Why It’s Better to Be Better Than Different
Tue, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
Today’s title is taken from a recent blog post by Noa Kageyama at The Bulletproof Musician (Hat Tip to Frank Almond’s Facebook page). Not only is a great example of a catchy yet meaningful headline, but it also provides some clarity in the identity crisis storm that seems to be plaguing too many professional performing
It Might Be An Eventful Week For Philadelphia
Mon, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
The Philadelphia Orchestra Association (POA) is entering the next stage in their will-we, won’t-we future. If you haven’t been keeping tabs over the past few weeks, here is what has been going on: the musicians’ union filed a request to verify the POA’s current financial condition, the POA submitted an objection to that request, and
Poll Results: You Do Work From Home
Fri, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
It’s always nice to be pleasantly surprised and the soft poll from earlier this week asking office employee readers if their organization allows flextime produced some interesting results. Historically, I’ve always encountered a good deal of resistance from executives about the idea of allowing flextime but if the results are any indication, it seems that
Events Escalate In Louisville
Thu, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
In response to yesterday’s deadline from the Louisville Orchestra (LO) to its musicians regarding accepting individual terms for employment for the 2011/12 season which came with the caveat that failing to accept the terms via written agreement would be enough to replace them if so desired, the musicians organized a protest outside the LO’s offices…
Poll: Where Do You Work From?
Wed, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
I had a fascinating conversation with a colleague the other week who remarked at how much more work she’s able to do in a week since she left her full time marketing job for a career as a freelance marketing consultant. Having always been self employed, it was more of a preaching to the choir
The Cute Fluffy Kittens And Classical Music Challenge
Tue, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
Wouldn’t it be nice if all of classical music’s marketing could be so easy to include cute fluffy kittens? You know, like the Kitten vs. Scary Things videos. You haven’t seen the Kittens vs. Scary Things videos? Well then, brace yourself…
Another Layer Of Legalese From Louisville
Mon, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
It seems that the Louisville Orchestra (LO) labor dispute has moved to a new level following a letter signed by LO Chief Executive Officer Robert Birman and addressed to each of the orchestra’s musicians (Hat Tip to Jon Silpayamanant). In a nutshell, the letter explains that unless the recipient returns a signed statement that they
If It Were Only That Easy
Fri, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
There’s a post by Seth Godin from 6/16/2011 (HT Bruce Hembd from Horn Matters) where he discusses the perils of negotiation brinkmanship amidst the current period of intense financial distress. Not only is it short and sweet but it sums up much of the root problems from some of the headline dominating labor relations disasters
A Fresh Look And Ponder Worthy Philly Thoughts
Thu, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
InsideTheArts.com has a brand new look; there’s a slick new homepage slider for featured articles, each of the authors has the two most recent articles listed on the homepage and (wait for it) all of the terrific What’s Bothering Jeff? videos are back up. In fact, even though they are hosted on YouTube, iPad and
A Legacy Of Mistrust In Detroit
Wed, Jul 7, 2011
by Drew McManus
The 7/5/2011 edition of the Detroit News published an article by Lawrence B. Johnson that examines the ongoing impact fallout from this season’s prolonged strike at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO). In particular, Johnson focuses on the growing list of musicians who have decided to take jobs in other orchestras, retire, or simply up and
