The Oregonian reports that Oregon Symphony and the other major arts organizations in Portland have managed to stay in the black in this tough year, largely due to belt-tightening in their budgets.

For the first time in five years, the Oregon Symphony balanced its budget, although the exact numbers won’t be known until an audit in September, said Carl Herko,  a symphony spokesman. In the past three years, the Oregon Symphony posted deficits of $1.5 million (2007), $594,000 (2008) and $488,000 (2009). The orchestra has balanced its budget only four times in the past 20 years. Salary cuts to orchestra musicians and staff, furloughs, lower fees to guest artists and fewer marketing costs reduced the symphony’s most recent budget to $14 million, $1 million less than the previous year.

In addition to budget cuts, donations helped push the orchestra into surplus territory, including three gifts over $250,000 each. On the downside, ticket revenue fell $1.1 million from last year, due partly to four fewer performances. The number of paying customers per performance dropped 11.9 percent.

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