Over wine and cheese,
on a boat ride and at a
Meadow Brook
concert, American
Symphony Orchestra
League delegates
planned for the future

Stuart Weiser of South Carolina describes marketilg tactics used by his
organization.

Bob McKeo wn

David Belden and Jonathan Stern of,Chicago examine a
sculpture at the Evening of Music a d Art.

Volunteers Cyndie Marcelli of Birmingham, left, and Rita
Margherio of Orchard Lake model DSO sweatshirts.

Eleanor Luedtke, left, and Elizabeth Scott of the DSO chat
aboard the Bob-Lo boat.

Jeff Ruben of Delaware, left, and Jerry Kleinman of New
York compare notes.

Crescendo: Building The Future

HEIDI PRESS

Local News Editor

From Rock to Bach

T

o most orchestra managers
and directors, enticing a
young adult audience has
become a major focus of
their planning and marketing
strategies. "It's very much a challenge
for orchestras, which we're beginning
now to face," David Wax, vice
president and general manager of The
Minnesota Orchestra advised. But, he
said, most orchestras are reluctant to
use gimmicks. The concert goer
shouldn't be coming to the hall be-
cause there is a party in conjunction
with the concert, he asserted. "(The
concert goer) must have an intellec-
tual and emotional commitment to
classical music."
Christine Harris, marketing di-
rector of the Milwaukee Symphony
Orchestra, said three conditions have
to be met in order to attract young
adults: first, they have to be given an
opportunity to mingle in a non-
threatening way; secondly, the pro-
gram must be informative; and third,
singles have to be considered an im-
portant part of the potential symphony
audience market.
In a session entitled, "Singles,
Seniors and Students: Marketing to
New Audiences," orchestra represen-
tatives exchanged ideas on what's
being done in their respective cities to
encourage young adults to attend the
symphony. According to one represen-

42

Friday, July 4, 1986

tative, food is the key to just getting
them in the door.
The Pittsburgh (Pa.) Symphony
Orchestra created what it calls the
"Smart Set" program for young adults.
It sells a package of six concerts that
include pre-concert lectures and af-
terwards, guests are invited to have
hors d'oeuvres and beverages while
listening to a pianist or a band.
The Dayton (Ohio) Philharmonic
created a board of "Yuppie-types," who
were charged with selling the orchest-
ra's slow-selling Thursday night
series. The concerts were followed by
different types of events, an ice cream
social and tail-gate parties, for exam-
ple. In the first year 500 ticket sub-
scriptions were sold. "Talking to their
peers is the strongest thing," Miss
Harris advised.
A Jeans and Beer series was
started by the Buffalo (N.Y.) Philhar-
monic Orchestra. Musicians were
allowed to wear jeans on the bottom,
but tuxes on the top. In fact, many of
the orchestra representatives said
their organizations were allowing
their musicians to dress more casually
so they wouldn't be so "threatening."
Delegates said audience members
were more likely to mingle with the
musicians when they were casually
dressed.
Eleanor Luedtke, vice president

Continued on Page 48

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

The Business Of Music

S

ailing smoothly over the De-
troit River in a cool June
breeze, the Bob-Lo boat pro-
vided a relaxing atmosphere
for casual conversation, dancing and
just relaxing.
But to the delegates attending the
41st national conference of the Ameri-
can Symphony Orchestra League
meeting at the Westin Hotel here last
week, the boat ride was just another
occasion to discuss business.
Networking and deal-making
were the primary activities as the boat
glided along the Detroit shoreline.
Conductors, musicians, symphony
managers and directors, volunteers
and others associated with orchestras
focused on budgets, hiring and firing
and time management rather than
musical works and composers.
Nearly 1,300 delegates attended
the convention, entitled "Planning for
Progress: An American Music Success
Story." Dressed in gowns and
tuxedoes, office attire or 'sweatshirts
depicting the Detroit Symphony Or-
chestra logo, delegates to the four-day
conference discussed their programs
and problems as music from a modern
jazz band peppered the night air.
Looking for the famous at what
was billed the "Tune-Up Party" on the
boat was fruitless. One symphony
manager exclaimed, they wouldn't
show u'p to something like this.

They're back at the hotel." The best
place to find the notables, one was told,
was in the breakout sessions, where
panelists discussed time management,
collective bargaining, financial stabil-
ity, fund-raising, marketing, staff de-
velopment and outreach.
Special sessions focused on volun-
teers, youth orchestras and pro-
gramming. Conductors and managers
had their own private meetings. Al-
though the discussion sessions were
small in size, the luncheons and
dinners and opening general session
attracted most of the delegates.
The perpetuation of classical
music went beyond the discussion
stages and onto the performing stages.
At a special concert at Meadow Brook
last Thursday, delegates were treated
to the world premiere of Pulitzer
Prize-winning composer Ellen Taafe .
Zwilich's Concerto for Piano and Or-
chestra, performed by Marc-Andre
Hamelin, winner of the 1985 Carnegie
Hall International American Compe-
tition for Pianists. The concerto was
commissioned jointly by the ASOL,
Carnegie Hall and the DSO.
On Friday, delegates sipped wine
and munched on hors d'oeuvres at an
Evening of Music and Art at the De-
troit Institute of Arts. There, guests
could choose between two mini-
concerts: the Renaissance Woodwind

Continued on Page 50