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Music Scenes to Music Clusters: The Economic Geography of Music in the US, 1970–2000

Author

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  • Richard Florida

    (Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada)

  • Charlotta Mellander

    (Jönköping International Business School, Jonkoping University, 553 38 Jonkoping, Sweden)

  • Kevin Stolarick

    (Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1L7, Canada)

Abstract

Where do musicians locate, and why do creative industries such as music continue to cluster? This paper analyzes the economic geography of musicians and the recording industry in the US from 1970 to 2000, to shed light on the locational dynamics of music and creative industries more broadly. We examine the role of scale and scope economies in shaping the clustering and concentration of musicians and music industry firms. We argue that these two forces are bringing about a transformation in the geography of both musicians and music industry firms, evidenced in a shift away from regionally clustered, genre-specific music scenes, such as Memphis or Detroit, toward larger regional centers such as New York City and Los Angeles, which offer large markets for music employment and concentrations of other artistic and cultural endeavors that increase demand for musicians. We use population and income to probe for scale effects and look at concentrations of other creative and artistic industries to test for scope effects, while including a range of control variables in our analysis. We use lagged variables to determine whether certain places are consistently more successful at fostering concentrations of musicians and the music industry and to test for path dependency. We find some role for scale and scope effects and that both musicians and the music industry are concentrating in a relatively small number of large regional centers.

Suggested Citation

  • Richard Florida & Charlotta Mellander & Kevin Stolarick, 2010. "Music Scenes to Music Clusters: The Economic Geography of Music in the US, 1970–2000," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 42(4), pages 785-804, April.
  • Handle: RePEc:sae:envira:v:42:y:2010:i:4:p:785-804
    DOI: 10.1068/a4253
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Connolly, Marie & Krueger, Alan B., 2006. "Rockonomics: The Economics of Popular Music," Handbook of the Economics of Art and Culture, in: V.A. Ginsburgh & D. Throsby (ed.), Handbook of the Economics of Art and Culture, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 20, pages 667-719, Elsevier.
    2. Rik Wenting & Koen Frenken, 2011. "Firm entry and institutional lock-in: an organizational ecology analysis of the global fashion design industry," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 20(4), pages 1031-1048, August.
    3. Edward E. Leamer, 2007. "A Flat World, a Level Playing Field, a Small World After All, or None of the Above? A Review of Thomas L Friedman's The World is Flat," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 45(1), pages 83-126, March.
    4. Åke E. Andersson & David E. Andersson, 2006. "The Economics of Experiences, the Arts and Entertainment," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 3865.
    5. Marie Connolly & Alan Krueger, 2005. "Rockonomics: The Economics of Popular Music," Working Papers 878, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
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    Cited by:

    1. Jun Wan & Jae Hong Kim & Geoffrey J D Hewings, 2013. "Inspecting Regional Economic Structural Changes through Linking Occupations and Industries," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 45(3), pages 614-633, March.
    2. Teemu Makkonen, 2014. "Tales from the Thousand Lakes: Placing the Creative Network of Metal Music in Finland," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 46(7), pages 1586-1600, July.

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