DSO general manager Philippa Harris told yesterday's hearing the orchestra was seeking an extra $150,000, as a one-off grant, from the Dunedin City Council.
It also wanted the council to consider a $150,000 increase to the funding already provided to Dunedin Venues, which paid for subsidised community access to the town hall and other venues it ran.
The council's financial support was ''absolutely critical'' to the DSO, which needed to show it had council financial support to unlock additional funding from Creative New Zealand, she said.
The orchestra was also facing increased costs while grappling with a limited ability to lift its own ticket prices.
At the same time, it was preparing an exciting programme for 2020 - with a mixture of events - that required adequate funding, chairwoman Megan Bartlett added.
