Touring Orchestras – A Guaranteed Money-Loser

“It now costs about $1 million a week to send an orchestra on an international tour – maybe more. A million dollars might do if you’re talking about a standard 100-player orchestra. But some orchestras need more.” And the presenter of an orchestra is guaranteed to lose money too. “If we sell every seat in the Kennedy Center Concert Hall, we are guaranteed to lose up to $50,000 per concert. However, if it’s a really special orchestra, our losses will go up dramatically. It’s quite a business.”