Drew McManus on the Orchestra business | est. 2003

I’ll See Your Introspection And Raise You A Cognitive Bias

Wed, Mar 3, 2022
Several weeks ago, arts marketer Ruth Hartt posted a thought-provoking post at LinkedIn designed to get arts managers thinking about how they measure relevance. It’s an excellent perspective and you can never really have too many reminders about getting outside of your bubble. My only additional thought is the stakeholders who would benefit from this

The Value Of Conference Tables

Tue, Mar 3, 2022
Although I’ve been attending and speaking at conferences for two decades, I have never purchased a table or booth. Instead, I opt for purchasing sponsorships and making it easy for attendees to connect one on one so we can talk shop and/or business. I’ve been to a wide range of conventions from an even larger

Do We Need To Be Worried About The Future Of Russian Artists?

Mon, Mar 3, 2022
As a Gen-Xer I grew up at the height of the cold war and recall the fall of the Soviet Union. I remember the inability for musicians to travel in and out of USSR and Soviet Bloc countries. I also remember the flood of musicians into the US after the fall of the Soviet union.

Mini-Hiatus

Wed, Mar 3, 2022
Just when this week was settling into a really nice topic groove, life decided to throw a curve ball. As such, I’m taking the rest of the week off from blogging but I will be back in action on Monday, March 14.

Due Diligence On Your Donors

Tue, Mar 3, 2022
There’s a thought-provoking article by Peter Whoriskey in the 3/7/2022 edition of the Washington Post that examines the extent Russian oligarchs have contributed to US nonprofits, including those in the arts and culture sector. According to the article, the Anti-Corruption Data Collective has been uncovering the depth oligarch money has been funding arts and culture.