Buma Cultuur, which represents the interests of emerging Dutch musicians and music authors, recently conducted a survey among 1,277 artists and discovered that over three-quarters of them are active internationally in 93 countries.
By far the bulk of the export market is accounted for by the Dutch dance scene. Performers like DJs Tiësto, Afrojack, Martin Garrix and others perform at some of the biggest music venues in the world. According to a public vote conducted by DJ Mag among mostly British and American people, seven Dutch DJs rank among the world’s top ten.
No surprise, therefore, that the Electronic Dance Scene account for 75.6% of total sales abroad. Other Dutch figures to play a major role internationally include classical violinist André Rieu, who sold out 67 shows around the world, metal band Epica, which sold out 20 shows in the USA and Latin America, and singer Tim Vantol, who played 37 sold-out shows in Germany alone.
Buma Cultuur also notes growing interest in emerging markets like China and Spain, with most growth potential in Asian countries such as Japan, Indonesia and Thailand. Music events such as Amsterdam Dance Event and Eurosonic Noorderslag have played an important role in the global success of Dutch music.
Marking a slight increase of 0.26% over the figure for 2016, the €201 million export value for 2017 breaks down as follows: copyrights (€22.5 million), recordings (€12.4 million), performances (€166.5 million).
