In Thursday’s (7/23) Tennessean (Nashville), Will Ayers reports, “The Nashville Symphony is filing a formal appeal over the Metro Arts Commission’s allocation of 2009 grant money. The Metro Arts Commission announced its annual grants to arts agencies on July 16. In the most dramatic reduction from last year, the Nashville Symphony’s share of the $2 million pot shrank 55 percent, from nearly $350,000 in 2008 to $156,000, its smallest Metro Arts grant since 1992. The shortfall comes just as the symphony has slashed its 2010 budget by $3 million to $23.8 million, and management is saying there’s no fat left to cut. … The symphony had expected a cut of about 20 percent, [Nasvhille Symphony President and CEO Alan] Valentine said, based on economic conditions and the new policies. But a 55 percent cut, Valentine said, could affect the symphony’s 4th of July concerts at Riverfront Park, which cost between $40,000 and $50,000 apiece; its performances with the ballet and the opera, which cost roughly $140,000 annually; and its free musical lessons for Metro school students, which cost about $100,000 annually.”
Posted July 24, 2009
