{"id":675,"date":"2008-01-19T15:45:47","date_gmt":"2008-01-19T23:45:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/01\/19\/more-columbus-analysis\/"},"modified":"2013-02-07T18:32:56","modified_gmt":"2013-02-08T02:32:56","slug":"more-columbus-analysis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/01\/19\/more-columbus-analysis\/","title":{"rendered":"more columbus analysis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Robert Levine*, at his blog Abu Bratsche<\/a> (best blog name I’ve seen in a long, long time!), points out that the problems that are coming to a head in Columbus are not financial in origin.<\/p>\n

The management and board of the Columbus Symphony have released a document<\/a> with the Orwellian title of The Path to Financial Stability and Future Growth<\/em>. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s virtually guaranteed not to produce the first, and, as it proposes to shrink the organization, the only “growth” likely to result is in press coverage of the resulting disaster.<\/p>\n

While the document talks at length about how hard it is to run American orchestras today, the most telling passage is this:<\/p>\n

As it was being confronted by these shifting financial fortunes, the CSO found itself embroiled in controversy over the departure of it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s long-time Music Director, a development that divided many of its supporters and generated significant negative publicity, further stressing the CSO\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ability to raise contributed revenue and attract concertgoers. Ultimately this led to the departure of the CSO\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Executive Director. From 2003 to June 2006, the CSO operated without either a full-time Executive Director or Music Director.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Translated into English (and with apostrophes used properly), this would read:<\/p>\n

The management and board bungled the departure of its former Music Director, the executive director was fired as a result, and the board was criminally negligent by neglecting to fill either position for three years<\/em>. As a result, the orchestra lost lots of money and even more credibility in the community. The solution to these problems is to screw the musicians.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This is not a financial crisis. This is a governance crisis. No plan that fails to address the real crisis will bring the orchestra to any kind of sustainable financial shape.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Read the entire post here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Robert Levine is the Principal violist (a\/k\/a Lead Viola Operator) of the Milwaukee Symphony and former president of the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians<\/a> (ICSOM).<\/p>\n

<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Robert Levine*, at his blog Abu Bratsche (best blog name I’ve seen in a long, long time!), points out that the problems that are coming to a head in Columbus are not financial in origin.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":303,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[186,115,2],"tags":[349,112,55,359],"class_list":["post-675","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-labor-issues","category-music","category-the-orchestra-world","tag-columbus-symphony","tag-management","tag-orchestra","tag-robert-levine"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa8kC-aT","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":969,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/05\/13\/more-columbus-analysis-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":675,"position":0},"title":"more columbus analysis","author":"Charles Noble","date":"May 13, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Robert Levine, writing over at Abu Bratsche, has finally weighed in on the Columbus Symphony debacle.\u00c2\u00a0 It's a pretty damning case he makes for the vast majority of the responsibility to be given to the board of the Columbus Symphony for the current state of affairs.\u00c2\u00a0 I'd consider it required\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "labor issues"","block_context":{"text":"labor issues","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/labor-issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":866,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/03\/20\/communities-boards-orchestras\/","url_meta":{"origin":675,"position":1},"title":"communities, boards, and orchestras","author":"Charles Noble","date":"March 20, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"As I write this, there are two orchestras in the U.S. which are currently facing an existential crisis. The Columbus Symphony and the Shreveport Symphony are both facing cuts which will forever alter how they function, sound, raise money, and basically exist. Over the past week, two fellow violists\/bloggers have\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "labor issues"","block_context":{"text":"labor issues","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/labor-issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":674,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/01\/19\/columbus-lost-at-sea\/","url_meta":{"origin":675,"position":2},"title":"columbus lost at sea?","author":"Charles Noble","date":"January 19, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"In a move which will likely result in the permanent crippling of a once fine orchestra, the management of the Columbus Symphony (Ohio) is proposing massive cuts of both orchestra personnel positions and the length of the season: the former down from 53 to 31 full-time musicians, the latter from\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "labor issues"","block_context":{"text":"labor issues","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/labor-issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":725,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/01\/30\/columbus-symphony-musicians-respond\/","url_meta":{"origin":675,"position":3},"title":"columbus symphony musicians respond","author":"Charles Noble","date":"January 30, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"The Columbus Symphony musicians have issued a formal response to the planned cuts of both season and personnel by the Columbus Symphony Association. Central Ohio Federation of Musicians Local 103, AFM 1585 Bethel Road, Suite 100 Columbus, Ohio 43220 614-457-6371 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 29, 2008 HUNDREDS FROM AROUND THE\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":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":677,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/01\/21\/columbus-conductor-takes-a-stand\/","url_meta":{"origin":675,"position":4},"title":"columbus’ conductor takes a stand","author":"Charles Noble","date":"January 21, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"Photo credit: Koichi Miura Photo courtesy of Frank Salomon Associates Junichi Hirokami, the music director of the Columbus Symphony (who I hear is fantastic), has been interviewed by the Columbus Dispatch and made some telling remarks about the situation there. Any downsizing of the orchestra would be \"catastrophic,\" Junichi Hirokami\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "conducting"","block_context":{"text":"conducting","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/conducting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"jh_head_color.jpg","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2008\/01\/jh_head_color.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":965,"url":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/2008\/05\/13\/columbus-symphony-circling-the-drain\/","url_meta":{"origin":675,"position":5},"title":"columbus symphony circling the drain?","author":"Charles Noble","date":"May 13, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"The news from Columbus seems to be getting more dire by the day, and those with the power to change the situation seem unwilling to do so (or to be charitable, unable to do so). Here's a collection of posts from around the classical blogosphere concerning the situation in Columbus\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "labor issues"","block_context":{"text":"labor issues","link":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/category\/music\/labor-issues\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/675","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=675"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/675\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=675"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=675"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nobleviola.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=675"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}