Boston Symphony Orchestra Reaches Out to Young Professionals and College Students

Boston Symphony Orchestra loves its youthful patrons, as demonstrated through its special programs targeting audiences younger than 40 years old. The BSO offers several successful programs that strive to ensure that the musical conversation will continue with a new generation of young listeners. Among the programs that achieve this are the Young Professionals  (YoPro) Group, $20 Under 40, and the BSO College Card.

Launched in early 2014 the BSO YoPro membership allows young professionals to enjoy world-class music with their peers and colleagues with events that are specifically geared toward young professionals in the Boston area.

The annual YoPro membership is available for individuals or couples. There are four scheduled events that encompass the very best of the BSO including a fall 2014 BSO concert with a reception on Thursday, October 9 featuring Christian Zacharias as conductor and pianist, and a Holiday Pops concert with holiday party on Thursday, December 11. Past events included another BSO concert in March 2014, as well as a bus trip to Tanglewood in Lenox this past July which included a ticket to the afternoon concert, a picnic lunch, transportation to and from Boston, and lots of opportunity for socializing. Since its inception, the YoPro tickets have totaled over 300 with plans to expand in the coming year.

The $20 ticket program, $20 Under 40, offers individuals tickets on a variety of concert nights for a low price as long as they have an ID that shows that they are younger than 40 years old. This program has existed for five years and attracts approximately 10,000 people each year.

The College Card is the best way for college students to experience the BSO on a regular basis in a very economical way. For only $25 students can attend most BSO concerts at no additional cost! This successful program began in 2007 and since then has issued over 80,000 tickets to over 8,000 college students. Students enjoy the simplicity of the process as well. By simply registering their purchased card online they receive text and/or email notification of real-time ticket availability and special offers. When they want to attend a concert, they show their card at the Symphony Hall Box Office, and receive one ticket per concert, per program, up to one hour prior to the concert start time. Occasionally College Card holders also have access to Spring Pops and Tanglewood tickets as well.

Today’s young concertgoers are poised to become tomorrow’s subscribers, donors, and lifelong supporters of the arts. These successful BSO programs are working to ensure that the relationship between the BSO and its audience, started generations ago, continues long into the future.