THE AO NOW A MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN ECHO NETWORK

In March 2022, the Auditorium-Orchestre national de Lyon (AO) joined the prestigious ECHO (European Concert Hall Organisation) network, composed of 23 major concert halls in 13 European countries, to share thoughts and common initiatives on major issues in the music industry.

ECHO members share a common ambition: that of presenting the highest artistic quality to the broadest possible audience. They are also committed to staging new shows and works in progress. Their management and staff are continually reviewing their place and mission in society, their relation with artists and audiences, and their environmental responsibility. They pool their experience and together reflect on the future of the major concert halls and the transitions to come in order to build a common European project.

Cooperation among the members takes the form of special-focus working groups combining the teams (management, education, artistic issues and marketing). Every year, the network selects “Rising Stars”, for example: outstanding young artists who are offered the opportunity to perform in the network’s concert halls to kick-start their early career.

The AO has joined the ranks of such prestigious concert halls as the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, the Barbican Centre in London, the Musikverein in Vienna and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, to mention just a few. In France, it is the third concert hall to join this network, following in the footsteps of the Cité de la musique-Philharmonie de Paris and the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées.