Mapping out Toronto's music scene

The Martin Prosperity Institute is back at it with another map project that focuses on Toronto's cultural scene. Building on previous work done on the cost of music rehearsal space in Toronto, this latest effort charts the relationship between monthly rehearsal spaces and live music venues. Although the results this little cartographic exercise might not be particularly surprising — centrally located studios are closer to live venues and more expensive to rent — it's intriguing, nevertheless, to get a macro look at Toronto's music scene.

"To explore the relationship between rehearsal space, cost, and work opportunity for musicians, we mapped Toronto's live music venues and overlaid them with the cost and location of rehearsal studios, and transit opportunities in the City of Toronto," reads the accompanying report. "Using 2010 Canadian Business Data collected from Pitney Bowes, this was crossed referenced with Yellow pages and Now Magazine directories, which resulted in a total of 152 live music venues for the City of Toronto."

All told, 69 per cent of Toronto's music studios are located within a 2km radius of its various rehearsal studios. Why is that significant? According to Institute, "musicians continue to gravitate towards Toronto's thick labour markets for both music-related work opportunity, and alternative forms of employment...While organizations like Artscape offer affordable space, there is a lack of musicians within these buildings. As the City of Toronto manages its budget crisis and also considers the re-use of space across the city, planning effectively for the future will enable Toronto to continue to attract musicians and retain talent."

Click here to read the full report as a PDF.

• Related: The location of culture in Toronto