Questions from Berlin: What the Industry Is Really Asking About AI in Classical Music Production

At the IMZ Avant Première 2026 conference in Berlin, OnstageAI's leadership team took to the stage — and the panel podium — to talk about the future of performing arts production. 

Our CTO Paweł Jabłoński presented his vision of AI-powered workflows for concerts, opera, and ballet. Jakub Fiebig - OnstageAI CEO and Simon Eder - OnstageAI CCO participated in panel discussions alongside industry leaders from across Europe. And throughout those conversations — on stage, in the corridors, and over coffee — the same questions kept coming up.

We heard them in Berlin. We hear them from every philharmonic director, festival producer, and orchestra manager we meet. So rather than answer them one at a time, we decided to put them all in one place.

Here are the questions we're asked most often — and our answers.

"Will AI damage artistic vision in classical music?"

This is the question we hear most often, and it is also the one that matters most to us — because it speaks to something fundamental about why this industry exists.

The answer is no. And not just "no" — AI can actively support and amplify artistic vision, provided it is used correctly.

Here is the key principle we operate by at OnstageAI: the technology executes, the human decides. When you work with our system, your artistic director defines the production vision — the shots, the style, the mood, the priorities. Our technology then carries out that vision with a consistency and precision that would be impossible to maintain manually across a three-hour performance. But the creative intent is entirely yours.

Institutions retain full artistic control. They can choose how much they lean on the technology and how much remains in human hands. Some clients use OnstageAI as a fully automated system. Others use it as a hybrid tool alongside a human director or camera operator. The level of creative involvement is a decision that belongs to the institution, not to us.

We also want to be transparent about one other dimension: technology is only part of what we bring. Our team works with institutions on content strategy — what to record, why, and how to use it. That is a deeply human conversation, rooted in an understanding of each institution's goals, audiences, and identity. No algorithm does that work.

"Is AI a tool or a creator?"

This question came up during the panel in Berlin and generated one of the liveliest discussions of the conference. The consensus among panelists — and our own position — is clear: AI is a tool.

In the performing arts, the artistic dimension belongs to the human. The emotion, the interpretation, the intention behind every musical phrase — that is what live performance is. Technology can capture it more efficiently, distribute it more widely, and preserve it for future generations. But it does not originate it.

One of the attendees at the conference, a veteran of the industry with over 40 years of experience, offered perhaps the most memorable observation of the day. He said that the first time he encountered autofocus on a camera, he couldn't imagine using it. Now he can't imagine working without it. He expected AI would follow the same path.

We think he's right.

"How expensive is this? We only have budget for one or two recordings a year."

Cost is one of the most important questions — and often the most liberating one to answer.

Traditional professional video production for a single concert can cost in the range of €40,000–€60,000 or more, depending on the crew size, equipment, and post-production requirements. That kind of investment creates enormous pressure on each recording to justify itself commercially or artistically.

OnstageAI changes the economics of this entirely. Our technology allows institutions to produce significantly more content for a comparable or lower total budget — in some cases, up to 80% less per recording. Instead of one high-pressure production per year, you can record ten or fifteen concerts. That changes not just the number, but the strategy.

When you record more, you have options. You can record every performance of a run and choose the one that sounds best — removing pressure from the ensemble. You can capture repertoire across the season rather than betting everything on a single flagship event. You can build an archive. You can experiment with content you wouldn't have risked money on before.

The shift from scarcity to abundance in your production capacity changes everything about how you think about content.

"Okay, but what do we actually do with all this content?"

This is the question that comes up immediately after we talk about affordability — and it is a genuinely important one. Having more content only matters if you know what to do with it.

Our CCO Simon Eder often says that many institutions are not lacking production capacity — they are lacking a content strategy. Here are the most common use cases we help clients develop:

Audience reach. 

Video content lets you bring your performances to audiences who will never set foot in your hall — in Japan, China, the United States, or wherever your artistic identity resonates. A digital presence is no longer optional for cultural institutions that want to grow.

Brand building. 

Consistent, high-quality video content builds institutional identity over time. It tells the world who you are, what your artistic standards look like, and why your programming matters.

Archival purposes. 

Seventy percent of classical performances still go unrecorded. Every concert that is not captured is lost. Building a permanent archive of your artistic output is one of the most important things an institution can do — for history, for musicians, and for future audiences.

Educational use.

Recordings are powerful learning tools for conservatories, competition participants, and the wider public. They extend the pedagogical reach of any institution.

Ticket sales and marketing. 

Highlights and clips from recordings are among the most effective promotional tools for driving ticket sales to future performances.

Monetization. 

Whether through premium streaming platforms, licensing, or pay-per-view access, high-quality recordings can generate direct revenue.

The key is to define the goal before you press record. What do you want this content to do? We help our clients answer that question.

A Final Word from Berlin

What struck us most about the conversations at IMZ Avant Première 2026 was not the skepticism — it was the curiosity. People are genuinely trying to understand where this technology fits into their world, how it can serve their institutions, and what it means for the art they have dedicated their careers to.

We don't have all the answers. The technology is evolving, the industry is changing, and the best applications of AI in performing arts are still being discovered. But we are certain of one thing: the value of live, human performance is not diminishing. If anything, as synthetic content floods the internet, authentic human artistry on a real stage will become more precious, not less.

Our job is to make sure more of it gets captured, shared, and remembered.

If you have questions that weren't covered here, we'd love to hear from you at se@onstageai.com.

Ask a question