The San Francisco Symphony has launched its own social-networking community where its musicians can connect with music fans. Visitors to the site can post profile information; add and view video, links, and photos; hear music and audio; start groups and discussion topics; post and share events. There will be backstage blog posts from musicians, staff, and conductors, as well as exclusive video and audio content, interviews, and live chats with musicians and guest artists. “The San Francisco Symphony social network offers music lovers a way of communicating with ach other, and with us, using a tool that’s fun and natural for the way people meet and share information now,” said Brent Assink, the orchestra’s executive director. Also this week, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra reports that it used Twitter—the social networking site that allows users to send and receive updates from other users—for the first time to hold a contest where it posted clues periodically about where to find two free tickets to its May 21 concert with Trey Anastasio of the alt-rock group Phish; the winner of the contest, Josh Nay, was announced on May 5. The orchestra reported that the contest gained it 600 new Twitter followers in less than a month.
Posted May 8, 2009
