Hundreds share range of ideas at first symphony forum

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The forum was the first of four organized by the College of Charleston, the Coastal Community Foundation and the Charleston Regional Alliance for the Arts. They are meant to gather public input about what kind of symphony orchestra the community wants and will support. Participants shared suggestions that ranged from having more outdoor concerts to installing a new board of directors.

By Ashley Fletcher Frampton
aframpton@scbiznews.com
Published June 17, 2010

About 200 people attended the first public forum focused on the future of symphonic music in Charleston, held Wednesday morning at the College of Charleston.

Participants included musicians and board members of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, local musicians with other affiliations, symphony patrons and supporters, and others with an interest in the organization that halted operations earlier this spring because of a cash shortage.

The forum was the first of four organized by the college, the Coastal Community Foundation and the Charleston Regional Alliance for the Arts. They are meant to gather public input about what kind of symphony orchestra the Charleston community wants and will support.

Symphony board leaders have said this year’s shutdown was related to the economy, with a 60% decline in giving from its 10 top donors. But the symphony has struggled financially for the past decade, even before this spring’s suspension of operations.

Wednesday’s forum began with comments from Ken Johnson, CEO of the Greenville Symphony Orchestra; Lisa Dixon, COO of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, and Daniel Beckley, a board member of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra.

Johnson and Dixon talked about employment models, creative programming and marketing tactics their organizations have used.

Then, attendees talked in groups of four about why the symphony matters to Charleston, what its future should look like and how it can become more sustainable financially.

Participants later read aloud the ideas that emerged from their conversations. Among them:

• More performances should take place in locations throughout the community.
• More concerts should be held outside.
• The Charleston Symphony Orchestra must engage more young people.
• The symphony should bring in well-known artists to perform with its musicians.
• More music from other cultures and from the 20th and 21st centuries should be incorporated into programming.
• Local arts groups should collaborate instead of competing.
• The symphony should add pre-concert lectures, similar to those offered at the Spoleto Festival USA.
• “We need a new board, a new plan and a new vision,” one participant said.
• The community should support the Charleston Symphony Orchestra first, before bringing in other groups and acts, if the organization is viewed as a priority among local arts groups.
• Going forward, the symphony should continue using professional musicians and maintain a full orchestra instead of cutting back on staff and hiring musicians for individual performances.
• The board of directors should take advice from experts.
• The Charleston Symphony Orchestra should better utilize the volunteer members of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra League.
• Symphony officials should better cultivate relationships in their efforts to raise money. “Without that relationship, you’re just one of many, many requesters standing in line,” someone said.
• The leadership should seek more small financial donations instead of a few large donations.
• The board of directors needs a unified vision to present to donors.
• The Charleston Symphony Orchestra should pay top-dollar for a development director and other experienced managers.
• “We need a rock star as music director,” one person said.

Dianne Culhane, former creative director for Coca-Cola Co., and Laura Deaton of Full Glass Consulting led the forum.

Following the three forums planned next week, Culhane said the steering committee for the effort will look for themes and consensus, compare those ideas to the symphony’s reality, and compile a report for the Charleston Symphony Orchestra, to be released in the fall.

Deaton said guest speakers from other orchestras were invited to contribute ideas, not to offer up a model that the Charleston Symphony Orchestra can replicate.

“I don’t think adopting anyone’s model is going to work for us,” Beckley said. “We have to build our own model.”

To participate in an upcoming forum, listed below, register online.

Monday, June 21
1-3 p.m. (doors open at 12:30 p.m.)
Church of our Savior
4416 Betsy Kerrison Parkway, Johns Island

Tuesday, June 22
10 a.m.-Noon (doors open at 9:30 a.m.)
Church of the Holy Cross
299 Seven Farms Dr., Daniel Island

Tuesday, June 22
6:30-8:30 p.m. (doors open at 6 p.m.)
Ashley River Baptist Church Activities Building
1101 Savannah Highway, West Ashley

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