New ears

It is widely quoted that Tate Modern is one of the most visited tourist attractions in the UK, usually when assurance is needed that ‘real culture’ can be attractive in a world enslaved by instant-access entertainment and the flat-screen TV. Not every contemporary art gallery can replicate Tate’s success, but it highlights the disparities within reactions to contemporary artforms. The level at which contemporary art, together with literature, theatre and film, is considered widely accessible and relevant can only be dreamt about by promoters of contemporary classical music. The London Sinfonietta has always looked for ways to reach out to new audiences.

The American composer John Adams has said that “there is a genuine hostility that exists between the average concertgoer and the present day composer that doesn’t seem to occur in most other arts”. So how can perceptions of contemporary music be changed to bring in new audiences? An immediate way to go about this is through the obligatory new media. Online marketing is no longer radical, but making the sounds and ideas of new music more familiar by creating podcasts, videos and recordings online can intrigue and inspire an audience. This gives people more ways in for listening and more reasons to attend concerts, as London Sinfonietta has established through its new digital strategies. Redefining the contexts in which music is listened to also has a big impact. Since London Sinfonietta’s collaborations with Warp Records, programming contemporary classical music in collaboration with ‘cross-over’ artists, DJs and video artists has developed new audiences worldwide. The concept has been taken up by successful series and festivals including Wordless Music in New York and Sacrum Profanum in Krakow.

NEW CONTEXTS
The idea of creating new contexts by moving classical music into factories, cafes, pubs, clubs and even branches of Ikea, has been particularly significant for contemporary classical music because it exposes for the audience the links with other elements of contemporary culture. “We are increasingly looking at projects that take us out of the concert hall,” says Andrew Burke, Chief Executive of the London Sinfonietta. “We have performed Steve Reich’s music in the Oskar Schindler factory in Krakow, and there is a young audience which comes because they are in an evocative space, as well as then listening intently to the music.” In London the monthly Kämmer Klang series attracts a wide audience to a cafe in Dalston with its mix of jazz, improvisation and classics of contemporary repertoire alongside works by emerging composers. “The huge majority of the audience are much younger than typical concertgoers, interested in electronica and the club scene,” says Kämmer Klang series programmer and cellist Lucy Railton. Tapping into the idea that young people are open to engaging with contemporary classical music in this way, the London Sinfonietta’s Culture Collective/Street Genius initiative (as part of the ‘Sowf’ project, involving a group of arts organisations on the South Bank and Bankside Cultural Quarter) has shifted the function of an audience from listeners to curators. Next June the London Sinfonietta hands over the Queen Elizabeth Hall for a night to its own Culture Collective, a group whose previous membership of 17–22 year-olds successfully programmed the Royal Philharmonic Society award-nominated ‘LDNSNF_40’ event at Southbank Centre’s Spirit Level in December 2008.

New entrances
Does the programming of contemporary classical music therefore have to cross genres or link to other artforms to attract audiences? Monographic concerts can provide a way in for a new audience, while still drawing in the aficionados. “People are fascinated by discovering new sounds and inspiration – and yet it’s hard for anyone to take in many different new things at one sitting,” says Andrew Burke. Making these concerts attractive to people who know nothing about the music being presented, however, is still the key. “Very few people who come to contemporary music events at Southbank Centre are those who go to traditional classical music concerts,” says the venue’s Head of Contemporary Culture, Gillian Moore. “The way forward is programming boldly for people who are interested in edgy and new work.” This inevitably means the audiences who seek out new work regardless of its genre, and who are not afraid of being provoked into having a strong reaction, be it good or bad. Lucy Railton believes part of the success of the Kämmer Klang events lies in these strong emotions: “Some people really hate some of the music, which is good because at least it means that the evening doesn’t wash over people”. The essence of what turns many would-be audience members off contemporary music seems to be the very thing that makes it attractive to others. The encouraging signs are that by moving contemporary music out from under the weight of classical music tradition, it is finally emerging into its own spotlight.