DILETTANTEMUSIC.COM GOES BLONDE

Dilettantemusic.com hires NMA's 'Ones to Watch' to develop Phase 2

One year after the Phase 1 launch of its hugely successful classical music website, Dilettantemusic.com has appointed digital agency Blonde to undertake Phase 2 site design and development. In addition to building Dilettante's consumer-facing tools, Blonde will boost the site's usability, and finesse its look and feel.

With digital clients such as London's Sadler's Wells and the Edinburgh International Festival, Blonde were named 'Ones to Watch' by New Media Age.

Its enhanced functionality will make Dilettante the only classical music website that integrates a community using Web 2.0 social media tools with e-commerce and 'expert' content. Tools and features will be integrated and intuitive, creating a more personal and personalised experience. The site's look and feel will be driven by Dilettante's striking brand identity created by Punkt whose clients include HP, Nokia, and Mylo Sony.

As a classical music social networking site, Dilettante is firmly established in the music community as a place for musicians and listeners from around the world to talk to each other, upload their music and publicise their events, as well as enhancing their classical music knowledge and appreciation. Since launch in January 2008, Dilettante's unique offering has attracted members and visitors from 87 countries.

Juliana Farha, Founder, Dilettantemusic.com, says: "Dilettante represents the evolution of classical music. It's our mission to break down barriers to the discovery of classical music and performers and bring the genre to a wider audience, and we're using web tools to achieve that."

Phil Dearson, Managing Partner Blonde says: ""At Blonde we believe digital works best when it assists in the creation of genuinely moving personal experiences, and classical music is saturated with the strongest human emotions. We're absolutely thrilled to be working with Dilettante to bring these two worlds together, for passionate audiences old and new."

Says Juliana: "We are very excited to be working with Blonde as our companies are driven by a similar ethos. Blonde is a young, energetic agency that's growing fast and we were really impressed with the work they have done for Sadler's Wells and other clients."

Watch Dilettante and Blond working online
We'll be charting the progress of Phase 2 development with a video diary visitors can view on our homepage. It will provide a peek behind the scenes, and updates from the Blonde and Dilettante teams. The first of these will go live late December.

Dilettantemusic.com
Dilettante is designed to guide users on a journey of discovery through the sometimes-daunting world of classical music. The site aims to create a global network by providing classical musicians and fans with the tools to discover, present and share the music they love. It has attracted members and visitors from as far a field as China, Australia and Argentina, and organisations big and small, including the Royal Opera House and the Barbirolli Quartet.

Dilettante Key Features
- Unique user-generated events calendar where you can find classical concerts in local areas.
- A vast library of information about performers, composers and their work - useful if you're trying to remember who wrote a piece of music, or find something new by your favourite composer.
- Music pages linked to available CDs, so once you've found the piece you're looking for, you can see which CD it's on and then click-through to buy.
- A dynamic homepage where users can listen to members' mp3s, read about classical music events and find out more about Dilettante members.

Dilettante Founder, Juliana Farha
With a Czech-born stepfather who was a well-known violin maker, and a mother who propelled the family violin business to international success, Juliana grew up in the world of classical music. Although she trained as a journalist, it was while working for the family business for many years that Juliana conceived the Dilettante mission. A self-described Dilettante, the site is her ideas made real.

Blonde
Blonde is a full service digital agency with 30 people based in offices in London and Edinburgh.
Our services include digital communication strategy, digital marketing services, design & build and technical work. Blonde works with clients such as Coors Brewers, AIG, Sadlers Wells, IRN-BRU, Sony, Edinburgh International Festival, Whyte & Mackay, Velux and LLUK. Blonde is part of Tangible Group and have some useful friends in the areas of data analysis, seeding & co-creation, brand positioning, and media planning. http://www.blonde.net

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