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Columbus Symphony: Could it really die?
Friday, March 14, 2008
BY MICHAEL GROSSBERG
Nearly broke and still short of solutions, the Columbus Symphony could fold as early as next month, the president of the symphony board says. Although efforts to save central Ohio’s largest arts organization continue behind the scenes, Robert “Buzz” Trafford said the orchestra’s demise is possible if additional donations prove elusive.
“Without more help, there’s a very real risk that our money won’t take us beyond the next month or two,” Trafford said. “Our options would become extremely limited, including suspension of operations.”
A spokesman for the musicians downplayed talk of a shutdown. “We’ve heard the rumors,” said principal tuba player Jim Akins. “I find it difficult to believe. … It would be a terrible tragedy. The city would lose its soul.”
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Columbus Symphony: Could it really die?
By: Walker
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Ok, so you caught me there. The symphony has been declining for a few years now. I don’t think the changes in the past two seasons helped the situation one bit, though.
I liked some of the new approaches. Some of it felt a little too “Rock Show” to me, but it spoke to a younger generation (people my age, I guess). Unfortunately, our older base was confused…and I think they felt betrayed. Hence, the invisibility. The younger crowd didn’t buy/see the message, and the older crowd couldn’t find it (Columbus Alive, C Magazine) or like it.
That leads to the ultimate question:
Truthfully, I just don’t know what the answer is. I want to say it’s somewhere in between the two, but this is not the budget, board, nor market to accomplish that.
I would love to do market research, starting right now, on orchestral music in the Columbus market. I want to know, once and for all, what people like, what they think, who thinks these things, and what would make a difference. Anyone posting here has probably been to a CSO concert in the past year…I want to know why others haven’t tried or aren’t coming back.
This thread has been some fascinating reading. Thank you. I run an arts organization, Available Light Theatre company. And we’re constantly trying to crack the nuts of arts marketing, we’ve even been working with Young Isaac lately. It’s great to get some outside opinions.
On the subject of the CSO. It’s a tragedy. There are several tragedies and near-tragedies among our big arts orgs, and their inability to deal with declining audiences and recessions and the decline in corporate giving since 9/11 has been terrible to watch. Everyone who gets near a theatre in this town knows that CATCO has also almost gone out of business a number of times recently. It sucks and it is embarrassing. Cincinnati supports 4 major theatres, including a Tony winner, and we can barely keep one afloat.
As an artist (and a human being) I really feel bad for the artists being abused by bad management. Clearly, some major changes to the budget should have been made a LONG time ago. It really stinks that we’ve come to the point where cutting salaries by 50% actually seems like the magic bullet that’ll save the thing. And since management has so clearly been negligent for so long, I don’t think they deserve anymore tax-payer money. But I fear for the future. Players Theatre went under in 1992, and the theatre scene has never recovered. How would the loss of the symphony affect the future of our city?
But then you have to ask, if there aren’t enough people buying tickets to support the CSO, how valuable IS it to the community at large? I don’t go very often, but I am glad we have a symphony. I’m glad that we’re at least that cultured. It says something good about our community. But I have to admit, I don’t care enough to be a subscriber. Otherwise I would be.
As far the whole arts marketing thing. Here’s what’s been on my mind lately, my friend Brant came up with this –
“Some people like classic car shows. I do not. No matter how big and beautiful the poster for a classic car show is, no matter how many commercials I see for it, you’ll never get me to go. I’m just not a classic car show person.”
And then someone asked, “What if the Batmobile was there?”
“Okay, that I might want to see.”
It is one thing for us on the sidelines to have such a superiority complex, but the sad truth is that the mavens and management of the CSO have the exact same opinion of their potential audience. No wonder they want the dole instead of the competing in the marketplace.
Kill the CSO. Free Classical music in Columbus.
I don’t really keep up with the Classical music scene, but from what I’ve read on the subject this makes a lot of sense to me. If you don’t mind my asking, what do you envision Classical music in Columbus looking like when it’s “free”?
It is one thing for us on the sidelines to have such a superiority complex, but the sad truth is that the mavens and management of the CSO have the exact same opinion of their potential audience. No wonder they want the dole instead of the competing in the marketplace.
Kill the CSO. Free Classical music in Columbus.
I don’t really keep up with the Classical music scene, but from what I’ve read on the subject this makes a lot of sense to me. If you don’t mind my asking, what do you envision Classical music in Columbus looking like when it’s “free”?
I knew that would be confusing, but I wasn’t clever enough to make a better phrase.
“Free” as in liberated from the shackles of the current thinking and admining.
Not ‘free’ as in not costing anything.
A.
I knew that would be confusing, but I wasn’t clever enough to make a better phrase.
“Free” as in liberated from the shackles of the current thinking and admining.
Not ‘free’ as in not costing anything.
Oh yeah, I got that. How do you envision a “free and liberated” Classical scene?
I agree the symphony needs to be freed, but if the symphony is freed it won’t come back. You’ll have nothing more than community bands…and guest artists brought in by CAPA.
I’m not sure there is a feasible way to save it without slashing budgets, salaries, staff, and number of programs to a volume Columbus can willingly support.
BalletMet is the best example of what an arts org needs to do in this market right now.
Could you elaborate on your opinion about BalletMet and what they’re getting right?
- Fewer shows, always high quality
- Plays shows in venues it can sell out (and afford)
- Good, interactive marketing tactics with online utilization (see Whodunit? from last season)
- Open and clean branding (CSO has had three logos in three years)
- Know their budget and capabilities (lay offs when the ballet is off season; Sleeping Beauty gets 2 shows, Nutcracker gets 23)
- Good mix of modern, popular, and classic styles (appeals to all without alienating anyone)
- The fun/passion they have is palpable – and it’s passed on to the audience. That’s an intangible generated by the company, and it’s something the symphony has clearly lost. In this town, I think people come just BECAUSE it’s the ballet. You can’t say that about the CSO.
They transformed something supposedly old and stuffy into something fresh, fun, and still classic. They nearly went under in the process, but it’s paying off very well now.
So basically the answer to this thread is “yes.”
- Fewer shows, always high quality
- Plays shows in venues it can sell out (and afford)
- Good, interactive marketing tactics with online utilization (see Whodunit? from last season)
- Open and clean branding (CSO has had three logos in three years)
- Know their budget and capabilities (lay offs when the ballet is off season; Sleeping Beauty gets 2 shows, Nutcracker gets 23)
- Good mix of modern, popular, and classic styles (appeals to all without alienating anyone)
- The fun/passion they have is palpable – and it’s passed on to the audience. That’s an intangible generated by the company, and it’s something the symphony has clearly lost. In this town, I think people come just BECAUSE it’s the ballet. You can’t say that about the CSO.
They transformed something supposedly old and stuffy into something fresh, fun, and still classic. They nearly went under in the process, but it’s paying off very well now.
I think you’re forgetting two key things that make a huge difference with BalletMet:
1. They use professional dancers, whose salaries are 1/4 a musician’s salary and their careers are half as long.
2. They have an Academy. So if a show tanks, they still have revenue coming from classes for children through senior citizens. Along with that, they perform some shows (like Nutcracker) that allow students to perform on stage. And when you do that, you’re pretty much assured that friends and family of those students will attend the shows, some more than once. May not sound like much, but during shows like Nutcracker when you’ve got 20 kids, multiply that by a fairly high number of sisters, brothers, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, best friends, neighbors, etc. and that’s quite a bit of revenue.
Maybe the symphony should look more into things like that? As in, incorporate students somehow. Maybe feature an outstanding area high schooler or community member.
Just a shame that more people don’t realize it’s our symphony/ballet/opera/etc. and we should take more pride in them.
I did forget to add that BalletMet has a really good youth program. The Academy has strong ties to its dancers, and it is growing. They just opened a New Albany location, and there are rumors of another location in the works.
And Gram: yes. The simple answer is yes.
The dancers are paid about 60% of what CSO musicians make. They also don’t dance a full season with nearly as many shows. I don’t think the CSO should do as many shows as they do – hence, they shouldn’t be paid as much. They are paid through a one month break in December, and some of them opt out of the summer shows altogether.
I knew that would be confusing, but I wasn’t clever enough to make a better phrase.
“Free” as in liberated from the shackles of the current thinking and admining.
Not ‘free’ as in not costing anything.
Oh yeah, I got that. How do you envision a “free and liberated” Classical scene?
I will second what was said about BalletMet as an example.
-Symphonic music more integrated with the community – not a fixed, archaic and overly-costly venue – is the first step.
-Dynamic programming created by linkage with other arts groups instead of isolation as “The Symphony.”
-And on the same vein, thinking in new ways like programming in themes or events instead of the staid format where things are isolated. Eg – have a theme like Valentine’s Day (to be cheesey) and make an event which combines the Pops elements w/ the classical and more.
Three things off the top of my head.
More generally, I guess I envision something like a musician-owned-operated symphony having a vested interest in promoting itself, engaging the community and having a real stake in its future instead of leaving in the hands of tiered-off management.
A.
Just a shame that more people don’t realize it’s our symphony/ballet/opera/etc. and we should take more pride in them.
I said the same about community/hs’ers in the other thread. Of course, the Union would shit its pants.
It is hard to take pride in something that wants to exclude itself from the community.
A.
I’m not certain that they get paid 60%. More accurately, I’d say the highest paid dancers are at about 60% of the average musician, but my point is that most are paid far less. Yes, they have fewer performances, but they are in the studios for 9 or ten hours a day rehearsing for nearly 30 weeks out of the year. I’m quite certain that musicians are not rehearsing 9 or ten hours a day, five days a week. All in all, I’d venture to say that dancers and musicians spend an equal amount of time rehearsing and performing.
But why do musicians get paid a ridiculous amount of money and still have time to have other jobs (i.e. private lessons, teaching, private gigs)?
I guess my main point is (and why I get upset when I read about their complaints) that they are paid way too much in relation to every other performance artist. It’s hard for me to feel sorry for someone who’s complaining while still getting nearly six figures for “work” when there are others out there – such as professional dancers – who are paid as low as 20k and go through absolute hell in rehearsing and performing and need to collect worker’s comp when they frequently get injured.
Oh, I completely get your point. In fact, I support it. I know for a fact that many of them have time to have two or three extra jobs, and they don’t need to practice nearly as much now because they are playing the same things over and over again…or they can just read the pieces right from the stand. Dancers must practice to perform new routines.
Dancers make 22-24k starting out, and full-timers make around $31,000. Full-time base salary for the symphony is $56,000. If you compare full-time pay wages, it comes to 40 – 55%, I just didn’t feel like getting out my calculator. The sad part is that Columbus’ salary grades are: A) due for a raise, B) on par with market size, C) much lower than a Cleveland or New York symphony (Cleveland’s base was something like $92k a few years back, but don’t quote me on that).
I was a classical musician, and I’ve thankfully escaped. There’s a good “insider” book called Mozart in the Jungle that describes classical musicians and their sense of entitlement, along with the disconnect from society they display on a daily basis. I was never good enough to be that kind of classical musician, but I was surrounded by quite a few who were. The union embodies this attitude and “protects” them. Maybe someday they will realize that the union is only an anchor in this storm. I’m sure it will be too late when they finally do get it.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
BY MICHAEL GROSSBERG
Musicians and board members of the financially strapped Columbus Symphony will meet this afternoon to begin discussions.
“I have no inkling as to what may transpire, but I’m very hopeful,” Executive Director Tony Beadle said yesterday.
“This could begin to have a positive effect on us being able to continue our operations.”
The four-year union contract for the 53-member orchestra will expire Aug. 31. Before then, however, orchestra management must figure out how to deal with immediate financial problems — namely, a projected $1.4 million deficit for 2007-08.
READ MORE
Friday, March 21, 2008
Representatives of the Columbus Symphony and the American Federation of Musicians met Tuesday for an initial negotiation session about the orchestra’s future.
“Both sides recognize that they face complex and difficult issues but have agreed upon an intense schedule of negotiations,” the musicians union and the orchestra trustees said in a joint statement.
The meeting was the first between board members and musicians since the board’s attempt Jan. 17 to outline a restructuring plan for next season.
READ MORE
I like what Andrew Hall is saying…
But the CSO is nothing of the soul of Cols. The marching band is more in that vein.
The CSO is not even popular. I have never heard one person in the 25 years I have lived in Cols. say something about their interest or that they went to see whatever CSO does. I have never seen CSO at any event or be involved with any community organization or participate in any activity. Why don’t they table at ComFest? Or put on free little shows at schools on the last period before class lets out on Fridays?
I do not even know what they do or where at? Why keep playing old music ad naseum? I think it is rather cutting edge that our indie arts scene is so viable and the old style is waning. I say ha! One less stagnant institution. So I would not worry that this is something detrimental to Cols.
They are a group that relies on the genoruosity of others like WCRS. If WCRS goes down, it would be because the community did not support us (or some crazy FCC fine) and rightly so we would disband.
May I add that only a few cities in the world can provide all the thing under the sun to its citizens- they are called Alpha Cities. So Cols. does not have a symphony, OK we make it up in other ways. Ft Wayne has a world-reknown Ballet. Good for them. Cols. has Jeni’s Ice Cream-Great!
But the CSO is nothing of the soul of Cols. The marching band is more in that vein…
I have not the words to even begin to respond to any of that… especially not without sounding as though I’m attacking you personally.
So, thank you for sharing your opinion. I guess.
The Marching Band is the soul of Ohio State and anyone who appreciates the university (aka football fans). As to the rest of what you wrote, you have a pretty narrow view of the arts and where indie arts fit in.
This isn’t a matter of indie arts “winning” in a death match where the loser is killed off. The CSO has been poorly run for over 5 years. This is not the fault of classical music, and it doesn’t mean it needs to die. It means they need to be freed of the current administration and try a new approach. There are many examples of orchestras around the country that have succeeded in revitalizing and thriving in their communities. It’s not mainstream, but it does have a place.