Video games can be music to the ears, says orchestra chief

WHEN it comes to enthusing youngsters about classical music, you would be forgiven for shying away from suggesting a concert, for fear that the proposal would fall on deaf ears.

But an arts chief has said that there are now other ways to encourage children to appreciate orchestras, arguing that video game music is just as good an introduction.

James Williams, managing director at the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO), said computer games were an important “access point” for youngsters to hear classical music for the first time.

“Exposure to orchestral music in all its forms is a fantastic thing,” he said. “It is about sparking their interest. What we are finding is once we have lit that fire there is a real desire to carry that journey on and explore. If [computer games] are the trigger and the catalyst, that can only be a really positive thing.”

The RPO commissioned a survey

‘This is in no way undermining Beethoven and Brahms, which are still the core repertoire’

where children aged six to 16 were asked about how they encounter classical music. Just under one in six (15per cent) said they listen to classical music “when it’s part of a computer game I’m playing”, compared to just 11per cent who said “when I go to music concerts”.

The most popular ways in which children experience classical music were via film soundtracks, followed by television, according to the YouGov poll.

Mr Williams said that computer game music was now “recognised as an art form in its own right”, with some “very prestigious” composers involved.

Earlier this year, the RPO worked with PlayStation to create a concert programme dedicated to popular computer game music.

“This is in no way undermining Beethoven and Brahms, which are still the core repertoire,” he said. “But we are embracing all these new opportunities.”

The survey found that less than a third of children experienced classical music at school.