Making Sense Of The Salary Issue

Upon returning from vacation this week I was very pleased to find a few articles about orchestra executive and music director compensation.  One was from last Sunday’s New York Times by Blair Tindall, the other by fellow AJ blogger Andrew Taylor. In Blair’s original article, she went into many of the topics that have been covered here regarding the disparity in pay between musicians, music directors, and orchestra executives.* In Andrew’s …

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The Honolulu Symphony – An Island Unto Itself

It’s not uncommon to hear managers and musicians alike espouse how their orchestra is “unique” among the landscape of American orchestras.  They use this to justify why an idea that is successful at Orchestra “A” wouldn’t be transferable to their situation. And to small degrees this is usually true, but the larger picture shows us that they are probably more alike than not.  One orchestra which can legitimately claim that it …

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The Controversy Over Commissions

I have to start off this article by employing the use of a shockingly dirty word.  A word so heinous that it’s mention can curve an arts administrator’s spine, infect the soul of a donor, and cause America’s orchestras to fall into ruin.  If you have a child reading over your shoulder you had best cover their eyes.  This filthy word is: commissions…

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Back In Town

 I’m back from the Tetons and I already miss being there.  It never ceases to amaze me just how good an orchestra can play when everyone is happy, healthy, and talented.  There was a fantastic concert where the first half featured music entirely by modern composers (although the modern music purists would be upset to know I include Barber in that grouping) followed up with Dvorak’s 7th Symphony on the second …

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