In Thursday’s (3/19) Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pittsburgh Symphony Musicians Committee Chair Micah Howard, Board Chair Dick Simmons, and President and CEO Jim Wilkinson respond to a Sunday article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette with a letter entitled “Not to worry, the PSO is thriving: One small survey missed evidence of the orchestra’s vitality.” “The musicians, management and trustees of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra were dismayed to read the unbalanced and in many ways misleading article concerning Pittsburgh audiences’ supposed views of the PSO…. The article extensively quotes a study conducted by W-5, a marketing firm…. The portion of the W-5 study from which many of the quotes were taken surveyed only a very narrow slice of our community: a small group of residents who do not go to symphony concerts.… It does not—and was not intended to—reflect the views of our audience or the community as a whole.” The letter points out a number of organizational strategies to increase sales, reach out to donors, and build “new relationships with our audiences,” and highlights the orchestra’s diverse repertoire and upcoming European tour.
Posted March 19, 2015
