Drew McManus on the Orchestra business | est. 2003

Drew McManus

What To Expect In Detroit

Mon, Aug 8, 2010
The 8/12/2010 edition of the Detroit Free Press published an article by Mark Stryker which reports the Detroit Symphony Orchestra  musicians have scheduled two self-produced concerts in September. Stryker correctly observes that this is an ominous sign regarding the potential for both sides to reach an agreement before the current contract expires on 8/29/2010 and

An Ugly War Of Words

Fri, Aug 8, 2010
No, this isn’t about any of the current labor disputes. Instead, this is about an online feud between Greg Sandow and Heather Mac Donald. If you aren’t aware of what’s going on here’s the 10 second synopsis: Mac Donald wrote an article titled Classical Music’s New Golden Age (meaning now) but Sandow didn’t like what

Super Sam Vs. The Prophets Of Doom!

Thu, Aug 8, 2010
On 8/9/2010, Minnesota Orchestra violist and blogger Sam Bergman posed the following question: “For exactly how many decades do we plan to allow the prophets of doom [which links to Greg Sandow’s blog] to continually shout from the mountaintop that orchestras are withering on the vine before pointing out that their dire predictions have been

12th Annual Peggy Glanville Hicks Address

Wed, Aug 8, 2010
Established in 1999 to honor composer Peggy Glanville-Hicks, the Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address is an annual forum for ideas relating to the creation and performance of Australian music. The 12th Annual event featured a piece by conductor Simone Young titled Music in the age of soundbites and although it is a lengthy piece, it is well

AFM Calls Out The League: Observations

Tue, Aug 8, 2010
Adaptistration People 050
In case you missed it last Friday, I posted a copy of an article by Christopher Durham, American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Symphonic Services Division (SSD) Director and Assistant to the President, titled Quality Leadership Is Essential in Difficult Times. In that article, Durham essentially levies blame on much of the hardships throughout the field
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