The Academy of St Martin in the Fields’ newly-revamped Front Row ticket scheme offers full-time students and under 30-year-olds top price seats to selected concerts for the specially discounted price of just £5. Read below to hear more!
On Thursday 1 November, ASMF will hold a Front Row-exclusive Artist Q&A with cellist Anastasia Kobekina before her concert. Check out the event here.
Could you tell us more about the inspiration behind the Front Row scheme and how it’s designed to attract younger audiences, particularly students and under-30s, to classical music?
We know that many orchestras already run their own young-person schemes, and as have we at ASMF. However, there’s lots of potential in making it bigger and better than it was before – which included expanding from under-26’s, right up to under-30’s! Living in London, students and otherwise, we fully understand how expensive living can be. With this in mind, we felt it was extremely important to increase accessibility to ASMF concerts for our younger audience members, such as through our £5 discounted tickets. As ASMF aims to invest even more in the development of young professional musicians, we knew it was time to create a strong foundation for this work to be built upon – developing more inclusive audiences where our younger members know they are welcome and valued.
With the 1 November concert at St Martin-in-the-Fields featuring soloist Anastasia Kobekina, what can attendees expect from the Front Row-exclusive Artist Q&A, and how does this kind of engagement enhance the experience for younger concertgoers?
The idea of ‘breaking the barrier’, for first-time-concert-goers and those interested in exploring the world of classical music, is something that is very important to us within these pre-concert talks. Enabling Front Row members to gain exclusive insight behind-the-scenes, connecting with admired artists and getting to interact together within a more informal, intimate setting is very valuable to us. What’s more, we hope to inspire young musicians through these opportunities – learning wider context behind concert repertoire, as well as gaining insight into the classical music world. Being young musicians ourselves, we understand that building a career in classical music can sometimes feel challenging – these experiences aim to motivate and inspire the next generation of professional musicians, while also being a shared opportunity for our valued classical music-lovers, too.
How does ASMF plan to continue fostering connections with younger audiences through initiatives like open rehearsals and Q&A sessions? Could you give us a sneak peek into the upcoming events, such as the rehearsals and performances with Khatia Buniatishvili and Bruce Liu?
The ASMF ‘Front Row’ scheme is still in its early stages for now, we are continuously developing the scheme and coming up with new ideas and in new spaces, for its members. For example, our upcoming open rehearsals with pianist, Bruce Liu, features a USA-tour programme, which won’t otherwise be performed in the UK! Following the success of the inaugural pre-concert talk, we aim to make these Q&A sessions a consistent part of ASMF’s performance schedule on top of the already-existing open rehearsal opportunities, which Front Row members are already loving so far! But above all, we hope to develop strong, long-term relationships with our younger audience members, fostering a community where they feel welcome to get to know each other, meet and chat with ASMF musicians, and of course learn together.
What feedback have you received from under-30s and full-time students who’ve attended Front Row events so far, and how has this input shaped the development of the scheme moving forward?
Our favourite piece of feedback, so far, has to be from our May-concert with Håkan Hardenberger:
“I really enjoyed the concert and thought everything was run very well! I think the front row scheme is really an amazing thing to have.”
It has been great to receive any feedback, of any kind, from our recent events and performances, and we make sure to log and act on feedback where and whenever possible. While the scheme is in its early stages, it has been brilliant to see how well-received it has already been. This has meant continuing and/or developing certain aspects further, as previously mentioned, to make them a consistent feature of our work. Front Row feedback has also been valuable beyond the scheme itself, helping to shape what our audiences would like to see/hear more of (i.e. commissioned pieces/works by specific composers) plus the structure in which the concerts are run (i.e. spoken interludes). We want Front Row members to know that their views have been received, heard and respected – no one opinion is overlooked or ignored.
Beyond discounted tickets, what additional benefits and unique experiences does the Front Row scheme offer to younger audiences, and how do you see these enhancing their overall connection to classical music and ASMF’s performances?
Other features of the scheme include (but are not limited to) open rehearsal opportunities, free merch (such as stylish tote bags and case stickers), newsletter updates on events and discounts, and face-to-face experiences enabling engagement with ASMF’s high calibre musicians. Beyond the tangible benefits of ASMF’s ‘Front Row’ scheme, we aim to build a strong, like-minded cohort of individuals who are positively affected by our work in classical music, helping to bring lesser-known repertoire to our younger audience members, and inspiring young professionals to feel that a career in classical music is attainable through these real-life examples and experiences.