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Audience Diversification Resources

Updated October 2023

Engaging a wide range of audiences from local communities is critical to the future relevance, artistic vibrancy, and financial sustainability of orchestras across the U.S. We hope the resources below and on the audience growth resources page will inform the work ahead.

Opportunities

Challenges

  • Almost 50% of Americans believe that symphony orchestras are “NOT welcoming to people like me.” While orchestras have been making efforts to become more welcoming, they are seeing limited progress when compared to other cultural organizations (via IMPACTS Experience).
  • 43% of Black Americans – and 27% of the total U.S. population – see systemic racism in orchestras. For the detailsand to hear about the importance to BIPOC Americans of local venues that focus on arts and culture reflective of their own cultural identities,watch the League’s January 2022 webinar Understanding Audience Motivations in a Time of Ongoing Uncertainty with Slover Linett and LaPlaca Cohen.
  • Even some current audience members feel unwelcome at orchestra concerts, and those who do so are twice as likely to be BIPOC than White. The most often reported sources of discomfort are other audience members and front-of-house staff: read more in the Study of Audience Attitudes towards Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity produced by WolfBrown in partnership with the League.

Insights

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