A Long-Standing Commitment to Musicians

As a former national president and national secretary, he had a decisive impact on the USDAM and worked with great dedication to advance the interests of musicians in Switzerland. He was particularly committed to improving working conditions, strong advocacy, and dialogue with policymakers, institutions, and partner organizations. Through his calm and conciliatory approach, as well as his extensive experience, he has left a lasting mark on the union. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Beat Santschi for his longstanding commitment and wish him all the best in this new chapter of his life.

Short Biography

Beat Santschi studied guitar and piano, archaeology and cultural anthropology, orchestral conducting, and cultural management at the University of Zurich, the Jazzschule in Lucerne, the Guitar Institute of Technology in Los Angeles, and the ZHAW Zentrum für Kulturmanagement. In addition to his work as a guitarist and cultural manager, he has been deeply involved in serving the music community, not only within the USDAM (Central Committee since 1998, USDAM Central President from 2009 to 2020, and Central Secretary from 2020 to 2026), but also as vice president of the International Federation of Musicians, president of the Swiss Coalition for Cultural Diversity, and vice president of the International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity, as well as a member of the executive committee of Swissperform and the Swiss Performers« Cooperative (SIG). In 2020, David Schneebeli, who succeeded him as co-president, wrote a tribute, an excerpt of which follows: »Beat devoted himself with equal energy to all areas of the Union’s work; he was a knowledgeable point of contact for individual members as well as for section committees or representatives of other associations or government agencies. Beat understood the great importance of synergy among professional associations at the national and international levels.”

Interview

 The answers to our questions were provided in writing (French translation by Laurent Mettraux).

– What memories will you take with you from your years at USDAM serving musicians?

Meeting so many wonderful people—and a few not-so-great ones as well—from many different countries and cultures, and our shared commitment to improving working conditions in the music industry.

The extreme, unprecedented situation during the pandemic, when a de facto work ban was imposed on musicians—which hit self-employed workers particularly hard and posed a major challenge for us at the USDAM. We are grateful for the emergency aid we provided, but we also faced endless discussions with some members regarding COVID-19 vaccination or the requirement to present a certificate, as well as the outbreak of infection within the OSR. We worked very closely with all cultural sectors as well as with federal authorities—including Federal Councilor Alain Berset—as part of the Culture Task Force.

Important milestones, such as the campaign against wage dumping in the production of’Aida in Pfäffikon (ZH) in 2013, the USDAM’s centennial celebration in 2014 – on which occasion we notably succeeded in bringing together a large orchestra composed of USDAM members from all over Switzerland for the anniversary concert at the Zurich Opera House, during which everyone performed for free as a sign of solidarity, including conductor Mario Venzago –, the 2017 negotiations toward a merger with other professional musicians‘ associations—which led to the formation of Sonart—but ultimately failed due to opposition from within our own ranks, the integration of the USDAM fee schedules into the new orchestra funding model in Basel; and, this year, the highly significant and successful efforts, both in organizing the FIM Congress at the ILO in Geneva and in the «fee schedule» project.

– What changes have you observed during your time on the committee, as chair, and then at the central secretariat?

When I first became involved with the USDAM in the 1990s, the association struck me as rather old-fashioned. At the same time, it was simply a given that musicians would be members, without constantly questioning what benefits membership brought to each individual. With the rise of individualism and the erosion of solidarity in society over the following decades, personal benefits and services for the many (potential) members came to the forefront, sometimes driven by very specific interests. Countermeasures often had to be taken to ensure that the bigger picture was not lost sight of.

At the same time, the demands placed on the association’s work have increased due to ever-higher expectations, both from outside and within the organization, which has also necessitated a certain degree of professionalization in the association’s leadership. Fortunately, we have also succeeded in securing additional resources through the OFC’s support for KuOr associations.

– What do you think are the challenges facing musicians, both now and in the future?

For most musicians, generating a sustainable income from music recordings is no longer a viable option today—at least not since streaming platforms have become the primary source of content for consumers, without any serious consideration of how to compensate those who create the music. Now, AI-generated music production has entered the picture—a process made possible only by training models on existing recordings created by humans. These platforms also take everything from songwriters and performers and give nothing in return, with no serious political intervention.

So all that remains is live performance—the concert, the show. The challenge now is to generate enough income to make a living. In most cases, this requires adequately funded cultural promotion—and therefore political will. It’s likely that we’ll see politicians who argue, for example, that we could cut subsidies for this or that symphony orchestra, since nowadays anyone can become a musician with just a few clicks using AI platforms. In the world of pop music, there are already hologram bands—even in Switzerland—that fill concert halls, even though there isn’t a single human being on stage. I’m more optimistic here, though: I believe that for a long time to come, people will still take special pleasure in listening to live music performed by humans—and will also be willing to pay for it.

– How do you view the importance of international collaboration for musicians’ unions?

International collaboration and solidarity among music unions are absolutely essential, especially in these times of anti-multilateralism on the political scene. I would go so far as to say that, in some cases, the USDAM maintains far more constructive and forward-looking relationships—for example, with European and American colleagues—than the Federal Council does with Parliament. For example, we are campaigning together—including within international organizations such as WIPO—for regulations on generative AI that benefit authors and performers, an issue that seems to hold little interest for our governments.

Fortunately, the USDAM can continue to play a key role in the International Federation of Musicians (FIM).