Crowdsourcing Mask Knowledge
Tue, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
In a perfect world, musicians would have ample time to try a variety of face masks in order to find options that provide maximum safety and comfort. Having said that, things are far from perfect and the cost of buying a few dozen masks is an expense most musicians aren’t in a position to absorb.
A Road Map For Digital Programming From Sequoia Symphony
Mon, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
At the end of last week, the Sequoia Symphony Orchestra (SSO) published a teaser video about their upcoming Music Uplink digital series. I managed to get a head’s up about the program when recording an upcoming Shop Talk episode with SSO music director Bruce Kiesling and Niccolo Go, Partner and Creative Director at Go Creative
Shop Talk Last Call: Cross Pollination In A Good Thing
Fri, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
It’s Last Call and today’s installment features S01E05 guests Zak Vassar and Jeff Vom Saal as they respond to the following reader question: “Are there advantages in having professionally-trained musicians in administrative roles?” Guests About Shop Talk The official podcast of Adaptistration.com, Shop Talk invites captivating guests to talk about engaging topics connected to the orchestra business.
Shop Talk S01E05: What Orchestras Administrators Really Need
Tue, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
Guests: Zak Vassar, President & CEO of the Toledo Alliance for the Performing Arts; and Jeff Vom Saal, Executive Director of the Spokane Symphony & Martin Woldson Theater at The Fox.
An Exciting And Busy Week
Mon, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
This week includes a major milestone for that project I mentioned several months back about the new ticketing and CRM platform my company has been developing. As such, I’m taking part of the week off from blogging. The good news is tomorrow’s Shop Talk and Friday’s Last Call episode have been finished and in the
The Latest Data Breach
Fri, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
You may have received a data breach notice from an arts organization that uses Blackbaud products. Long story short, Blackbaud was the target of a ransomware attack where the criminals managed to make off with some user data. The League of American Orchestras notified individuals in their database who may have had Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Basic Metrics Reporting Has Never Been Easier
Wed, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
Your group probably uses Google Analytics, but are you also using Google Search Console? Spoiler: you should. Fortunately, it’s easy to set up and once you do, you’ll benefit from one of the new features they rolled out this year in the form of monthly performance reports. Even if you’re someone who rarely touches analytics,
We Covered All the Topics
Tue, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
Last Sunday, I had the pleasure of being a guest on Silence of the Tacets, when trombone players have time on their hands, a video podcast hosted by Vancouver Symphony Principal Trombone, Brian Wendel, and Vancouver Symphony Principal Bass Trombone, Ilan Morgenstern. It was a great conversation with a solid stretch of time to cover
What’s Worse: Launching One Nuke Or All Of Them?
Mon, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
Last Friday, we took a look at the labor dispute unfolding at the Colorado Springs Philharmonic (CSPhil). In a nutshell, the CSPhil board decided that after declaring impasse during their recent master agreement reopener talks, they would cancel the union agreement entirely. The only other orchestra to do this was the Louisville Orchestra in 2011.
Colorado Springs Philharmonic Decided To Follow The Path of Louisville, c. 2011
Fri, Oct 10, 2020
by Drew McManus
In 2011, the Louisville Orchestra had the dubious distinction of becoming the first professional US orchestra to attempt to cancel the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and replace those employees with replacement musicians. It didn’t end well. The orchestra’s executive leadership took a beating in the court of public opinion and the dismissed musicians and their
