The front page of the WSJ's Weekend Journal today features an article about crossover classical violinist & conductor André Rieu. While his concerts are wildly successful in many parts of the world, he still has the same problem as many other classical music organizations: He has "an older, largely female audience" which he would like to broaden. The article does not say how one goes about attracting a younger audience, but it does confirm my suspicion that this older, female audience IS the audience for classical music, so what you should do is just try to get more of them.The article also comes with an amusing graphic of crossover musicians from "cheesiest" (Trans-Siberian Orchestra) to "classiest" (Yo-Yo Ma), in 12 half-steps, no less.
2 comments:
I missed the graphic 12-step chart when I read the article, so thanks for posting that. I was fuming when I read the article; mad about WSJ spending so much space and ink on him. Can I also mention that I hate pledge week on PBS (on right now) which broadcasts the Andre Rieu concerts day and night?
Regarding the "cheesiest to classiest," I'm surprised that Katherine Jenkins is not on it. Is she too cheesy to even be mentioned?
I was amused to see the Boston Pops in the middle of the scale. I have shunned the Pops for years (too "low brow" for me), but we finally attended a concert last week, featuring the 89 year-old Dave Brubeck. I'm embarrassed to say that I enjoyed the concert immensely, even the first half without Brubeck. And yes, I even sang along when they played Beatles.
That full page article about Rieu in the WSJ does function as a big commercial for his U.S. tour this month. It did not make me want to see his show, however.
I'm afraid that I have not heard of Katherine Jenkins before, but no doubt there are many performers of broad appeal who could be on that chart. I'd never thought of Joshua Bell as a cross-over artist, though he is the 1st classical musician I'd seen packaged like a pop star.
No need to be be embarrassed by attending a Boston Pops concert & enjoying it!
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