and lose 20 pounds!
The Springfield Symphony was one of the 39 charter orchestras that started ASOL. Well they’ve now changed their name, and it’s my hope they’re not going to be “in a league of their own”. I don’t want to be anonymous in any survey, and since they are new again, I just want to give my wish or hope list for the League of American Orchestras…..
- Management Training for Musicians
They are big on the fellowship programs for managers, so how about developing that a step further by creating programs to train musicians in management skills. When elected to committees and negotiating positions would it not benefit all by having musicians with matching “skill-sets” (I heard this was a conference buzzword) to the management to help deal with issues and for facilitating relationships to their boards and volunteers? For example: By being able to interpret the numbers accurately and by being versed in the same software applications used by management, it certainly would help keep everything above board.
BTW: I am not suggesting that full time managers should start taking Violin lessons!
- Don’t try this at your Orchestra!
I like their Innovations Forum and discussion groups, but let’s have a get real section with an up-datable page of dumb programs that have failed time and time again, so that orchestras can stop falling into these sometimes deadly traps. A “No Spinet Zone!”
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We need Intrastate Conferences
I have never been to the big blow it out the box conference. Maybe this is something I should go to as part of my New Year’s resolution. I see that there are mid-winter managers meetings also (or are they the mid-managers winter meetings?) so how about intrastate conferences where the managers and music directors of all of the orchestras within a state can get together annually? Less costly to attend and easier to organize I would think (we could do it ourselves with the league facilitating the communication). Plus, there would be concentrated and direct contact between orchestras of all levels which would hopefully spark some great ideas or even collaborations. We all have to work with the same state house, senate and arts council. We could make for quite a unified lobbying force to help each other’s communities by organizing a co-ordinated run-out/education program to serve as wide a geographic area as possible for example. With a unified state wide program trying to reach that many people, meetings about funding would be with the Governor instead of our individual Representatives and Senators.
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League Crisis Team
Whether behind the scenes or out in the open, I think it appropriate that the League thinks about putting together a crisis team for orchestras to be able to call on in times of distress (or before times of distress if they see it coming). Whether it is a natural disaster, a lockout, financial hardship or anything that potentially threatens an orchestra’s very existence, it could act like a National Guard for orchestras. I am thinking for it to be a flexible group so the league can actually send experienced and appropriate people based on the needs at the time. If it would mean membership fees would have to rise, it would be worth it to know there is a safety net like this one.
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Conductor Training
This is a big topic that I want to go into more extensively in the future. It is good to have showcases and the Baltimore/Peabody program looks interesting, however it seems that the programs both past and present are geared to creating future music directors which misses a huge void right now. There is no training or course that I have heard of in how to be an effective assistant, or associate conductor. It seems training in schools is geared to teach the intricacies between the Barenreiter and Kalmus editions of Mozart Symphonies, but programming Pops/Education, talking to audiences, rehearsing full programs in minimal time…nothing. For the one Donald Thulean workshop I was on the faculty for, I was asked to give a 2 hour seminar on Pops/Educational programming. It was amazing the number of conductors there who had never heard of Carmen Dragon or Leroy Anderson. When getting an assistant job you need to know that Pink Martini is a Pops group that you might accompany, not a drink you get in the bar after a concert! The tempi in Beethoven 5 are open to interpretation, the tempi in the selections from Oklahoma are not!!!! A bad Pops performance from an assistant can be detrimental to an orchestra’s ticket sales and the league is very concerned about ticket sales are they not? So let’s train great assistants by creating an assistant/associate conductor training program so that orchestras will have effective conductors, who are more than just baton wavers using the positions as a stepping stone. I would love to be involved with a program like this.
These American Conductor Fellowships sending young conductors to major orchestras may sound like great opportunities, but if you are standing in front of a group that is so good that they can play Rite of Spring without a conductor, then how is a young conductor going to learn how to rehearse and communicate. These fellowships need to be with regional orchestras. It wont be as glamorous for the league and wont look as good on a resume for a young conductor, but if you are standing in front of a group that really needs direction, then you will have learn how to do it and fast! Furthermore, there is this assertion at the American Conducting Fellows page:
While centered on artistic growth, the American Conducting Fellows Programs is unique in also focusing on the role of the conductor as an organizational and civic leader.
Well we all know since many of the major orchestra’s conductors don’t live in those communities, it would be difficult to learn that civic leadership role from the Music Director at a major orchestra. Many regional orchestra conductors however do live in their communities. Since the probability that the majority of conducting fellows who do eventually land a MD job, will land it at a regional orchestra, then does it not make sense that their fellowship experience should be at one? In the next week here , I am meeting with the Parks Board chair and city reps about outdoor concerts, a religious group who wants to collaborate, the artistic advisory committee, the executive committee, going to a regular Rotary Club meeting and rehearsing for our concert next weekend. That is a normal schedule here, once or twice a year I would be happy to have someone shadow me.
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In The News
This daily on line newsletter has value as a snapshot. My problem with it is that since it is so easy to add links these days (if I can do it anyone can!), why can’t they do it in each paragraph so we can all easily go to the story they are quoting from, like this link to the League! There doesn’t seem to be a link line at the bottom anymore like there used to be either. My guess is many managers read In The News, and a link to an important story would save them time so they can get back to:
- negotiating and being on the level with musicians who have great management skills
- convincing marketing that their current idea has not worked at any other orchestra so we shouldn’t try it
- strategizing with the level 1 orchestra up the interstate on how to get joint funding to help cover the transitional area between their territories for run outs
- Letting the League know that they appreciate the offer to help but because the musicians are superb negotiators thanks to the training, they don’t need a crisis team visit this time
- Telling the irate patron on the phone that yes they will make sure the assistant conductor goes to the academy so they will know for next time the difference in tempo between Eine Kleine Nachtmusik and Moonlight Serenade, that they are not related despite the title similarities and should be played with at least a short pause between them!
I wish the League much success. My check is in the mail!
Some very good thoughts, Ron.
The League used to have 2-3 “regional” conferences per year, as well as the annual national conference. I believe they were abandoned during the ’90s.
I understood that the League is no longer sponsoring conducting workshops. The Conductor Preview, held every two years, is not about training conductors. It’s to provide a showcase for conductors already at a certain professional level to be seen and heard by people — orchestra managers — who might hire them. They’ve had an excellent track record in recent years of identifying conductord who have, indeed, subsequently been hired as music directors after being seen in the Preview. For conductor training workshops, the best organization is the Conductors Guild. (Full disclosure: I’m a board member of the Guild.)
As for the crisis team, it does exist on a very informal basis already. However, as long as musicians perceive the League to be a “managers and board members organization,” I doubt many would want to call on League staff members to help.
I couldn’t think of a worse place to conduct training for musician representatives and/or committee members in regard to Ron’s first point than the League. This is something that should be addressed by the players directly and I would add that it is improper for a player to be doing the job of any manager.
However, the idea of showing elected musician representatives how institutional data is collected and compiled is a good thing, but this can be easily accomplished via personnel on-hand at each respective orchestra (God help the group where managers and staffers don’t understand or can’t operate their own software). Along the same lines, the players should have access to any and all raw data they need (no, this doesn’t include personal donor and ticket info) and not be forced to only use data interpreted by management.
To this point, interpreting the numbers accurately, as Ron suggests is at best, a relative concept. For example, just because you’re at 102% of your ticket-sales goal, doesn’t mean that’s a good thing. Both sides should be able to agree on the numbers but that doesn’t mean they should agree on meaning.
Musicians do need to stay current on institutional data but this is something they can do on their own. In fact, whenever they don’t have a colleague who is capable of processing data, they outsource the task to a capable source. Ultimately, this provides the most important component of objectivity, which is something I doubt could be achieved if the League were responsible for training musician representatives and committee members.
Instead, I think it would be far more productive if League and the AFM contributed equal funding to develop programs which train operations staff and union stewards in issues of contract administration and the duty of fair representation. These efforts should be conducted at a non-League and non-Union site (in lieu of on-site training) and both parties should retain the ability to approve or disapprove the final curricula and any instructors. In the end, the business would likely see a decrease in the number of grievances, an increase in savings from lower production cost over-runs, and an improved work environment.
As a response to Larry Fried’s final point in his comment, I think it is entirely inappropriate to say that musicians would not want to call on League staff members to help during times of crisis, especially in the terms of a natural disaster as defined in Ron’s piece.
During the Katrina disaster, musicians took advantage of support from a number of sources who stepped up to help; which included not only the League, but the National offices of the AFM, Local AFM chapters, individual orchestras, other musicians, philanthropic organizations, concerned individuals, and even bloggers – just to name a few.
To Drew’s point:
I actually like the idea very much of equal funding from the AFM (something I didn’t think of) and the League to be contributed towards training programs, then it it would be truly above board since it would be independent training. My idea overall is to recognize that with musicians coming to the bargaining table as equals in terms of knowledge and practical training, emotion and vitriol (on both sides) would be replaced by more of a problem solving approach in negotiations and also in committee and governance meetings which would hopefully help prevent a crisis or breakdown ever occuring. Perhaps the negotiations here should be between the League and the AFM to create an idependent program for musicians to get this training. Going deeper, it should be part of their education in music school also and not in a token way either. If the League truly wants to develop the ideal environment for the success of the Symphony Orchestra then they should recognize this as a key component. The AFM should also, then it truly would be a positive practical way forward to attempt to prevent future disasters. I am a strong advocate for musicians being involved more in the big decisions as those decisions will effect them more in the future than the managers who make them, since the managers on average are there far fewer years than the musicians are.