Just caught this article by Grant Park Music Festival Artistic and General Director Jim Palermo at the excellent Chicago Classical Music blog (maybe Portland should have one of these…hint, hint) concerning finding and nurturing audiences for classical music.

These paragraphs are what I see as the crux of the matter (emphases mine):

The good news as reported by Stager is that overall, repertory is more important than guest artists. That’s good news because guest artist fees, especially for the big names, have skyrocketed past our ability to recoup them at the box office. Stager says the best selling concerts are those that match a big name with a mega popular piece. Yes, Perlman playing the Tchaikovsky Concerto will pack ‘em in.

I always wonder at badly attended concerts why the marketing didn’t work. Then, I realize at all Mozart concerts or when people cram the aisles to hear Boleró that audiences are shrewd, selective consumers. People know what they like and act accordingly. Never underestimate the intelligence of your audience.

Here’s also what I find hopeful: Stager says that “an institution’s unwavering will to present interesting programs – not simply popular ones” builds audiences over time. Great, so we can have our cake and eat it, too, that is, if we do everything else right.