Q. You suggest (22 October) that scrap suppers be served
on site following private views in art galleries. May I suggest the very same practice might well reverse the decline in numbers of young people attending classical concerts? For friendless, new to London perhaps, but unpushy lovers of classical music, it would surely be an incentive to know that, for an extra £10 on their ticket, they could eat a simple hot supper with a glass of wine, meet and chat to the musicians and mingle in like-minded civilised company following a performance.
M.M., London W8 A. Of course you are right. Some administrators are already cottoning on to this punter-magnetising idea. ‘Friends’ (from £35 a year) of the Wigmore Hall are invited to the occasional reception with musicians and, following the Mayfair Concerts at the Grosvenor Chapel, South Audley Street, ticket-holders are invited to a ‘free drink reception to meet the artists and make new friends’. Meanwhile John Landor, music director of London Musical Arts, will kick off in January a series called ‘Bite-Size Baroque’ at St Martin-in-the-Fields. This will be an hour-long concert at 6.30 p.m. followed by a meal in the crypt, all for £17, or £10 for the concert only. As part of the deal, the musicians will also attend (www.smitf.org).
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