Behind the scenes shot of Dan filming the horn section's rehearsal

And we couldn’t have asked for better subject matter. ISO Principal Trombone (and composer) Jim Beckel’s, In the Mind’s Eye, Images for Horns and Orchestra features the five members of the ISO Horn Section and is inspired by paintings from the collections of the IMA.

The video speaks for itself, I think (watch it below)…an extraordinary partnership between two Indianapolis cultural institutions. You can see the performance in person May 14-15 at the Hilbert Circle Theater.

(struggling for an image, I decided to show my favorite Pioneer HDJ-1000 headphones…courtesy of pioneerelectronics.com)

So what happened recently to cause this shift? It’s been a convergence of experiences really, and it all occurred kind of like this:

I was on 38^th Street…
This past week I found myself standing in Best Buy, initially contemplating a purchase of a Wii or PS3 (I bought neither). After a few minutes I wandered into the music aisle. I typically download from iTunes but occasionally I buy a CD. I stood in the rap section and an entire world of 80’s old school opened up. I walked out with 2 CD’s – KRS-One and Eric B. and Rakim. I’m listening to Follow the Leader, right now. This set the tone for the rest of the week and the audio coincidences followed.

Meanwhile back at work….
Think of music online and it’s a hard not to think of iTunes. My colleague Despi spent the past week preparing, organizing and finalizing our audio and video content for a new partnership with iTunes, called iTunes U – essentially content from universities and cultural institutions, such as museums. She’ll be blogging about it later, so I don’t want to reveal too much. The IMA on iTunes, pretty cool and it’s kind of a big deal.

Thinking of LOST and Copland…
Previously on…..not LOST (but I can’t wait for the season to start). In past posts I’ve mentioned a project we’re working on with musicians from the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. This project will become an audio guide for our American Galleries, featuring performances from ISO musicians. So when I’m not listening to 80’s hip hop, I’m also now into Debussy, Stravinsky and Barber. We’re in the selection stage for what songs will be recorded and will begin this process very soon….

Local music…
For an upcoming fashion exhibition Breaking the Mode, we are acquiring runway footage featuring work from the designers in the exhibition. You can’t really have runway footage without music, so our web and flash designer Matt Gipson suggested a local band he knows, The Sound Defects. I recommend visiting their site and listening to Kick Stand. We’re working with them to feature some of their sounds in the videos we will produce online (I know – it’s a video…but there is a good audio connection here). Coming soon to imamuseum.org….in some form.

For a totally new experience…
If you’re in iTunes, search for ‘spurse audio tour’. It’s an audio guide we produced with the artist collective spurse, a couple of years ago. Their exhibition is long gone, but the audio tour lives on and might make a comeback. Check it out – I did recently and had a chuckle. It’s not your typical audio guide.

So what does this all mean…
Well, these were my experiences for the week of Jan 21-25, 2008. We may never be an audio powerhouse like MoMA or SFMOMA – but you will begin to see some new and unique audio experiences – and we haven’t given up on audio yet. In the meantime, if you have any audio project ideas, please leave me a comment.

Now who’s ready for The Buggles?

Above: “20 -40 Somethings” play X-Box at an IMA opening.

In a nutshell the “Next Generation” report was a study of the “20-40 something” arts participation in Indianapolis. With the help of Next Generation Consulting, the Arts Council prepared a report on how young audiences find out about arts events and their motivations for attending arts events. This study was done in order to build a more robust participation in the arts among young professionals in order to build (and in some cases, replace) the current aging audience.

Here’s my personal summary of the results:
1. The vast majority of 20-40 somethings find out about arts events from friends and family.
2. The vast majority of 20-40 somethings use email and the Web as a primary information source.
3. Intimidation or lack or knowledge about a venue or art is a major inhibitor for arts participation amongst 20-40 somethings.
4. The primary reason for 20-40 somethings to attend arts events is to “learn something.” The secondary reason is “to be social.”

These results were presented at the end of 2006 and to be honest, as I represented to the class last night, I realized that many of them looked really bored. I’d like to think that it wasn’t my presentation style, rather it was the fact that all of this information seems rather obvious to those of us who are between the ages of 20-40. In the facial expressions of the students I could see a universal “Well, duh.”

However, I will say that while the results of the report seem a bit obvious now, 2 years ago, they motivated a huge change in the way arts organizations approach audience development. For example my current position at the IMA was created in many ways as a direct result of the “Next Generation” report. Combining market research, audience development, and eCommunications under one person created efficiencies that allow the IMA to do a better job in developing and then analyzing young professional participation.

Here are some changes that have occurred at the IMA due to the report:
1. Forefront Parties – The IMA has lowered the ticket price for opening events and has made giant efforts to create parties that are fun and youthful. At the opening event for Emily Kennerk: SuburbanNation, guests sipped spiked lemonade while playing cornhole. At the Ingrid Calame opening in November, guests could race cars on an X-Box while sipping beer out of coozies designed for the exhibition.

2. Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, Flickr, the IMA Blog and almost all things digital – When this report was first presented, the IMA didn’t have anything on any of these Web sites. While the ball was already rolling in many of these areas, this report really got the administration to support what were at the time “radical” communication tools such as video and social networking. I distinctly remember having to explain to my boss that “viral marketing” was a good thing.

3. Extended Hours on Thursdays and Fridays (with a bar and a dj!) - Being of the target demographic, I am always grateful that I work in such a cool place. It’s not often that one walks out of their office into a bar. But that’s exactly what happens to me every Thursday and Friday. While often frequented by IMA staffers after long days at work, Happy Hour and AMP have also been attracting young professionals who want to grab a drink while enjoying a cool atmosphere. In 2007, the IMA extended it’s hours on Thursday and Friday nights until 9:00 pm. While we don’t have any demographic research yet from these nights, anecdotally, I can tell you that the audience after 6:00 pm on those nights is about 20 years younger than our typical visitor. Seems to be working…

So those are just a few of the things that the IMA has done as a direct response to the report.

Here are some of the things that other arts organizations have done:
1. Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra - I think of all the arts organizations in town the ISO may be doing the best job in attracting a new and younger demographic. I was just at the ISO’s performance of Rite of Spring last Friday. There were three remarkable things about this experience. First, I found out about the performance through Facebook. Second, about 25% of the audience seemed to be under 30. Third, and perhaps most remarkable, there was a dude with a mohawk in the audience. I loved it!

2. Indiana Repertory Theatre – The IRT has revamped their Web site, and I’m pretty sure it was a direct result of their attempt to attract younger audiences. Now folks can write reviews about performances through a really cool application on their site. Check it out!

3. The Eiteljorg Museum – The museum has a young professional society called “Agave” that supports the Museum as well as organizes social events. In recent months the museum has created the “Agave Lounge” on their Web site where members can see pics from events as well as view upcoming events. I was at the Pop Goes the West event last year, and in addition to a really hip vibe and great art, I really enjoyed the free Jagermeister drinks served at the bar. Nothing like checking out an Andy Warhol after a shot of jager.

SO, in summary, the Indianapolis arts community has responded and the face of the average arts attendee is getting younger. It’s obvious to me that there has been success so far. However, there’s a lot more room to grow. Are there any 20-40 somethings out there that have a suggestion of what works? Do you think I’m right in my estimations or just delusional?