In Sunday’s (3/9) Deceptive Cadence blog at NPR, Rachel Martin writes that nontraditional shows like the Detroit Symphony Orchestra’s recent flashmob performance at a suburban IKEA are “part of how the symphony is reinventing itself, after an internal financial crisis almost brought the orchestra down. Anne Parsons, chief executive of the DSO, says an audit in 2008 brought clarity…. It was a wake-up call…. [The DSO] started looking for ways to boost audience numbers. ‘We looked at zip codes, we did analysis,’ Parsons says. ‘We could clearly see where everybody lived that used to participate. And we thought, “Well, what if we went to them, as opposed to making them come to us?” ‘ … That’s what they did, performing in community theaters, nursing homes, hospitals, churches and synagogues…. It started to pay off: Subscriptions went up, and now concerts at Orchestra Hall are selling out…. [Principal trombonist Ken] Thompkins sounds upbeat about the orchestra’s renewed role in the community. ‘Music is a calling,’ he says…. ‘We’re bringing great music and we’re lifting the spirits and the hearts of people, no matter what the venue is, and I’m really proud to do that.’ ”
Posted March 10, 2014
Pictured: Detroit Symphony Orchestra musicians perform Beethoven at an IKEA store in Canton, Michigan, January 2014
