Fill Those Seats!

Those of you who stayed after the IM back-to-school night to attend the jazz meeting, "Thank you". I think it was a good meeting and believe we are getting off to a great start. One of the things that stuck out most to me was Mr. Fiddmont's request to get more people to the concerts. This is my fourth year with the program and we've always had trouble filling the venues. Part of the problem is that there are only 20, or so, students involved in the program, but another problem, in my opinion, is the lack of exposure. One of things we've tried in the past was to send ticket sales sheets home with each student and challenge them to invite and sell at least 10 tickets. This worked to some extent, but still didn't fill the venues. We've also performed at various venues such as the Coach House, Segerstrom High School, and Laguna Beach High School to name a few. This seemed to help increase exposure and attendance, but is much more difficult to pull off on a regular basis.

We used to do theme-based concerts (latin, funk and fusion, legends, etc). and I remember OCHSA's Spanish department giving extra credit to any student who attended our latin concert. That helped "put butts in seats" -- as was the battle cry back then.

So, what can we do this year? Maybe advanced ticket sales by the students can work again and as well as some local advertising in the OC Weekly, on KJZZ radio, etc. Maybe the IM department can offer some extra credit to jazz theory/history students. With only 20 students in the program, we have to get creative.

Any ideas? Please share them.