Splendor Amsterdam

In 2013, a network of performers, 50 strong, collectively invested in a place where experimentation has no boundaries and where artists and their audiences connect to inspire each other. An old centrally located Amsterdam bathhouse was transformed into a professionally equipped music house, which is operated in its entirety by the artists themselves (among which players of the main Dutch orchestras such as the Concertgebouworkest, Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Radio Orchestras, as well as names from the world of opera, jazz, electronics and ethnic music). The location of Splendor reflects the artistic impetus from which the organization was designed: close to traditional institutions such as the opera house and the Rembrandt studio, but just off the beaten path. The venue unites composers, musicians and stage artists, that came together to form an artist-run cooperative that independently exploits a music venue in which the musicians have complete autonomy. Splendor is a second home for the 50 musicians and their public, but also for a vast number of musicians from the Netherland and abroad, that are welcome to rehearse or perform in the venue. Utilizing a specific organizational model in which responsibility for all aspects of the organization (from acquiring finances to musical programming) is shared among all members, Splendor is an example in which ‘commoning’ is an integral part of their model. Through their organizational decisions, Splendor is able to fully utilize the twofold character of a common good: on the one hand Splendor exemplifies a use value for a plurality (by providing artistic freedom to all connected artists), on the other hand, it requires a plurality claiming and sustaining the ownership of the common good. Together, these two elements form the core values of the Splendor model: a strive for complete artistic freedom and autonomy, and a collectively shared sense of ownership and responsibility. By operationalizing these core values, the artists have created a venue in which they are free to practice and perform, while being capable of reevaluating and changing the often distant relationship between the artists and their audiences.