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.

Grant Games

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I was talking to some musicians the other day who are interested in starting a small chamber group.  They were asking me about my experience starting a chamber orchestra and the resulting non profit.  In particular, they wanted to know about funding; how to go about it and where to find grants.  So I told them the honest truth; that since they would be a new organization it was doubtful they …

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A Classical Music Warrior

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I do more than my fair share of complaining about orchestra managers in these writings, but I certainly don’t think all managers are bad.  There are excellent managers out there and even a few warriors among an overwhelming flock of sheep.  But one thing that really gets me going is when I talk to orchestra managers (especially executives) about the qualities that characterize a good leader.  Invariably this conversation has one of two possible outcomes; either I make a new friend or I make someone upset.

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More on “Professional” Nomenclature

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Last week I posted a Reader Response that stemmed from a reader’s email inquiry about what characteristics differentiate between who is a professional musician and who isn’t.  The article generated some interesting responses and a few additional questions.  “I believe any neologisms would just call attention to the whole dilemma rather than giving the affected people a straightforward way to refer to them when asked.” –  Eric Bruskin, Pennsylvania “A professional …

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Reader Response: Klaus Heymann Interview

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Frequent reader and theatre manager guru Joe Patti wrote in with some reflections on the Klaus Heymann Interview.  In particular, what struck him was the segment of the interview where Klaus suggests that arts administration programs should provide much more practical experience for their students.  But instead of just writing to me about it, he wrote an entire article about it at his theatre management blog.  Joe starts off his blog …

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A Few Worthwhile Pointers

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There’s a new website called myauditions.com that’s doing its part to solve a problem I see in the industry.  It’s organizing and making available a comprehensive list of job openings in the field of arts management, music performance, and arts education.  And the best part is that you don’t have to pay any fee to view and apply for the jobs.   They also have a discussion board, recent appointments list and …

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