My weblog neighbor, Drew McManus, has dubbed May ‘take a friend to orchestra month,’ and is jamming the festivities with personal stories from around the country. Says Drew:
Throughout the month of May, Adaptistration will feature several of the most entertaining, insightful, and clever culture and classical music bloggers as they write about how average patrons throughout the country can invite friends who don’t regularly participate in live music events to one of your performances.
It’s a wonderfully proactive response to the challenge of orchestra attendance, which is fading in many cities. According to the Knight Foundation’s Classical Music Consumer Segmentation Study, the attendance numbers are far below the potential draw, even among those who claim they want to attend:
Roughly 10 percent to 15 percent of Americans have what might be termed a close or moderately close relationship with classical music, and again as many have weaker ties. Yet only half of those who express the very highest levels of preference for attending classical music concerts actually attend, even infrequently.
One of the powerful messages of the Knight study was the importance of social connections in promoting live concert attendance. In one baffling statistic, the study found that ”40 percent of those who’ve ever attended a concert by their local orchestra did not (and have never) purchased a ticket.” Instead, they were invited by a friend or family member who actually made the purchase.
Will the friends connect with the orchestra experience, even with an enthusiastic guide? Will the guides find clarity in their own love of live symphonic performance by explaining it to a friend? Will symphony attendance suddenly double in May (and then plummet again in June)? It will be fun to watch and read along.
The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra performed a new work commissioned with a tenor sax soloist. This orchestral experience was the first I was ever able to pursuade a friend to attend. She loved the idea of a jazz saxophonist performing with a major orchestra. Hope we find more such commissions in the works…maybe one each year?