It has been a longstanding tradition to start the New Year by extending all kinds of wishes. In the realm of culture, how not to wish that the festivals of the summer 2025 will stay, or possibly improve, the course of last summer? The just published provisional accounts building on a recent survey taken by France’s National Center for Music (CNM) look indeed encouraging: average attendance ratio reached 78% and is on the rise with 44% of organizers interviewed; 41% of respondents saw ticket sales increase; the adverse impact of the Paris Olympics proved less dramatic than originally feared (only 10% of all events considered). In contrast, making profit is still elusive: 48% of events surveyed are in the red, due to ever growing technical (58%), artistic (53%) and security (44%) costs.
The CNM study included detailed profiles by theme as well as by geography. It is accessible via the link below:
https://cnm.fr/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/CNM-DEPS_Bilan-des-festivals-2024.pdf
From a political perspective, culture affords a rare spot of stability amidst the chaos France is living through: as a matter of fact, Ms Rachida Dati keeps in the François Bayrou cabinet the same responsibilities she has been handling for a year in the governments of Gabriel Attal, then Michel Barnier. However, the broader context looks shaky since rallying a majority at the National Assembly is more elusive than ever, which whets the parties’ appetite for an early presidential election. Not the best of times for taking initiatives… Until a budget is agreed, we should only expect what a caretaker government is supposed to deliver. As a reflection of the wider mood across political elites in Paris, the schedule of national events found on the Culture ministry’s site is not particularly imaginative: https://www.culture.gouv.fr/evenements-nationaux
Is there any ray of hope for European culture in Brussels while put on hold, for all intents and purposes, in Paris? Not exactly. This portfolio would usually include Education, occasionally other significant drivers of Europe’s future. However, the 2024-2029 European Commission has entrusted its younger member, Glenn Micallef, from Malta, with a mixed bag of “Intergenerational Fairness, Youth, Culture and Sport.”
Most of the above considerations do not seem to bode well for European culture. To say the least, it has failed so far to get off to a flying start. However, a less than supportive political context does not tell the full story. This is because culture is a matter for all of us. In this respect, popular excitement, particularly amongst the youth and with respect to live performances – the core concern of “SOS – Save Our Spectrum” -, looks bound to break records in 2025.
