Articles: Page 18

American orchestral musicians usually have some bits of information and notions about orchestra life in Europe, but what’s going on in Australia? Leila Kelleher gives us a glimpse at the past, present and future with her spotlight on Australian orchestras. So that you don’t have to look it up, the Australian Dollar is currently trading at about .81 vs. the US Dollar, and “loading” is a term describing a bonus payment such as doubling on a second instrument.

Have you ever wondered whether you can deduct your practice room? Your teaching studio? What about the room where you use your computer to do your bookkeeping? Just in time for tax deadlines, violinist and Enrolled Agent Bill Hunt offers his professional advice about when you can and cannot take a home office deduction.

Orchestras have institutional cultures that can vary from one another, but there are some issues that seem to be universal. In this article Sloan Hoffmann looks down the orchestral food chain to music schools and their conductors and applied music teachers. She posits that attitudes are shaped in music conservatories and are then carried forward into the profession. For those of us who teach this article will have us looking inward.

Michael Manley, who formerly worked at the national office of the AFM, is one of this year’s American Symphony Orchestra League’s Management Fellows. Each fellow works with four orchestras for a few months each during the course of the fellowship year. Michael is spending the winter months in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, after a time in Aspen and the Los Angeles area with the Pacific Symphony. He heads to Cleveland in the spring.
I asked Michael to write about his year as a League Management Fellow — in particular what motivated him to leave his union work to pursue a career in orchestra management. He’s still working on that article, but sent his impressions of working with the South Dakota Symphony, a piece he prepared for their Annual Meeting. Michael is a very artistic kind of guy (he’s a playwright as well as a hornist); I hope you enjoy his art comparisons and contrasts as much as I do!

When I read the announcement from the ASOL about this year’s recipients of the annual MetLife award, I immediately asked the Virginia Symphony’s President and Executive Director, Carla Johnson,
to describe their award-winning Harmony Project, based on a program Carla was involved with when she was in St. Louis. It sounds like a program other orchestras may want to explore.

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 entertaining, as well as very informative. I don’t believe you’ll ever think about meeting procedures the same way (nor be intimidated by them), once you’ve read this article!

Have you ever wondered why certain AFM locals ended up with hyphenated numbers? I belong to Hartford CT Local 400 and New Haven CT Local 234-486. The second number for the New Haven local is that of the separate black local that was established in New Haven in the early part of the 20th century.
Julie Ayer, violinist with the Minnesota Orchestra, has excerpted a chapter from her fascinating book, “More Than Meets the Ear: How Symphony Musicians Made Labor History” that explains in detail the story of these AFM segregated black locals and how they ultimately were merged with their white counterparts. This chapter also chronicles the difficulties African-American classical musicians had, not only in winning auditions but also in performing their duties as members of the orchestra.
I highly recommend not only this chapter but Julie’s book in its entirety. Reading it will make you proud of the impact musicians have had on the labor movement and in improving conditions in their own working lives.

Among every musician’s worst fear is the loss of hearing – we all cringe when we think of Beethoven’s hearing loss and his having to be turned around to see the audience reaction to one of his symphony premiers. Age naturally brings on some hearing loss, especially in men, but there are things we can do to actively protect our hearing. Janet Horvath presents 10 solid strategies (did you know that humming can help prevent that cymbal crash behind you from harming your hearing?) to help you keep your hearing at peak for as long as possible.

What orchestral musician doesn’t like to play chamber music? It can provide a healthy change from the orchestra, but what if chamber music opportunities in your area are few and far between, or are devoted to programming repertoire that doesn’t really turn you on. Nashville Symphony violinist, Zeneba Bowers and a group of her friends wanted a chamber music creative outlet, so they did what entrepreneurial people do. They started their own ensemble. Zeneba’s article takes us through the group’s evolution. As you read, ALIAS: An New Kind of Ensemble you’ll not only learn about them and their successful group, but you’ll also pick up some tips along the way should you want to do something similar.

Some of you reading this may be old enough to remember this best selling business book from the 1980s. What They Don’t Teach You at the Harvard Business School, by Mark H. McCormack. It was popular because it talked about street-smarts, and not about the usual courses taught to future MBA’s at Harvard. Christian Woehr’s article, presented here, is a musical parallel for string players, although other instrumentalists, too, may enjoy this insiders view. Chris discusses things not usually taught in music schools, like how to turn a page, the role of the section leader, how to cue and how to make a variety of different entrances. These are all things string players learn to do by doing but are rarely covered in music school. So—enjoy Jedi Orchestral Skills. We look forward to other similar articles from Mr. Woehr.