[ARSCLIST] Making a dying genre relevant

[Tom Fine <tflists@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/09/arts/music/09cheap.html?th&emc=th

I think this is a real master stroke by the Met. And kudos to the rich patrons who underwrote this. 
Here is one (a lone voice in the woods right now, but perhaps other orchestras and opera companies 
will see the light) group that has come to realize basic economics and demographics. To wit - if you 
price yourself out of the market of all but the very old and the very rich, your genre will die and 
there will be zero jobs for your union musicians and zero 6-figure paydays for your superstars.

This goes in line with what I've said about orchestras needing to make their concert broadcasts 
available online for time-shifted listening, and in good enough quality so that a person exploring 
the genre or the orchestra can get a feel of how it is to be there. Perhaps if a person listens to a 
concert stream, after the stream is finished, a window should open with a discounted ticket 
offering.

Bottom line is this. In NY, if one wants to take his wife to the symphony, even using the lowest 
subscription prices for decent seats, it's a $100+ night when you count transportation and/or 
parking. It's easily twice that if you throw in a good dinner. Who can afford that? Not that rock 
concerts are much cheaper these days. Live music has priced itself out of most people's reach and, 
for many people, if they are going to pay these ridicubux, they are much more likely to be attracted 
to the grand spectacle of a Madonna concert than a stodgy night at Avery Fisher Hall. Opera 
definitely has the grand spectacle thing going for it, so offering an affordable way to learn about 
it is brilliant.

One man's opinions ...

-- Tom Fine