Ticketing issues will be looked at by BBC

MARTIN Goodwin (‘Phil hits a sour

note,’ Viewpoints, October 1) raises concerns over ticketing for BBC Philharmonic studio concerts.

I am sorry that Mr Goodwin has been unsuccessful in his applications for tickets to our Salford concerts recently. We are aware that, due to the continued popularity of our studio concerts and the broad and diverse audience that we attract, some of our longstanding supporters are not always able to obtain tickets.

We have to balance a range of priorities, and are guided by BBC policy when issuing tickets for these performances.

We were unable to continue with our allocation for Friends of the BBC Philharmonic as it breached BBC guidelines on access to BBC events, giving preferential access to people who paid a subscription to us rather than offering open access.

And whilst it is true that we reserve up to 30 per cent of applications for Salford residents, as with all UK orchestras our relationship to our local community is a fundamental part of our identity and this ticket allocation is one of several ways in which we express this commitment to Salford residents.

Meanwhile, we are looking at how our colleague BBC orchestras allocate studio concert tickets and exploring other options that are available and feasible for us in response to Mr Goodwin’s comments. If Mr Goodwin has any more concerns I would be happy to continue this discussion directly with him. Simon Webb, general manager – BBC Philharmonic