Articles

“They Love Us…They Love Us Not Part 1”

May 24 2006

The Ancient Greek maxim “know thyself” imparts a wisdom which dictates we should not only have an intimate understanding of our strengths, but our weaknesses as well, only then will we be in a position to improve upon ourselves. Along those same lines, the biblical proverb “physician, heal thyself” directs individuals to be responsible for improving their own deficiencies before correcting the deficiencies of others.

Kansas City Symphony Principal Trombone, Roger Oyster, applies both of those principles as he examines the malaise experienced by most organizations in this business from the inside out. Roger doesn’t leave very many stones unturned as he engages the task of institutional self-examination. As the first of three parts, this article defines the matters at hand and how Roger’s outlook evolved over these issues throughout his career.

May 15 2006

Collective representation touches the lives of every orchestra musician at a number of contact points. Although most musicians are aware of what “the union” is, they may not realize how many facets of the union directly influence their career. One of those contact points is the Symphonic Services Division (SSD).

In an effort to help professional orchestra musicians better understand the organizations which represent them, SSD Executive Director, Laura Brownell, has written an introductory guide explaining what SSD is, how it connects with the musicians, and what they are working on this season.

May 13 2006

In an effort to help professional orchestra musicians better understand the organizations which represent them David Angus, President & Secretary-Treasurer of the Rochester Musicians’ Association, Local 66 of the American Federation of Musicians, and hornist with the Rochester Philhamonic Orchestra, has written an introductory guide explaining what how Locals function within the American Federation of Musicians and how they connect with their respective orchestral musicians.

May 13 2006

Orchestras are always talking about “moving to the next level,” but how exactly do they go about accomplishing that task? Is there a prescribed formula dictating which steps to take and in what order? Do the musicians simply wait for events to transpire, or can they serve a compelling force capable of inspiring the organization to reach its full artistic and economic potential?

Among the professional orchestras throughout North America, the Nashville Symphony Orchestra has encountered every possible high and low an organization can experience in a span of only 20 years. Within that period, they’ve endured everything from a dark period of bankruptcy to the exhilarating high of raising $120 million for a Symphony Center they own and operate that opens in September, 2006.

Nashville Symphony Orchestra violinist Laura Ross has been with the organization throughout that entire period and she chronicles those events for Polyphonic.org in this article and describes how the Nashville Symphony musicians played an integral role throughout every step in the process.

May 08 2006

Mild-mannered bassist by day and labor negotiator by night, Nathan Kahn, contributes an article which could easily serve as the definitive “All I Ever Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten” for orchestra musicians. Nathan touches on just about every aspect of the issues and events which shape today’s professional orchestra musicians.

Not being content with merely identifying the problem, Nathan goes on to suggest a regimen of solutions, not the least of which is presenting an entire undergraduate curriculum he feels would “best prepare [future] musicians for the broad demands a symphonic musician will face.”

May 06 2006

In an effort to help professional orchestra musicians better understand the organizations which represent them, ICSOM secretary and Nashville Symphony violinist, Laura Ross, has written an introductory guide explaining what ICSOM is and how it connects with the musicians.

May 06 2006

When you walk in to a symphony rehearsal, there’s your music – waiting for you on your stand (assuming you didn’t pick it up beforehand). It never occurs to many of us to even think about it – the music is always where it belongs. But how does it get there?

Marcia Farabee, long-time librarian with the National Symphony, answers this question by explaining the four major roles of the orchestra’s music librarian: musician, informational hub, music preparer and, of course, professional librarian. You might not ever think of your music librarian the same way after reading Marcia’s column.

May 06 2006

When should an orchestra use radio advertising vs. direct mail? What about telemarketing, print advertising, email, group sales, or special promotions?

In his 2nd column, Christopher Stager explains how an orchestra develops a marketing plan to achieve a sales goal. He describes how to define the primary media option for a concert and then select those options that can best support it. Chris identifies the many components of a marketing plan, and then presents a brief case study from the Seattle Symphony.

May 01 2006

How does a Music Director Search Committee ever arrive at consensus around one candidate? Roger Saydack has served as Chair of three Music Director Search Committees for the Eugene Symphony Orchestra. In this article, he shares his experiences with these three committees, and explains the principles that these committees adopted that enabled them to come to consensus.

Roger first explains the importance of a balanced committee, with the number of musicians equaling the number of Board and community members. Second, he describes the nature of consensus decision-making and emphasizes the importance of looking for the “right” candidate rather than the “best” candidate. And finally, he discusses the necessity of getting to know the candidates as artists, to evaluate whether the candidate’s artistic vision fits with the artistic vision of your orchestra. Roger concludes with the observation that a Music Director search, when viewed as a true opportunity for new experiences, can rejuvenate an orchestra.

May 01 2006

Do I spend the money to fix the roof and pay for my son’s travel soccer league dues, or do I buy the new bow the music director insists I need? Do I spend the next two hours making reeds for next week’s Mahler, or do I help my daughter with her math homework? I just finished Thanksgiving dinner. Do I watch the game with family and friends, or do I practice my solo that I had some trouble with at the last rehearsal for this weekend’s performance?

Columbus Symphony bassoonist Doug Fisher touches on these daily dilemmas and more which invariably end up helping to define what it is to be a professional orchestra musician. Doug draws on his personal experiences to help characterize some of these issues and presents an array of unique solutions.

“They Love Us…They Love Us Not Part 1”

SSD Advocates for Symphony Musicians and their Local Unions

Symphony Musicians and Their Local Union

Growing Pains: Nashville’s Transition From ROPA To ICSOM

Gee, All I Ever Wanted to Do Was Play My Instrument…

What Is ICSOM?

Your Librarian and Your Orchestra: Just How Do the Players Get the Music?

Marketing the Orchestra Installment Two

Some Guiding Principles for Music Director Searches

Professional Sacrifices Define the Lives of Orchestra Musicians