Australian Chamber Choir Regional Performance and Relationship Model (RPRModel) Purpose The ACC Regional Performance and Relationship Model (RPRModel) has been designed as a marketing and communications tool to assist ACC Management and Stakeholders to understand the process and resources required to develop ACC audiences in regional Victoria. Experience demonstrates that choral concerts with orchestral accompaniment attract more ticket buyers, to help broaden, diversify and enrich audience development in regional locations. A key focus of this model is to assist regional organisers to cover the cost of presenting accompanied concerts whilst progressively building audience loyalty over time to allow independent sustainability. Assumption This model is prepared and applied after preliminary research is performed on a new geographic target, where community support for the successful application of this model is found. Summary description Following satisfactory results of preparatory research, ACC admin team meets with targeted regional arts organisers in year one with purpose of planning for and selling concerts in year two. A contract of service is agreed detailing: - Marketing campaign - Box office management - Concert package inclusions (Full choir, smaller acapella groups, accompanying orchestra) - Timeline - Cost and funding 1
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Performance Profile Options for inclusion in Concert Package Australian Chamber Choir This is an 18 piece selected choir, resourced from ACCs pool of 60 auditioned singers, of early career musicians, mostly comprising recent university graduates, and directed by Douglas Lawrence, or an ACC assistant conductor i The choir is selected for each new concert series, based on availability (to rehearse and perform) and ability (to sing particular parts). Accompanied Concerts The Artistic Director selects a 15 piece orchestra to play rare and historic period instruments to accompany ACC. Most of these musicians are based in Melbourne. Occasionally interstate musicians are sourced, if repertoire requires a particular instrument. (eg. Nicole Van Bruggen was brought from interstate to play Basset Horn one of three in Australia in April 2018 for the Mozart Requiem.) The orchestra rehearses 2 3 times with ACC at Scots Church Melbourne and then performs at each concert location in the series. Example: In April 2018 ACC performed the Mozart Requiem in Melbourne, Castlemaine and Macedon with 15 piece period orchestra. The Requiem was performed alongside Palestrina s Stabat mater, which was unaccompanied. For regional venues of Mornington and Clunes with a smaller budget, Palestrina s Stabat Mater, Essence of the Renaissance was presented as an unaccompanied concert. ACC6 and ACC8 Are small acapella groups of six or eight singers, with one or two singers to a part. This high quality, low expense ensemble provides many benefits/purposes: - Offers enriched professional development opportunities for ACC singers, as they alone sing their part. - Management overheads for this ensemble, paying, transporting, accommodating singers costs less than for a larger ensemble. - Particularly suits festival appearances and more intimate spaces - Supplements the annual calendar program by affordably offering additional performances between the larger concerts to build appetite. Detailed description Steps in the process: 1. Research of key target markets a. The area is already hosting fine music events b. The regional agent has support to sustain ongoing relationship with ACC c. Area shows that local government, community music ensembles, or venue managers are eager to introduce fine music concerts to their community 3
d. ACC has been paid to perform in a regional town and the event was well supported financially and with audience participation e. Regional arts organisers/agents communicate a need for fine music events to be introduced and a willingness to enlist support required for ongoing events. 2. Service Agreement a. ACC Admin team meets with regional agent to discuss concert package inclusions. i. Scope of marketing campaign management ii. Box Office management iii. Program / Performance Profile iv. Timeline v. Cost ii vi. Funding Assistance / Discounts vii. Goal setting for audience participation and break-even point for financials viii. Evaluation 3. ACC admin team liaises with regional agents to decide on support for Campaign Management in line with city based concert campaigns. Often regional agents choose to do their own marketing of the event with template information provided by ACC. ACC Admin team can assist regional arts organisers to write grant applications, or provide letters of support for grant funding to assist agents to cover production costs. a. ACC CRM database (Patron Manager / Salesforce) targets marketing campaign b. Media and PR (professional consultation) c. Social Media / Enews d. Display advertising (printed and digital) e. Funding Support 4. Concert Presentation a. Rehearsals in Melbourne and pre-concert at venue b. Box Office / Front of House c. Venue / Stage Mgt d. Travel / Accommodation e. Program notes / signage f. Catering 5. Evaluation a. Collect audience attendance / experience data b. Performance report to stakeholders from ACC c. Update ACC CRM database d. Feedback results into marketing plan for future concerts 4
Income from Ticket Sales in Dollars Case Study: Macedon s experience of ACC RPRModel. ACC Macedon Concerts Income Over Time 20000 18000 16000 14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Estimated Capacity Income Concert 3 Concert 2 Concert 1 Subscriptions ACC began its Macedon partnership in late 2013, by assisting Dianne and David Gome to set up an Incorporated Association (Friends of Music at Resurrection) as a charitable organisation to present a series of concerts at the Church of the Resurrection, Macedon, where Dianne is the organist. We guided them to engage a team of local volunteers, giving them advice on grass-roots marketing, special offers for community groups, regular news letters, local advertising, front of house management and catering. Sadly, shortly after our second concert of 2014, David Gome, the Chairman of the committee died suddenly of Legionnaires disease. At concerts 1 and 2, 2015, we surveyed our audience and measured the outcomes of various types of marketing. From the resultant statistics, we developed an audience-building strategy which was applied from the leadup to our 2016 season. The main differences between the 2016 season and earlier seasons were: 1. In 2016, for the first time, we presented a series of three thematically-linked concerts, which were promoted beginning in October of the previous year. In 2016, all concerts included works by JS Bach, a preferred composer for a majority of our audience. 2. For the first time in Macedon in 2016, in response to audience feedback, we presented large-scale works with orchestra, with Bach s Mass in B Minor as concert 1 and his Magnificat and two Cantatas as our concert 3 program. An equally good audience for the unaccompanied Bach concert between the two orchestral concerts of 2016 demonstrates the kind of flow-on advantage that can be expected following the presentation of a major work with orchestra. A further marked growth in audience can be seen in concert 1 of 2018 (red), where Mozart s Requiem was presented to a capacity audience. (Concert 3 2018 is a conservative estimate extrapolated from statistics). 3. From 2016, volunteers took responsibility for catering after each concert. 5
From 2015, Music at Resurrection presented a series of concerts in addition to those presented by the ACC. The committee has noted a growth in audience for these concerts that generally shadows the growth trends in ACC audience. Link: Mozart Requiem 2018 Audience Feedback (http://www.auschoir.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/mozart-requiem-survey-responses.pdf) Link: Macedon Letter of Support 1. Dianne Gome, 21 April 2017 http://www.auschoir.org/wpcontent/uploads/2017/04/letter-of-support-dianne-gome-macedon.png 2. Dianne Gome, 4 April 2016 http://www.auschoir.org/wpcontent/uploads/2016/04/macedon-letter-of-support.png Note: i To build organisational capacity and for succession planning, the ACC s artistic director and master conductor, Douglas Lawrence, mentors assistant conductors. ii ACC subsidises event production costs for regional agents in four ways: - ACC applies for blanket funding of regional concerts - ACC assists regional agents to source funding from government, trusts and foundations - ACC offsets trading losses with donations from ACC Private donors - ACC offsets trading losses by redistributing profits from City/Metropolitan concerts to regional concerts. 6