An Orchestra As A Commodity? Apparently So.
Mon, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
I hope I wasn’t the only person struck by the fact that the 06/23/06 New York Times article by Dan Wakin about Gilder Lehrman Hall presented a powerful position about the nature of a performing arts organization…
Full Blown Retreat Mode
Thu, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
I’m in Rochester, NY for the next two days taking part in the polyphonic.org strategic planning retreat. Given all the attention focused on strategic planning issues here over the past year the next few days hold a great deal of promise. In the meantime, stop by Brian Dickie’s blog: Life as General Director of Chicago
Getting In On The Energy
Wed, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
If you haven’t taken the time to visit the Virtual Discussion Panel going on right now at Polyphonic.org, you’re missing out. Today is Day 3 of a week long virtual discussion panel between composers and orchestra musicians on the subject of new music…
Some Recent Comments Spark Good Points
Tue, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
In case you’ve missed it, there’s a good comment thread from the June 24th blog about the articles from two music critics; one in Pittsburgh the other in Detroit. The blog has sparked an intriguing exchange between the Detroit music critic, Mark Stryker, a music director, an executive director, and more…
High Tech On The Cheap
Fri, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
It isn’t easy living life as a small budget organization. Everything eats into your budget and nothing is cheap, even paperclips add up. One of the largest ongoing office expenses is office productivity software. However, some recent advances in open source products might make your life significantly easier. One such product I’ve been playing around
A Little More Follow-Up On Ticket Prices
Thu, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
The Dallas Morning News published an article by music critic Scott Cantrell, easily one of the journalists that makes it onto my shortlist of good critics, which examines some of the Dallas Symphony’s 05-06 ticket sales…
A Tale Of Two Cities & A Tale Of Two Music Critics
Wed, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
Two recent articles from music critics in Detroit and Pittsburgh caught my attention this week as they made the strikingly similar observations about their respective orchestras…
How Does New Music Get To The Audience?
Tue, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
I’ve received a number of email messages over the past week from readers asking how new music gets from a composer to an audience. As such, in preparation for some upcoming discussions on that subject here and at Polyphonic.org (as well as the current material available at NewMusicBox), I put together a basic primer designed
All About Grant Park
Mon, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
As the recipient of 50% of their revenue from government sources, the Grant Park Music Festival in Chicago, Illinois is the closest thing the U.S. has to a government sponsored ensemble. The organization utilizes a unique operational model worth taking a look at and they go a long way toward breaking down some commonly positions
Is There Room In The CBA For Composers?
Fri, Jun 6, 2006
by Drew McManus
Stemming from the Orchestra Summit 2006 discussion panel I moderated for New Music Box, the issue of including composers in the collective bargaining agreement became in intriguing topic. That topic will be explored in more detail at Polyphonic.org from June 19-23 during their June Virtual Discussion Panel, but in the meantime I wanted to find
