From High Art To New Art : Inaugural Lecture Delivered On The Appointment To The Chair In Art Sociology At The Universiteit Van Amsterdam On Friday 17 March 2006

m c Omslag Abbing 02-05-2006 16:46 Pagina 1 c7 75 100 5 25 y 75 100 5 25 k 75 100 ORATIEREEKS m5 y5 k8 c 50 m 41 y 41 k 50 5 25 75 100 From High Art to New Art Youngsters and increasingly more older people are turning their backs on classical concerts. This is not because they do not like classical music or lack the education that enables them to enjoy the music. They simply cannot cope with the classical concert etiquette anymore and thus they feel increasingly uncomfortable. The etiquette here has become too formal and too elitist. They prefer the informal concert situations of pop music where there is more space to move around, people can react to the music, and do not have to be quiet for the entire duration of a concert. Our society has been undergoing a fundamental process of informalization since the 1950s. Different art worlds respond to this process in different ways. The classical music world’s response has so far been one of resistance and denial. Here the code of conduct has actually become even more formal over the past fifty years. The current subsidy systems in various European countries enables the classical music world to remain largely unaffected by change. If this situation will continue unheeded, the classical concert will lose more and more of its market share. Hans Abbing is professor of art sociology at the University of Amsterdam where he holds the Boekman chair. Among his publications is the book Why Are Artists Poor? The Exceptional Economy of the Arts (Amsterdam University Press, 2002). He is also a visual artist. Hans Abbing c7 m5 y5 k8 c 50 m 41 y 41 k 50 5 25 c 75 100 5 25 m y k Bleed: 10 mm FACULTY OF HUMANITIES 5 25 75 100 5 25 75 100 5 25 75 100 From High Art to New Art Vossiuspers UvA is an imprint of Amsterdam University Press. This edition is established under the auspices of the Universiteit van Amsterdam. Cover design: Nauta & Haagen, Oss Lay-out: JAPES, Amsterdam Cover illustration: Anne van der Eerden, Amsterdam ISBN 978 90 5629 433 5 © Vossiuspers UvA, Amsterdam, 2006 All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this book may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the written permission of both the copyright owner and the author of this book. From High Art to New Art Inaugural Lecture delivered on the appointment to the chair in Art Sociology at the Universiteit van Amsterdam on Friday 17 March 2006 by Hans Abbing 1 Mijnheer de Rector Magnificus, Mevrouw de Decaan, Zeer Gewaardeerde Toehoorders, Dutch data on graying audiences ‘Public interest in art is declining and the young are defecting en masse.’ Actually, the story is quite the opposite. Interest in art and in particular the performing arts and art museums continue to grow across the entire arts spectrum. This holds true for both young and old, although it is probably a little more true for the older generations. In general, one can speak of a ‘graying’ of the art public but this is solely the result of the fact that older people are going out more often. The notion that the art public is graying and that interest in the arts is