Much has been written throughout the blogosphere about last weekend’s New York Times article by Stephanie Strom on the merits of certain charitable deductions. Frankly, I’m surprised the piece garnered that much attention as it seems more to do with the typical class-warfare nonsense associated with national elections than anything having to do with the inherent value of charitable giving…
The Future
All About Potential Part 2
Continuing where we left off from Part 1, today’s installment will examine the final three ensembles which have in them the ability to do great things by the 2013/2014 season as well as a few which came close but ultimately not close enough…
All About Potential Part 1
Even though the business of professional symphonic orchestras has taken a prolonged beating (hang on, we’re not off the bumpy road quite yet) that doesn’t mean opportunity and potential have gone the way of the dodo. In fact, several symphonic orchestra organizations are in just the right place at the right time to accomplish truly great things.
As such, I’ve compiled a list of seven orchestras which have in them the ability to do great things by the 2013/2014 season. If even a few of them are able to realize this potential, they will become the new benchmark for American cultural success and if all of them succeed then you can expect the entire business to change the way it measures accomplishment…
To Clap Or Not To Clap – By Leonard Slatkin
I don’t feature guest writers at Adaptistration very much; in fact, I don’t think I’ve ever had one before now. Nevertheless, during some recent time in Nashville, I crossed paths with Leonard Slatkin, the Music Director for the National Symphony and recently appointed Music Advisor for the Nashville Symphony. Eventually, the conversation made its way to the issue of applause and following that discussion I invited him to write something for Adaptistration in order to share his views on the topic. I’m happy to report that he graciously accepted the offer…
Improving The Sustainability Of Classical Music Though System Dynamics
Over the past year, I’ve had the pleasure of working with Bill Harris, a talented systems dynamics expert based in Seattle, Washington. In 1999 Bill founded Facilitated Systems to “offer collaborative solutions to executives who want strategies and initiatives that are tested before implementation, who want their organizations to work more productively in groups, and who want to build organizations that learn and improve more rapidly from their experiences.” Doesn’t that sound exactly like what he orchestra field needs?
Bill and I have worked together using systems thinking to explore methods to improve the sustainability of the classical music business…