“The Memphis Symphony Orchestra will have another season, thanks to some adept fundraising, serious cost-cutting and financial sacrifice by its core component of musicians,” reads an editorial in Friday’s (5/2) Commercial Appeal (Memphis; subscription required). “What happens after next season is up in the air, symphony representatives said during a candid discussion with The Commercial Appeal’s editorial board Thursday. …. But thanks to a cooperative effort between the symphony’s staff, its board of directors, and its musicians, the symphony has bought itself another season and a chance, as president Roland Valliere told the editorial board, to ‘redesign and rebuild the house’ over the next three years into a model that is right for Memphis…. The symphony’s survival is crucial. That may seem like an exaggeration in a city that has so many other problems to worry about. Taken in the wider context of a community’s quality of life, performing arts organizations like the symphony add value that makes corporate officials looking to relocate take notice of a city. And, the symphony’s education outreach to the entire community should not be undervalued.” Wayne Risher’s article in Thursday’s (5/1) Commercial Appeal article details the “aggressive cost-cutting” that resulted in the Memphis Symphony’s continuing next season, including a 38 percent pay cut for musicians, trimming staff positions from 18.5 to 13, and fewer concerts.
Posted May 6, 2014
