| Developer(s) | Metropolitan Opera / Tessitura Network |
|---|---|
| Initial release | 2000 |
| Stable release | 16.0.2
/ 2022-08-01 |
| Written in | Microsoft SQL Server, .NET, PowerBuilder, Angular (web framework) |
| Operating system | Windows |
| Available in | English |
| Type | Arts enterprise software |
| License | Proprietary; site-based |
| Website | www |
Tessitura is an enterprise application used by performing arts and cultural organisations to manage their activities in ticketing, fundraising, customer relationship management, and marketing. It refers to itself as "arts enterprise software."
Tessitura was originally developed by and for the Metropolitan Opera of New York.
One of the aspects which distinguishes Tessitura from most other commercial software is the business model chosen by the Metropolitan Opera to commercialize what was originally custom software. The Metropolitan Opera maintains ownership of the intellectual property in the original software, but established a separate organization called Tessitura Network (as a not-for-profit corporation with 501(c)(3) status under United States tax law) to manage the ongoing development and support of the system. The Tessitura Network now licenses users, handles management, maintenance and development of the system, and fosters an active exchange of best practices and knowledge sharing within the nonprofit arts and cultural sector. The Tessitura Network is effectively a cooperative enterprise, governed via a board elected by and from, and representative of, the licensees of the system.[1][2][3]
This business model has an obvious resonance with the not-for-profit and self-governing ethos of the arts community, and is one reason for the dominance Tessitura has rapidly achieved in the (deliberately restricted) market in which it operates–English-speaking, not-for-profit, arts organizations with a need for ticketing and fundraising systems.[1]
The Tessitura system is designed to be flexible, customizable, and open, and therefore can be tailored for each organization. Functional areas include ticketing, fundraising, constituent relationship management, Web API, and marketing tools.