I received this thoughtful response from an OSO subscriber – I very much appreciate her comments, most especially about the lack of post-concert interaction between patrons and musicians.<\/p>\n
1. How can we motivate those with the deepest pockets to see the orchestra as a community asset which helps the greater good of the community in which it resides?<\/strong><\/p>\n Honestly, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know for sure. I do know that people, whether they have money or not, don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like being badgered, especially on the phone, no matter how worthy the cause. I noticed on the symphony website (months ago) a position open for someone in subscription sales. I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t remember the exact percentages; however, a large percentage of the job description was phone sales.<\/p>\n I could financially afford to get a subscription and so I did. If for some reason I couldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t next year, it would be painful and irritating to get calls from the symphony office asking me to defend my logic for not renewing. I have heard that arts organizations in this area are somewhat known for intense phone solicitation which I find distasteful.<\/p>\n And, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure I have any good solutions. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bring your child, grand-daughter, niece, great-nephew (no matter how old or young they are) to the orchestra for free\u00e2\u20ac\u009d afternoon? A silent auction where major donors get to decide exactly what is played for an entire concert? Maybe an ensemble auction in which small ensembles pulled from the larger group, a quintet here, trio there, duet there (some standard and some non-standard; string quartet or tuba and piccolo), could be auctioned and sold for an hour or two (or even one piece for the small bidders, or one piece over their phone or answering machine) of music at either someone\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s home, or, in the case of a bank or law firm, in it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s lobby, or at a holiday party.<\/p>\n I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure how this would go over, but maybe a minute for mission sometime in the concert. Churches do this and people still go to church\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 If not a direct solicitation for money, solicit for ideas on how to make more money. Also, when people give extra, more than the price of a ticket, they kind of want to get extra. Better perks for orchestra society members? Calendars? Cook books (ie the orchestra\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s favorite recipes)?<\/p>\n 2. Since fancy new attempts to attract the 25-40 year old “golden” audience demographic seem not to work here in Portland – how do we appeal to people who are indifferent to classical music in practice (but in favor of it in theory) in a cultural landscape that favors the hip and cutting edge without alienating our primary base audience which sticks with us through thick and thin?<\/strong><\/p>\n What were the new attempts that didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t work? Have you posted about these already on your blog? I think my brothers fall into this category; in favor in theory, but don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t attend concerts. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll talk to them. Also, was the Pointer Sister\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s concert one of these fancy attempts? I went and enjoyed it, and saw other people enjoying it though I would think the target demographic here was more like 40-50+. And, it was mildly amusing to me how pained and un-amused the members of the orchestra seemed from the balcony. (I recently saw a recording of a Sheryl Crow concert during which her string section rocked and jammed throughout the whole concert whether they were playing at the time or not.) I wonder how easy it would be to collaborate with some of the local up and coming artists, jazz, hip-hop, rock, whoever, in the Portland music scene. OPB really likes \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Pink Martini.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n 3. If we alienate our base they won’t come back for years. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the public flap about the non-renewal of our former principal flutist has led to negative feelings about our music director and that those who are feeling badly are very reluctant to return to concerts, regardless of who is on the podium.<\/strong><\/p>\n The best I can come up with right now is perhaps a moderated forum with the music director during which the public can ask him everything they want to ask and more. Of course, that could come across as a hokey antic and if many people are truly sore and tired of the discussion, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll just sicken them even more\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 maybe you could just ask them with an ad in some local papers or on the radio, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153How can we get you to come back?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d; unfortunately, that takes more money and may not be fruitful. (In relation to the end of my answer to question 4, maybe you just have to be upfront when you talk to people. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Do you know anyone who has stopped attending our concerts? How can we ever get them back?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d)<\/p>\n 4. How do we reconcile our low level job satisfaction with our need to project positive and involved personas on-stage?<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure how to combat the not having a contract issue. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know enough about business or corporations to know why they need CEO\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s who get paid exorbitant amounts of money to do something like draw up a contract. Surely there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a law firm or individual in the area who would be interested in season tickets and\/or other perks for it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s partners\/family members in exchange for legal services? Probably not as simple as that but I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to think I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m being helpful.<\/p>\n And of course, you don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have to explain yourself to me, but I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t understand where you are coming from. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m sure it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not my place to say this, but even though things are crummy, you are getting paid a living wage to play music, aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t you? When you say that you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re playing without a contract, does that mean they aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t paying you?<\/p>\n Easy for me to say, but put your woes aside, give a jolly good concert, and rush out after the concert to greet and thank the people who do attend before they leave. (If they swarm you backstage, maybe you could suggest, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153may we continue this conversation as I make my way to the lobby?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d or encourage people to come backstage if it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s too hard to make it to the lobby.)<\/p>\n I see the signs that say that orchestra members will be in the lobby to mingle and I never see any\u00e2\u20ac\u201dok well never say never; I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t see any at the last concert I went to 3 weeks ago. Now maybe I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not looking hard enough and maybe I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not doing my part, since I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t wait around at all to see if any will show up. But I climb down from the upper balcony. Is that trek time consuming enough to give orchestra members time to get to the lobby? Maybe the herd I rush out with goes faster than it seems.<\/p>\n So to answer part of your question: a hearty performance of everything on the program, and a \u00e2\u20ac\u0153thank you for attending\u00e2\u20ac\u009d afterward. Making the evening more personal to the people who attend might get them to tell their friends about it. And then maybe their friends will want to go to see which orchestra member talks to them afterwards? how about free food after the concert? Cookies and coffee, perhaps, donated by a local bakery?<\/p>\n 5. Given that studies have shown that the vast majority of major donors and\/or board members of symphony orchestras have studied music earlier in life for at least a couple years, do we really have a chance to reverse the trend when arts programs are among the first to be cut and the last to be reinstated due to budget shortages?<\/strong><\/p>\n Again, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not sure that I completely understand where you are coming from, but maybe the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153knowledgeable\u00e2\u20ac\u009d donors and board members are part of the problem. Instead of people who are willing to appreciate, support, and give you unconditional artistic license, they have their own ideas of what is best based on their, perhaps, limited knowledge and background. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Reversing the trend\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00e2\u20ac\u201dmeaning keeping knowledgeable people on boards given that fewer and fewer people will be knowledgeable? If almost 60% of the funds are expected to come from private foundations, companies and individuals, I would think the organization would tank before you have unknowledgeable board members.<\/p>\n About recording performances, why not have orchestra members place personal recorders amongst the group and record what it sounds like from their perspective and sell those, maybe for not very much\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6$5? Or allow audience members to audio record performances and encourage them to share their recordings? Even if these people turn around and sell them, if you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not recording anyway, then the group isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t losing money; and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s still a form of free publicity. My last crazy left-field idea on how to get an extra dollar out of people like me: have a raffle for audience members to sit on the stage among the players in the orchestra for one piece of one concert. Or a raffle amongst people who are members of the orchestra society? Or both? I hope I haven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t started writing in circles and that at least some of my thoughts make sense.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I received this thoughtful response from an OSO subscriber – I very much appreciate her comments, most especially about the lack of post-concert interaction between patrons and musicians. 1. 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Congratulations to Mei-Ann! Here's the press release from the Memphis Symphony: Mei-Ann Chen Appointed Fourth Music Director of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra Rising star begins tenure with the MSO in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "conducting"","block_context":{"text":"conducting","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/conducting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":516,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2007\/11\/06\/oso-president-responds-to-crosscut-article\/","url_meta":{"origin":129,"position":2},"title":"OSO president responds to Crosscut article","author":"Charles Noble","date":"November 6, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"[This was forwarded to me by OSO president Elaine Calder - a truncated version will be published at Crosscut.com.] Response to: \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Can Anybody fix the Oregon Symphony?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Stephen Marc Beaudoin Crosscut Seattle Friday, November 2nd, 2007 Of course it will take more than an endorsement from Thomas Lauderdale to fix\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "appreciation"","block_context":{"text":"appreciation","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/appreciations\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2479,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2009\/05\/04\/important-message-if-you-care-about-the-arts-in-pdx\/","url_meta":{"origin":129,"position":3},"title":"important message if you care about the arts in pdx","author":"Charles Noble","date":"May 4, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"A message from conductor Niel DePonte to the students attending the 15th annual Young Artists Debut! concerto concert on May 3, 2009, at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. I have chosen to address my remarks this evening to the 1500 students in the audience. What the arts will look like\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "fundraising"","block_context":{"text":"fundraising","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/fundraising\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"niel_deponte_0809","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/05\/niel_deponte_0809.gif?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5893,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2011\/03\/02\/oregon-symphony-makes-box-office-gains\/","url_meta":{"origin":129,"position":4},"title":"oregon symphony makes box office gains","author":"Charles Noble","date":"March 2, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Ticket sales, according to the Oregon Symphony, are up 35% this season over last year, and that's with 1\/3 of its concerts remaining to be performed. 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I got a kick out of this one - especially the fact that a \"rapper violist\" is brought in to replace the orchestra's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "the orchestra world"","block_context":{"text":"the orchestra world","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/the-orchestra-world\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/roUrD9D7PV8\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/303"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=129"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nI\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m surprised that the orchestra doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s own recording equipment though, I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even fathom how much truly state-of-the-art technology costs. Some people revere old recordings of famous conductors, groups, and soloists. While some of these have been re-mastered, there are people quite content to listen to their scratchy, old LP\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s, though that technology was probably state of the art in it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time.<\/p>\n