November 26, 2008
Detroit Symphony in Trouble? Uh oh!
Unsurprisingly, given the currently disastrous state of the Michigan economy, the Detroit Symphony is battling some fairly major financial issueswith year-end losses totally around half a million. That's a lot right? Apparently not... comparatively, given the orchestra's 31.5 million dolllar budget. Personally, I'm surprised it's not more; every time I go to a concert, unless it's Yo-Yo Ma, there are tons of empty seats, especially in the upper balcony, where it's almost empty. Thankfully for the DSO, they have some very reliable donors, but for how long can that go on?
A shameless plug to go see the DSO at beautiful Orchestra Hall
In these tough economic times, it is not a shock that ticket sales have declined as audience members have less money to spend on entertainment and leisure, but is there anything orchestras can do to combat this trend? Unfortunately, in order to meet budget demands they must keep prices high, but have incentives for someone to buy, otherwise they would have even more empty seats. I'm a fan of the new 3711 program-where I can get a seat in the Dress Circle for just $11. Sometimes when I consider how cheap I am when it comes to concerts-concerts that I undoubtedly want to go to-I wonder if maybe I'm part of the problem. Could I afford the cheapest regular seat? Probably. Do I want to spend the money? Not likely. Do I still want to hear the concert? Of course. It's a vicious circle-if audience members (not including wealthy donors/elderly, but the prospective younger segment) are musicians themselves, it's not likely that their meager incomes will support frequent concert attendance, regardless of how much they'd love to hear a live performance of Mahler 2 or Gil Shaham play the Brahms Violin Concerto. A recording is just not the same! I just hope that they can manage to stay afloat, because the DSO is much too valuable of an asset to Michigan arts & culture to lose.
Posted by srelder at 12:15 PM | Comments (0)
October 10, 2008
The Unsung Success of Classical Music?
Sometimes I'm afraid it's much too easy to get sucked into the pessimism surrounding the current financial state of arts organizations. In the past year, multiple smaller orchestras have declared bankruptcy or have acknowledged huge losses and shrinking budgets. But is this true across the board? Is there still hope out there for the future of classical music? Or is it a dying art, with audiences getting increasing smaller and older?
In his article in the WSJ, Leon Botstein paints a very positive picture for future orchestras, accompanied by a few suggestions for success. As someone who frequently attends concerts, either by the Detroit Symphony or various groups brought in by the University Musical Society, from La Philharmonia de la Scala to the San Francisco Symphony, I acknowledge that yes, audiences are made up mostly of older adults, but they always have been-this is not a new trend. And at the UMS concerts here, one can find a plethora of students drawn in not only by decreased ticket prices but by the value of hearing the phenomenal groups live. The same goes for the DSO, which is pioneering a new ticketing program for anyone under 37, allowing them to get fantastic seats for just $11 to almost any concert. By eliminating the issue of price, both organizations are able to show that there is an intrinsic demand for high quality live music, it just has to be accessible.
Botstein's early examples in the article of packed concerts involve places like Vienna-where classical music is not an adults-only tradition, but one that has been embraced by the general public for hundreds of years. What we have to do is translate that appreciation to the US. There are more musicians than ever-certainly more than could ever get jobs in good orchestras, even with the increase in orchestras, and to me, that says that classical music can thrive, it just needs to get through financial issues and find innovative ways to get beyond budget constraints caused by slacking ticket sales. It's encouraging to see someone so well-respected with a positive outlook on the future, which makes it much easier for me to keep one as well.
Posted by srelder at 04:25 PM | Comments (0)