The Finnish music sector launched a social media campaign on Monday calling attention to its economic plight and demanding rescue support.
Interviewed by Yle on Monday morning, the country’s best-known contemporary composer, Kaija Saariaho, was sharply critical of decisions to cancel concerts and festivals while allowing restaurants, bars and other sectors to keep operating – although no coronavirus infection clusters have been traced to music events in Finland.
Jaakko Kämäräinen, freelance coordinator at the Finnish Musicians’ Union, told Yle that the situation in the domestic music industry is extremely challenging at the moment.
"A lot of people are thinking about quitting the business, and companies in the sector are starting to be in such a bad position that we’re going to start seeing bankruptcies soon,” said Kämäräinen, who plays bass in pop-rock star Olavi Uusivirta’s band.
When the pandemic hit Finland last spring, musicians’ performance calendars were wiped clean. Summer festivals – the main annual source of income for many – were all cancelled in June and July. A few went ahead in August with strict corona restrictions, and no reports of infection spread.
There have been few live gigs this autumn and the outlook for winter and spring is no better, according to Kämäräinen.
Live music losses up 75%
The industry’s export lobby, Music Finland, estimates that the pandemic and restrictions will wipe out about one third of the sector’s income this year. The biggest losses are in live music, where the losses may be as much as 75 percent. That means the branch may have already suffered losses of around 230 million euros.
The sudden collapse may trigger bankruptcies among clubs, festivals, booking agencies, record labels and stores. That makes for an uncertain future, even if the pandemic eases thanks to coronavirus vaccinations, which may begin before year’s end.
"There are worries about whether we’ll still have the infrastructure to stage events in the future, when we get a chance to do so,” said Kämäräinen. "And will Finland’s musicians and artists be in shape to perform?”
Kämäräinen points out that most musicians and artists work precariously in a fuzzy area between employment and entrepreneurship. As a result many of them have been left out of larger structures that may have received corona subsidies.
"The support that has been granted has gotten stuck somewhere along the way, and hasn’t trickled down to the performers,” he said.
Despite the current dim situation, Kämäräinen is confident that Finland will be able to enjoy summer festivals in 2021. Some major events such as Ruisrock, Provinssi and Pori Jazz have already announced foreign and domestic acts for next summer, some of them rescheduled from this year.
The music branch is hoping that the government will offer support soon.
Minister of Culture Annika Saarikko (Cen) said in early December she will ask the cabinet to approve subsidies for the live events industry, which also includes sports, fairs and other events.
She said she hopes to bring the matter before the government before Christmas, but the extent and form of possible supports remain a question mark.
Social media campaign demands 'the right to music'
On Monday, musicians and companies flooded Finnish social media with red and green posts using the hashtag #oikeusmusiikkiin ('the right to music').
According to a post by Music Finland, "Music helps us cope in the midst of a crisis. It expresses our feelings, promotes our well-being and breeds community. Music is also a growing industry, employing over 30,000 professionals. The Finnish music industry is now under threat."
Kämäräinen said the campaign seeks to point out that many in the sector are in danger of losing their livelihood –and that the industry knows how to stage festivals and concerts safely.
"I would argue that this sector has the country’s best know-how when it comes to how large groups of people can move around safely. And instant coronavirus testing systems are also developing quickly,” he adds.