emerging American artists in violinist Stella Chen and cellist Seth Parker Woods, plus the likes of French conductor Lionel Muenier and Canadian conductor Naomi Woo.

So what does the acquisition of a boutique concern with its small roster have to offer one of London’s largest artist management companies… not least as the New York wing will ‘operate independently’ under the Intermusica umbrella, as the press announcement has it? Yes, the expectation is that the American office will ‘expand and grow and be competitive,’ predicts Aimee Chow. ‘It’s certainly not our ambition for Intermusica New York to stay at its boutique size, but it will take time, as it has with our operations in Berlin and Munich.’

But there’s more to the outlook than that. For one thing, says Chow, having a US office increases the likelihood of Intermusica signing major American talents not subject to the same overseas visa regimes that can hinder the free flow of international musicians — not least US entry regulations, which affect the ability of artists from outside the country to take over last-minute cancellations.

‘Equally, the amount of intel on the American market we’ll receive from Intermusica New York will be enormous,’ adds Chow. ‘From a distance over in Europe we’re lucky if we pick up much by way of threads of information about performing opportunities in the USA which might benefit our artists. The link to Martin and Rachel will change things and help demonstrate to all Intermusica artists that we’re a business with a global reach. We went into this project realising that we constantly need to adapt and expand to keep up in this world.’

©Intermusica

Martin Wittenberg thus describes himself as Intermusica’s ‘man on the ground’ in the USA, with responsibilities beyond those towards his personal roster. ‘Obviously I’ll have more meetings with presenters and orchestras in North America than my fellow Intermusica managers, so it makes sense that I take on an intermediary role if they send me briefing notes about artists of theirs they especially wish me to mention.’

The process of deciding on and handling the approach to Wittenberg Artists had the benefit of the involvement of Intermusica’s non-executive chairman, Deborah Borda, a legendary figure on the US musical scene for decades via her positions at orchestras of the stature of the New York Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic. ‘Deborah is very hands-on in her role,’ reports Aimee Chow. ‘She’s been present at all of the meetings about setting up Intermusica New York, from the moment it was just the seedling of an idea. Deborah has such a knowledge of the US music scene and an incredible network of contacts.’

Martin Wittenberg, who hails originally from Bavaria, now becomes one of that select band of professional musicians who cross the divide to become artist managers. As a trombonist, he freelanced with orchestras in Germany and around the USA but was, he says, always interested in the nuts and bolts of the classical music industry. ‘It all goes back to my teenage years. When my parents brought me to New York at the age of 16, we went to performances at the Lincoln Center — Peter Maxwell Davies conducting the BBC Philharmonic and Kurt Masur in charge of the New York Philharmonic, as I recall. The concert programmes I took home were the beginnings of a collection I gradually accumulated. I developed a fantasy life as a builder of concert seasons… I was never happy just being a trombonist sitting at the back of the orchestra. Then along came the idea of going into artist management, with the encouragement of a friend who’s a manager. He thought I might be good at it.’

Wittenberg duly served an apprenticeship as a manager at Alliance Artist Management and Columbia Artists in New York, looking after the interests of musicians such as Gidon Kremer, Vadim Repin and Jordi Savall. He went on to found Wittenberg Artists in 2020. The mindset of the freelance orchestral musician hasn’t been left behind, however. ‘As a trombonist, I’ve had the experience of constantly being on tour, of waking up in a new city every day. So it’s natural to have a sympathy for artists who constantly need supporting with detailed information about their schedule of engagements.’

Wittenberg pronounces himself grateful to relinquish the additional responsibilities that come with company ownership. ‘I can concentrate on a roster largely made up of highly promising young artists.’ The cavernous North American market is Wittenberg’s principal theatre of operations, but his New York base alone is a rich, opportunity-laden ecosystem. ‘The scene here is like nothing else. It’s alive. It’s a dance. And it’s wonderful to be a part of it.’