Author - Ann Drinan

1
How To Find a Balance
2
Update on Ivory Ban
3
The Fallout from Obama’s Executive Order Concerning Ivory
4
Being Orchestra Treasurer
5
Robert’s Rules, according to Robert
6
Detroit Symphony Flash Mob at IKEA in Canton, Michigan
7
More Getty Grants
8
Learning from the Past
9
Marketing a “Difficult” Concert
10
The Baltimore Ravens Support the BSO’s OrchKids Program

How To Find a Balance

Back when he was Principal Flute of the Utah Symphony and President of AFM Local 104, Erich Graf wrote a fascinating and heart-felt article about how he learned to be both an excellent symphonic musician and an effective union leader. He talks about his own journey to self-discovery, begun by writing a Conscientious Objector letter, the[…]

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Update on Ivory Ban

Last Thursday, May 15, 2014, the  U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced changes intended to ease international travel with musical instruments under the new enforcement of the ban on bringing African ivory into the States. The recent policy decree banning the importation of African ivory caused great unintended consequences for traveling musicians whose instruments contain small[…]

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The Fallout from Obama’s Executive Order Concerning Ivory

At a seminar at Mondomusica New York on April 11, 2014, Heather Noonan of the League of American Orchestras joined with violin and bow makers, an international environmental expert, and government officials to discuss the recent tightened restrictions on bringing ivory into the US, resulting from an Obama Administration Executive Order issued on February 24,[…]

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Being Orchestra Treasurer

While probably not as exciting as being John Malkovich, being your Orchestra Committee’s Treasurer can be a pretty interesting gig. As we enter the “homestretch” of our 2013-14 seasons, orchestras are reassessing themselves internally, and looking towards the future. If you’re Orchestra Committee Treasurer is “making noises” about stepping down, consider the possibility of your[…]

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Robert’s Rules, according to Robert

I read a first draft of Robert Levine’s primer on Robert’s Rules of Order at a break in rehearsal — my colleagues refused to believe that an article about parliamentary procedure had caused me to laugh out loud. But indeed, Robert’s description of how to use Robert’s Rules to run an orchestra meeting is very[…]

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Detroit Symphony Flash Mob at IKEA in Canton, Michigan

Rachel Martin of NPR’s “Weekend Edition Sunday ” did an interesting piece about the Detroit Symphony’s comeback after the work stoppage. She talks about the beautiful acoustics at Detroit’s Orchestra Hall, and questions what happens when you take the symphony out of that perfect acoustic and put them in — well — an IKEA warehouse![…]

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More Getty Grants

The latest awards from the Ann & Gordon Getty Education and Community Investment Grants, administered by the League of American Orchestras, were recently announced. The grants range from $10,oo0 to $30,000 for community-based grants in the 2013-14 season, awarded to 23 orchestras. To see the League’s press release, click here. 65% of the grants were[…]

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Learning from the Past

As we all celebrate the end of the 15-month lockout of the Minnesota Orchestra and welcome their return to performances next month, I’d like to remind the orchestral community that another orchestra suffered a 14-month lockout back in the early 90s, and has learned a lot by that experience. My own Hartford Symphony was locked[…]

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Marketing a “Difficult” Concert

All orchestras want to “stretch” and offer repertoire that challenges both the players and the audience — that strengthens the symphonic art form and moves us into the future. But selling these concerts to our regular patrons can be very challenging. Orchestras with liberal return policies find subscribers giving in their tickets to the “stretch”[…]

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The Baltimore Ravens Support the BSO’s OrchKids Program

The Baltimore Ravens have announced that not only will the Baltimore Symphony and their OrchKids Bucket Band perform at the Ravens’ Thanksgiving-night half-time show at their game with the Pittsburgh Steelers, they have pledged to give $15,000 to the OrchKids program. Seeing such support from a football team for a symphony orchestra gives me hope.[…]

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