Honolulu Looks Forward With New Labor Agreement
Tue, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
Although it hasn’t garnered much national attention, a major event transpired over the past week in Hawaii as the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra (HSO) reached a three year agreement with their musicians. For an organization that has been plagued by a series of financial problems and board destabilization over the past few years, the agreement should
The All New Inside The Arts
Mon, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
The Inside The Arts platform upgrade is almost entirely complete. Over the weekend, the redesigned Inside The Arts homepage was launched along with redesigned versions of non divisi and Scanning The Dial. Sticks and Drones as well as the Inside The Arts Podcasts will be completed in a few days and the all new Adaptistration
Speaking Of Conductors
Fri, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
A few conductor related topics today. First, Sticks and Drones co-author Ron Spigelman posted an interesting response to my blog from earlier this week entitled You Say Tomato which examines the use of over-the-top adjectives in describing orchestra conductors. He has some fascinating points that are both analytical and thoughtful. Next up is more discussion
Seinfeld Was Onto Something
Thu, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
There’s something to be said for the Jerry Seinfeld model of leaving at the top of your game and yesterday’s announcement from the Seattle Symphony Orchestra (SSO) that music director Gerard Schwarz will step down after the 2010/11 season prompted quite a few email messages which referenced the Seinfeld model. However, given the lightning rod
You Say Tomato…
Wed, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
Yesterday, I received two orchestra press releases, both of which referred to their music director in the subheading as a "beloved" figure. "Beloved," really? The use of this particular adjective in the context of each PR (announcing the respective orchestra’s upcoming regional tour) projected an entirely self-serving image. Granted, writing creative PR copy can become
A Marketing Professional’s Dream
Tue, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
The story is a shorter, modern day real-life Red Violin: a confirmed Stradivarius more or less fades from public attention for 40 years only to resurface in a bank vault practically across the street from a major symphony orchestra. This is precisely the case with the Lipinski Stradivarius violin and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra (MSO) concertmaster,
New Inside The Arts Platform Is Now Active
Mon, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
I am very excited to announce that the first blog of the planned InsideTheArts.com platform upgrade is now active. Jason Heath’s Arts Addict is the first to sport the new look. In addition to a redesigned interface, the new platform offers vastly improved functionality and all sorts of goodies for users, many of which will
Quick Cash Dilemma In Honolulu
Fri, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
It is tough to ignore things that happen in threes and that is exactly the case this week with the Honolulu Symphony. First, Joe Patti posted an article about recent events, the Honolulu Weekly posted an article about the orchestra’s recent financial troubles amidst optimistic artistic gals, and then the orchestra musicians distributed a special
Prelude To The Annual Orchestra Website Review
Thu, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
As mentioned last month, the annual Orchestra Website Review is taking place a few weeks later than normal this year but the upside is it provides a bit more time to prepare, which is a good thing because a cursory review of many websites indicates that quite a few changes have taken place since last
Is It Possible To Bump Into An Orchestra In An Airport?
Wed, Sep 9, 2008
by Drew McManus
Yep, it is. In fact, I bumped into the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at the Amsterdam International Airport on my way home from Area-51. Fortunately, I had the laptop handy and the mind to record a little something…
