Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra:
migrating older audiences online
Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra created its first livestream in 2017, and now has one of the most extensive and popular online concert programmes in the UK. Read the headline results of our survey of over 500 live and online ticket holders, and learn about BSO’s innovative and low-cost live streaming setup.
In autumn 2020, BSO became one of the first UK orchestras to stream its entire programme. As a company that tours throughout the South West, its aim was to maintain a connection with its core regional audience. But it faced the challenge of connecting with an audience base most of whom were over-65.
Together with BSO, we conducted a survey of in-person and online ticket holders for the May 2021 hybrid season of six concerts. We received 520 responses, which together outlined a wide range of accessibility benefits that resonated with BSO’s older demographic.
60
58,365
420,319
I suffer from MS and by the evening do not go out. There are I am sure many disabled people like me who find online concerts wonderful as we would not attend in person.
Survey respondent
Logistics
BSO is a touring ensemble that usually performs around 150 concerts per year in 40 venues in the South West and beyond. Since September 2020, they have regularly livestreamed their concerts as part of their on-going BSO@Home digital series.
BSO had some experience of streaming concerts to schools from 2017 onwards. But for full public performances, professional quality audio and video equipment had to be bought. This has allowed all aspects of the live streaming to be done in-house by the BSO marketing team and a sound engineer that was hired in 2020. The BSO team estimate that if they used third-party providers, each concert would cost £12,000.
Each livestream is filmed using remote operated cameras, mounted throughout the auditorium. The two days before each concert are spent preparing a shot list to accompany the music score, and programming camera setups. During the concert, three crew work to switch between the programmed shots, mix the sound, and send out stream.
The concert livestream is placed on BSO’s website behind a paywall linked with Spektrix ticketing software. Tickets are £10 per concert, with season tickets also available. Online audiences receive access to a suite of content: for each concert, this includes introductory videos, the livestream, and VoD of the concert available for a further 30 days.
Rehearsal of a socially-distanced broadcast online, spring 2021
The digital experience has given me confidence and interest to attend more live concerts. I feel that I am getting to recognise and take interest in the individual musicians and the different instruments since the digital streaming gets in close to the action.
Survey respondent
Survey findings
– 77% of BSO’s online viewers started engaging with culture online during Covid-19.
– Relatively more over-65s engaged with online broadcasts than in-person concerts: 41% of online viewers were 75+ (with an additional 46% aged 65-74), compared with 44% and 38% respectively for the live audiences.
– 93% of respondents found the booking experience for the online broadcasts ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’, and 85% found them ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’ to access and watch online. High quality website and user experience design seem to have been effective in addressing technological barriers to engagement.
– 83% of online viewers found the experience very satisfying, and only slightly lower than the figure for in-person attendees.
of online viewers were over 65
of online viewers found concerts ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’ to access
found their online experience ‘very satisfying’
Reasons given for choosing to watch BSO streams at home
Online respondents only
The online version is more convenient 42%
I live too far away from the venues 41%
I don’t feel comfortable attending in person yet 41%
The online tickets were cheaper 10%
Online offers a better experience 7%
Accessibility considerations at venues 5%
I wasn’t available on any of the dates 4%
I wasn’t aware it was taking place in-person 0%
Twice as many online viewers declared themselves disabled as compared to in-person audience members. This suggests that the broadcasts were especially valuable for participants with specific accessibility needs.
73% of online viewers faced difficulty in getting to arts venues (compared with 43% of in-person audiences). This suggests that live streams also successfully helped overcome geographic barriers to engagement.
Online audiences had a lower income than live audiences. This suggests that online tickets may have provided a way in to experiencing BSO a way in for audience members with limited resources.
76% of online ticket buyers rated the online experience as ‘excellent’ value for money, and 23% rated it ‘good’. This compared with 70% and 29% respectively for live audiences.
increase in proportion of D/deaf and disabled participants online compared to in-person
proportion of online viewers who have difficulty accessing venues
proportion of in-person audiences who have difficulty in accessing venues
Appealing features of BSO@Home, listed by order of importance
(Live and online respondents)
I can watch at a time of my choice 84%
It’s happening live 57%
There’s bonus content 34%
I can interact with the artists 15%
It’s been specially created as an online experience 12%
Other 10%
Live sound mixing during a BSO broadcast
Aditional findings
On-demand and live can complement each other
84% of online viewers cited the opportunity to watch and re-watch concerts in their own time as a motivator for engaging with BSO online. In the words of one respondent, ‘The live evening concerts are long: I prefer to have the option of breaking the programmes up into shorter chunks which I can view earlier during the day.’
However, 57% also cited liveness as a motivator. This suggests that on-demand and live viewing are highly valued in tandem (though on-demand viewing is more highly valued), and that BSO’s strategy of including both in the price of a ticket contributed to high audience satisfaction.
Revenue alone cannot sustain digital activity
Most audience members thought digital offered the same or slightly higher value for money as live. But online tickets cost only £10. BSO’s limited digital revenue, despite their success in migrating much of their live audience online, suggests that without funding structures that prioritise accessibility and further audience development, digital cannot generate as much revenue as in-person. Despite its success, BSO still faces great challenges in funding a planned permanent recording studio at its venue in Poole, and a mobile recording studio for live streaming touring concerts.
Only to express my gratitude that the concerts are streamed now and I can watch this wonderful orchestra more often that I would otherwise be able to do, financially or practically. It’s one of the few good things to have come out of the pandemic.
Survey respondent
