Drew McManus on the Orchestra business | est. 2003

Even Without Machold, There Are Plenty Of Black Hats To Go Around

Wed, Oct 10, 2012
black hat
Alix Krista authored a detailed account of the rise and fall of violin dealer Dietmar Machold which appeared in the 10/19/2012 edition of businessinsider.com. It will be surprising if Machold emerges from the legal process without some jail time but even though he’s is, for all intents and purposes, out of the game that doesn’t

Time To Stir The Pot

Tue, Oct 10, 2012
Today may only be Tuesday but it’s already been an eventful week. We had a second lockout in one city, an imposed contract, and <gasp> a three year agreement that contains nothing but (albeit) mild increases. Oh, and an official contract extension through January 2013 (it’s like a super sized play and talk). Apparently, It’s

Examining the Minnesota Orchestra Redline Agreement Part 1

Mon, Oct 10, 2012
find it
The inaugural article for our ongoing examination of the Minnesota Orchestra Redline Agreement (MORA) will focus on proposed changes to the “home service area” definition and related contractual provisions for runouts. Given the increased attention throughout the field for augmenting outreach activity, i.e. events outside of the primary venue, it should come as no surprise

FREE Twitter Profile Survival Kit for Arts Organizations 2012

Fri, Oct 10, 2012
Tablet Layout With Header Image
It’s time to stay with the learning curve and consider updating your organization’s Twitter profile page to take advantage of some of the more recent GUI (Graphical User Interface) improvements. To that end, I want to offer up a host of revised Photoshop template freebies that will make it easier than ever to make your

Indy Settles

Thu, Oct 10, 2012
I’m stuck in flight delay purgatory so I have yet to see a copy of the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra (ISO) agreement but my sincerest thanks to Indy Star music critic Jay Harvey for giving me a call and providing details. He wrote a terrific article that provides an overview of the very unusual compromise that,