UK Assigns Tax Relief Options for British Orchestras, Similar to Those Used for Film Industry

One of the constant struggles facing fans and producers of classical music is how to keep orchestras on their feet. No form of music is more expensive to carry out than orchestral-between the cost of paying for so many musicians and the time needed to train such a large "staff" accordingly-and those costs become more and more worrisome as younger generations have largely lost interest in the form. Ticket prices are rarely enough to keep orchestras afloat so very often they rely on hefty charitable donations. Politicians in the UK may have the right idea however, having introduced legislation to grant orchestras tax reliefs (from Classical-Music.com).

Chancellor George Osborne made a statement on his plan during the week:

"As part of the government's long term economic plan, we are backing our creative industries. The UK is home to world-famous orchestras that make a great cultural contribution across all parts of our country, and are engaged by millions of people. I want to make sure our great orchestras continue to thrive," he said. "This new tax relief will encourage orchestras to perform across the whole of the UK. As with the other creative sector reliefs, this policy aims to provide generous support to orchestras in order to promote British culture in a sustainable way."

Many may complain that this is simply the government spending unnecessary cash on preserving a dying art, but in truth similar systems exist already for the film and theatre industries in the UK. In the case of film, although such legislation is often labelled as arts-based, governments compete both domestically and internationally to attract the film industry by way of tax breaks, knowing that the income brought to the area as a result will more than make up for the tax losses.

Obviously UK orchestras cannot be expected to boost local profits as dramatically as the film industry, but the tax relief will at least go a long way artistically, both allowing the respective orchestras to stage more productions and also encourage commissions of new works.

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London Symphony Orchestra