Drew McManus on the orchestra business.
If there is only one individual that is traditionally associated with the idea of an orchestra, it has to be the music director. And the past year has seen some remarkable events regarding the control and influence music directors assert over their orchestras. Here’s a quick recap: We have Daniel Barenboim stepping down as the music director for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, one of the top orchestras in the entire world. …
Theater management wonk Joe Patti who operates the blog Butts In Seats took the time to write in with regard to the recent series of docent articles. He had some good observations and a few questions: A great deal of what you wrote fired my imagination. I am a real proponent of getting volunteers involved and rewarding them. The problem I have faced is that administration looks upon their help as a …
In today’s Soctsman.com they feature an article by Emma Gunby about the rumor that the musicians of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra have taken a vote of no confidence in order to remove their music director. I don’t claim to know any of the particulars about that situation, but what I’m more interested in is the vote itself. Back in early December I wrote an article entitled Empowerment Issues that advocates …
As promised, here are some excerpts from the many readers who took their time to send an email in response the executive compensation issues. Lawrence J. Fried, Executive Director, Bellevue Philharmonic (an ensemble not included in any of the articles) wrote in to say: As a twenty-year veteran of orchestra management, I can assure you that most of us are indeed paid for what we accomplish, not for how hard we …
Neo Classical Article: I recently published a new article on my column at Partial Observer entitled Musical Fortune Cookies – Recalling the memories that make music special. It’s a light hearted piece that has a great story of exactly how you shouldn’t behave at an opera concert. It’s worth the time, so go look. Some more feedback from the compensation articles: I’ve received many, many responses, (even one which included a …