San Diego, Calif. (PRWEB) June 07, 2017
The San Diego Symphony’s 2016-2017 Downtown season – which includes the Jacobs Masterworks, Jazz @ The Jacobs, Fox Theatre Film Series, Family Concerts, and Chamber Music Series – concluded with Music Director Jahja Ling’s finale and set a new sales record. The successful Jacobs Masterworks classical season concluded with sales 15.6% higher than last season (2015-2016) and paid attendance 8.2% above last season, representing 4,034 more paid admissions. The 16-17 season also proved to be a record-breaking season for tickets and sales of the Chamber Music, Jazz @ The Jacobs, Fox Theatre Film, and Family Concerts Series. Overall, the season finished 6.5% ahead of 2015-2016 in sales and slightly ahead in paid attendance.
Fiscal year 2017, which includes the recently concluded Downtown season as well as 2016’s Bayside Summer Nights, has the San Diego Symphony setting a new record for number of paid admissions for an entire fiscal year: 154,614. The previous record was set in fiscal year 2013 with 153,916 tickets sold.
In terms of ticket revenue, the 16-17 Downtown season experienced an increase for the second year in a row, up 8.8% from two years ago. Jacobs Masterworks saw an 18.6% increase in subscription package growth over two years ago, bucking the national trend. Total ticket sales for the season exceeded $6 million, which represents less than 30% of the total operating budget of the organization. Like all not for profits, the San Diego Symphony is grateful and reliant on the many donors who sustain the organization.
The Downtown season celebrates four sold out concerts of the 2,200-capacity Copley Symphony Hall: both dates of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in March, Danny Elfman’s “Music from the Films of Tim Burton” in October and the Chamber Orchestra with David Danzmayr in February. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony presentation with conductor Edo de Waart in December is now the Symphony’s highest-selling triple concert set ever with more than 6,000 paid attendees.
“The entire San Diego Symphony team of musicians and staff are thrilled to be reaching more people and sharing the powerful gift of music,” said Martha Gilmer, the Symphony’s chief executive officer. “The community responded very favorably to the orchestra and as we continue our music director search, we’ve been able to bring some of the world’s best artists to perform with our talented musicians.”
“Highlights for me this season included the legendary Charles Dutoit in May, our sold out Chamber concert with David Danzmayr, Rachmaninoff and Mozart with Johannes Debus, and of course Jahja Ling’s final concerts in May which so beautifully celebrated his remarkable tenure. I look forward to next season when we bring even more exceptional guest artists and the orchestra performs at its highest level ever,” added Gilmer.
The Symphony now prepares for its wildly popular Bayside Summer Nights season. For a full listing of upcoming performances, visit http://www.sandiegosymphony.org.
About the San Diego Symphony
Founded in 1910, the San Diego Symphony is the oldest orchestra in California and one of the largest and most significant cultural organizations in San Diego. The Orchestra performs for over 250,000 people each season, offering a wide variety of programming at its two much loved venues, Copley Symphony Hall in downtown San Diego and the Embarcadero Marina Park South on San Diego Bay. The orchestra’s 81 full-time musicians, graduates of the finest and most celebrated music schools in the United States and abroad, also serve as the orchestra for the San Diego Opera each season, as well as performing at several regional performing arts centers. For over 30 years, the San Diego Symphony has provided comprehensive music education and community engagement programs reaching more than 65,000 students annually and bringing innovative programming to San Diego’s diverse neighborhoods and schools. For more information, visit http://www.sandiegosymphony.org.