Concertgebouw Orchestra tears up the branding
NewsThe Amsterdam orchestra is replacing its visuals in the hope of attracting younger audiences.
In a parallel move the C’bouw establishment is polling existing subscribers on whether it should change concert times from 20.15 to the international norm of 19.30.
Radical.
Press release:
As part of its strategy to reach and attract more listeners, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is pleased to announce an exciting rebranding of its visual identity, a project brought to fruition in January 2024. The rebranding was driven by the orchestra’s growing ambition to reach people of all ages and backgrounds. Developed by design agency Motif, the rebranding introduces a more emotional quality and is better suited to digital media. Striking work by the leading Dutch photographer Carli Hermès also plays a key role. The orchestra’s aim is thus to appeal to a wider audience both in public spaces and via online media.
Letter to subscribers:
We are considering bringing forward the start time of concerts in the
Kleine Zaal. Instead of at 8:15 PM (end time approximately 10:15 PM),
the concerts will start at 7:30 PM (end time approximately 9:30 PM), the
same as the start time of concerts in Wigmore Hall (London),
Elbphilharmonie (Hamburg) and Wiener Konzerthaus (Vienna), among others.
). The reason for this is that some of the concert visitors indicate
that they prefer to come home earlier in the evening, have more
opportunity to have a drink somewhere afterwards and have better
connections with public transport.
The earlier hours would probably also prevent late-night muggings and assaults. We can only hope that, in the name of their new initiative, the venerable Concertgebouw refrains from taking after, say, the Seattle. Else, should we also expect the hall interior to be redecorated with graffiti? Watch.
https://youtu.be/w59e20ijOpE
Tell me you’ve never been to Amsterdam without saying you’ve never been to Amsterdam.
Your post only mentions changing start times in the Kleine Zaal (recital hall) to 7:30. No mention of the big Main hall.
Many young people nowadays are regularly visiting the orchestra’s website to check whether the visuals will finally meet their expectations. Time and again they sadly shake their heads and get to Blabbermouth or HM to absorb their daily identity-confirming input:
https://shop.heavymetal.com/
As we know, classical music can only survive if it is catering to the young and uninformed, and adapt to their tastes. Just like all educational trajectories: give them what they want, not what they would need because that is patronizing, suppressing, hindering development and the florishing of the human mind and heart.
What a strange post from John Borstlap who seems dismissive of all manner of change and firmly rooted in the past. Visuals and branding are essential tools for marketing classical music these days and the old style of traditional marketing is a total turn off for most people.
Decades ago I saw a subscription brochure somewhere with a visual on the front of a large ice cream cone with about 5 different colours of ice cream scoops on top. The tag line was simply “Experience the Unexpected”. I have no idea how many new subscribers or even single ticket buyers it attracted for the symphony concerts, but it was certainly striking and will have encouraged a great many more at least to look more closely at it.
Although the press release mentions only start times for concerts in the small chamber hall, The later than usual start time of 20.15 causes challenges for those who like to eat and converse after a concert. Amsterdam is not known for late dining. After meeting friends for a recent concert, we hurried to a nearby restaurant and, despite only being offered a ‘short’ menu of main course only, were ‘encouraged’ (politely!) to leave quite quickly!
Anecdotes like this is the reason I hate Internet.
Who CARES about the young crowd? You think changing times for these entitled shit stains will make a difference? DON’T change..let THEM change. You think Beethoven would bend over just to appease a crowd if they didn’t like a melody he made? This whole thing is ridiculous
Why is everyone so pressed about changing the start times in the Kleine zaal?? They’re experimenting in the hopes of reaching new public and marketing can be a VERY effective part of that.
An exceptionally out of touch and rude post from Rrick towards the younger generation of listeners, and we wonder why they feel like they’re not welcome in the classical music world, smdh
He’s right, I’m 60, I don’t care to see one God damn thing changed for any millennial, that includes you, “Anna”, and like most of your undistinguished generation you’re awfully quick to make assumptions about how you all feel
Brava, Anna.
Grazie.