New Report Reveals Five-Year Peak in People’s Interest in Orchestral Concerts

Research by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra has shown an increased interest for orchestral music among new audiences 

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s (RPO) annual report “Embracing the future with confidence: The evolution of the orchestral audience in the digital age,” reflects the commissioned research conducted from 2018 to 2023. 

RPO’s report also draws from the significant trends and shifts in the orchestral music landscape during this period that have helped forecast the future of the music sector. 

These trends included a recent RPO study showing that the number of people who would like to experience an orchestral concert has hit a five-year peak — up from 79% in 2018 to 84% in 2023 — this statistic surpassed the pre-pandemic benchmark of 79% set in 2019. 

Notably, the annual report revealed that orchestral/classical music had the biggest net increase in popularity (up 10% to 25% in the last year), with annual increases for opera (up 5%), and musicals (up 4%).

Six orchestral concert formats have grown in popularity since 2018, including music from musicals, film soundtracks, pop/classical crossovers, TV soundtracks, family-friendly concerts, and video game soundtrack concerts.

New concert-goers now outnumber the established audience with 54% being newcomers versus 31% long-time classical music fans. Audiences now clearly comprise groups of life-long advocates, vocational students, newcomers, casual fans, and first-timers.

Among the group’s music students, 30% prefer modern composers, and emphasize the importance of linking orchestral music with popular culture. 

In technology, 64% said that music streaming sites have changed their relationship with music — only 6% of under-25s and 1% of orchestral fans trust algorithms for their music choices. Reflecting on this, 60% of audiences can envisage a completely different concert experience on stage within the next decade.

Additionally, around one in 10 young people are already engaging with new forms of media for their musical engagement, including augmented and virtual reality. Coming out of the pandemic lockdowns, 16% continue to stream live concerts online; online concerts (11%) and artist Q&As (9%) remain popular. 

“Our new report clearly indicates that the landscape of orchestral music is not merely growing; it is transforming and being shaped by technological innovation,” said RPO’s Managing Director, James Williams in the press release. “The trend we have observed with our tracking data continues to build, with more people seeking out orchestral experiences and with a greater openness for diverse and changing genres. The distinction between audience segments — such as 'core', 'new', or 'niche' — is increasingly becoming blurred, as overlaps between them become more common.

“The advent of technology brings enormous benefits to audiences and has the potential to fundamentally alter how they engage with the orchestral world,” Williams added. “However, there also appears to be caution in how people embrace it, acknowledging the risks alongside the opportunities … Our overriding objective is to make orchestral music as widely accessible as possible, offering multiple entry points and understanding the diverse pathways that enable people to embark on a rewarding musical discovery journey.”