Drew McManus on the orchestra business.
Six months ago, I wrote about a new online database that made it easier for anyone to discover women composers and their music. At the end of that article, I expressed my intentions: to create a similar database focusing on composers of color and “a potential transformation from the current shared spreadsheet to a more stable and intuitive website”. Six months later, I am happy to say that I and my …
Two items that came out of last Sunday’s Academy Awards caught my attention in how they intersect with the orchestra field: equal pay for equal work and inclusion riders. Equal Pay and Equal Representation The pay discrepancy between Mark Wahlberg and Michelle Williams for reshoots on the film “All the Money in the World” made headlines when it became public that Wahlberg was paid $1.5 million while Williams only earned an $80 …
Pop quiz! Which of the following items is not an example of diverse artistic programming: Operas written by women. Operas written by minorities. Operas written by living composers. Operas written by dead white guys. Over the weekend, a friend’s Facebook post caught my attention when it pointed out some 2018/19 season announcement marketing copy from the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s website (emphasis is found in the original copy): We pride ourselves …
On 1/31/2018, the always sharp Alex Ross published a short but powerful tweet about something he noticed in the 2018/19 season announcements from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Number of female composers programmed by the Chicago Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra for the 2018-19 season: 0 — Alex Ross (@alexrossmusic) January 31, 2018 Not too long ago, we examined a similar lack of women composers in masterworks programming …
I’m beginning to wonder in the #TBT series might not be such a great idea. Granted, it’s great fun combing through thousands of posts to find forgotten gems but every now and then, something turns up that reminds me how long I’ve been at this. Case in point, this article from 2004 titled Is Video Game Music The Next Big Outreach Tool? A valid question in 2004 and in retrospect, the format …