Drew McManus

"I hear that every time you show up to work with an orchestra, people get fired." Those were the first words out of an executive's mouth after her board chair introduced us. That executive is now a dear colleague and friend but the day that consulting contract began with her orchestra, she was convinced I was a hatchet-man brought in by the board to clean house. I understand where the trepidation comes from as a great deal of my consulting and technology provider work for arts organizations involves due diligence, separating fact from fiction, interpreting spin, as well as performance review and oversight. So yes, sometimes that work results in one or two individuals "aggressively embracing career change" but far more often than not, it reinforces and clarifies exactly what works and why. In short, it doesn't matter if you know where all the bodies are buried if you can't keep your own clients out of the ground, and I'm fortunate enough to say that for more than 15 years, I've done exactly that for groups of all budget size from Qatar to Kathmandu. For fun, I write a daily blog about the orchestra business, provide a platform for arts insiders to speak their mind, keep track of what people in this business get paid, help write a satirical cartoon about orchestra life, hack the arts, and love a good coffee drink.

2021 Orchestra Compensation Reports: Concertmasters

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2018/19 broke the three-year streak in gains for the average concertmaster’s compensation level. Having said that, we did see one new organization cross the threshold of paying their concertmaster enough to be reported in the 990 filing (Florida Orchestra) and that’s always a good thing. The Information In order to provide information that is as accurate as possible, info from the 2018/19 season is gathered from the following source: Concertmaster compensation figures were …

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2021 Orchestra Compensation Reports: Music Directors

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Much like their executive counterparts, Music Directors saw a large artificial decrease in average compensation thanks to several high paying positions being filled for only part of the season. Nonetheless, even a down season, it’s good to be the king, maestro, music director. The Information In order to provide information that is as accurate as possible, info from the 2018/19 season is gathered from the following sources: Music Director compensation figures were obtained …

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2021 Orchestra Compensation Reports: Executives

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When it comes to executive compensation, last year’s artificially low average change (-11.62%) was offset by an equally artificial increase (19.74%). Having said that, the two-season average falls right in line with historic norms to continue the upward trend. The Information In order to provide information that is as accurate as possible, info from the 2018/19 season is gathered from the following sources: Executive compensation figures were obtained from their respective orchestra’s IRS Form …

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2021 Orchestra Compensation Reports: Introduction

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If you had to summarize this year’s compensation report trends in a single word, it might be “whipsaw.” Last year’s reports saw anomalies in averages thanks to several high paying positions going unfilled or occupied by someone for a partial season. As a result, we saw more artificially lower averages than normal. Now that most of those positions have been filled, we’re seeing the opposite. Which Season The Information Covers (spoiler: …

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Colorado Springs Discord Continues

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The Colorado Springs Philharmonic Orchestra (CSPO) labor dispute continues with little change from where they were months ago. What this means is while other orchestras are tooling back up for performance activity and moving ahead, the CSPO continues to shrink in their rearview mirror. While both sides in the dispute remain in arbitration, there is no progress to report. What has changed is an increase in local attention where KKTV recently …

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