Music tourism is a journey to take part in a music event in the destination country. From time to time news is heard of a concert by an Iranian singer being held in the countries around. Concerts some of whose audience have been Iranians residing in that country and many of whose audience are also Iranians who set out on a foreign trip with the intention of attending that concert. These singers are not permitted to work inside the country, so they have to hold their concerts in countries neighboring Iran that are easy to travel to.
Around Iran there are tourist countries such as Turkey and the UAE that make this opportunity even more golden for the so-called Los Angeles singers. But if every year thousands of Iranians leave the country to attend a concert, why should Iran not host music events? Music tourism is a branch of the tourism industry that, in addition to a very high financial turnover, also has a substantial effect on improving countries' and regions' cultural diplomacy and on enhancing their national and urban brand.
Statistics on the state of music tourism in the global tourism industry
According to statistics presented by the World Tourism Organization, music festivals in 2016 generated revenue equivalent to 3.2 billion dollars. This figure, before reaching 2020, also reached 6 billion dollars. In 2023 the revenue of the music tourism market in the world was still about 6 billion dollars. It is predicted that 10 years later, that is in 2033, this figure will reach 14 billion dollars and have 9 percent growth. This figure has been without considering tourists' other financial costs in the destination country such as buying products, booking hotels, visiting museums, sightseeing in the city and other items. According to research by the US tourism industry association, travelers who travel with the intention of visiting musical shows and music festivals, art exhibitions or other cultural events on average spend between 30 and 50 percent more financially than other tourists.
Overall in 2022 the financial turnover and income from the global tourism industry reached the figure of 2 trillion dollars. The tourism industry goes so far that according to statistics it accounts for about 10 percent of global employment and national production. On this basis art tourism and music tourism are one of the profitable fields in one of the most profitable and largest industries in the world.
Examples of music tourism in the world
One of the successful examples of music tourism in the world was the "Rock in the Park" festival, which was held in Bogota, the capital of Colombia. This music festival in 2014 hosted 87 rock groups and attracted 400 thousand people. The annual Coachella music festival in California, the Glastonbury music festival The Glastonbury Festival in England and the Sunburn festival in India are among other famous music events and the world's best music festivals that are considered the best foreign tourism destinations.
For example the 600-hectare Coachella festival in 2019 had more than 114 million dollars of gross revenue. This music festival was also held in April 2023 and had 125 thousand participants each weekend, which in total equals 250 thousand participants. Britain is also one of the world's best tourism destinations in the field of music tourism. This country in 2022 attracted more than 14 million music tourists for Britain's music festival.
Music tourism in the countries on Iran's periphery
Music festivals are considered important drivers of tourism and, following that, economic development. Some countries of the region and on Iran's periphery, through holding these same music events, aside from the positive possibility of foreign-currency earnings for them, bring about considerable income for their country.
For example in Azar (November–December) 1402 (2023/24) a concert is to be held in the city of Dubai and in the opera hall with a capacity of 2000 people whose singer will be Ebrahim Hamedi, known as Ebi. The ticket price of each seat in this hall has been set from 365 to 3000 dirhams. Now if we take the average price of each seat as 1500 dirhams equivalent to 53 thousand tomans, about 20 million tomans will be the price of each seat of this concert. The total of that equals a figure equivalent to 40 billion tomans that will generate foreign-currency earnings for the UAE. Therefore if we take into account the frequency of the number of concerts and music events of this kind with foreign audiences in the UAE we will reach a considerable figure for the UAE's tourism industry.
Also in Ordibehesht (April–May) 1401 (2022/23) Amirhossein Maghsoudloo's (Tataloo) concert was held in Turkey. Given the 3555-person hall capacity and the price of each ticket which was between 200 and 500 dollars, on average a figure equal to 40 billion tomans has been Turkey's income from music tourism. Now given that many of this concert's audience have set out on this trip from inside Iran, that is a considerable amount of foreign currency has left Iran, which is not considered a positive event for Iran's economy. Other annual and seasonal concerts are also held intermittently in this country whose income figures for other music festivals are no less than the concerts mentioned. On the other side Turkey also earns good income from taxes on the revenues and their side activities, such as sightseeing and accommodation and other usual travel costs of foreign tourists. This story likewise goes on in other countries of the region such as Armenia and Georgia.
The effect of music tourism on Iran's tourism destinations
Although this earning of income from music tourism is an opportunity that unauthorized Iranian singers have presented to the countries of the region, Iran's tourism capacities and attractions in terms of natural areas and historic places, Iran's handicrafts, museums and bazaars can have a great welcome from foreign tourists. Also the subject of Iran's best tourism destinations can, over time, draw Iran as a tourist country and one that receives tourists, alongside other thriving countries of the region in the tourism industry, into the arena of competition with them. It is interesting that Iran among tourism indicators in the area of cultural resources holds rank 38. By holding tourism events such as music festivals, a smooth path for raising this rank will open up for it.
Music tourism beyond holding a concert
If music tourism is to be established in Iran it must be regarded as beyond watching a concert and merely listening to it. In this tourist trip it is necessary that a feeling be created for the audience that leads to a desire to experience it again and several times. So that in addition to the satisfaction of the participating tourist, they too can invite others to this music festival. Creating this feeling in the audience requires "experience design" for the audience. A keyword that is the secret of success of many music-festival tours in various countries. Experience design means creating the event space on the basis of the regional climate and local culture that leads to building and creating a desirable feeling for the audience. The more successfully the organizers of these Iranian music events act in this field, the better an economy will be achieved for this industry.
It must be noted that music tourism needs a full-scale and magnificent event for music. It is not only audiences who travel to benefit from a music festival and a musical experience; many artists also travel to hold their concerts and even hold concert tours. So the mere existence of good singers and attractive concerts in a country is not a factor in the development and flourishing of music tourism.
Conclusion
Iran's culture, given its regional fame and artistic background in the field of indigenous, local and Iranian music and the breadth of its types, also has the possibility of becoming one of the important music-tourism destinations in this field. The music tourism industry today is not merely a music festival and a simple artistic occurrence that one could also simply pass by; rather a music event is a three-sided artistic, cultural and commercial occurrence. Now if this music event is managed well, in all three aspects it will lead to Iran's economic revenue generation and its growth and excellence. In the end perhaps music tourism in Iran can be regarded as a ticket for travelers on the other side of the borders whose entry into the country would mark a new chapter for Iran's tourism industry.
Sources
blitik.biz
dubaiopera.com
https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/music-tourism-sector-preview-and-analysis
https://blog.gitnux.com/coachella-festival-statistics/
Tejarat News
Music tourism, sustainable urban and rural development in Iran, Dr. Mohammad Reza Azadehfar
Machine-translated from Persian by Namafar; the Persian original is authoritative. Read the original in Persian