Orchestra Beats Turmoil With Better-Than Expected Financial Year

Ontario’s Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony has suffered under controversy since dismissing its music director Martin Fischer-Dieskau earlier this year. But the fuss hasn’t damaged the orchestra financially. “The symphony had set itself a target of $1.28 million for the fiscal year that ended July 31. It has managed to raise $1.43 million.”

Carnegie Hall’s Fresh Blood

Carnegie Hall is one of the world’s great concert halls. So everyone is wondering what London Symphony Orchestra manager Clive Gillinson – a “London orchestral musician, raised on grit and gruel, bring to this lavish, long-running party? Personal qualities apart – and Gillinson has been head-hunted, to my knowledge, by at least six of the top US musical institutions – he will add a dimension of difference, a whiff ofrenewal, which is exactly what is needed.”

Schwarzenegger Terminates Arts Funding Increase

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has vetoed an increase in his state’s arts budget. “Last year, state funding of the California Arts Council, a state agency that gives grants to local groups, fell from $17.5 million to $1 million. Last week, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger used his line item veto power to take out what would have been a $1 million increase in arts funding by the Legislature, leaving the allocation at just over $1 million. The cuts have made the California Arts Council last in the United States in per capita funding.”

Unscripted? Get Real.

One of the attractions of the “reality TV” genre for programming executives and networks is the comparatively low cost of production. One of the biggest cost savings is that no writers need to be paid, since all the action is unscripted. Or is it? The union that represents Hollywood writers says that reality shows unquestionably “have scripts, called ‘paper cuts’ in the trade. Jokes are penned for hosts, banter for judges. Plot points and narrative arcs are developed. In some cases, lines are fed directly to contestants.” Not surprisingly, the union would like to see someone getting paid for this.

Columbus Negotiations Go Public

The Columbus Symphony Orchestra has joined the growing roster of orchestras for whom contract negotiations have become a public affair this summer. “Sunday’s [Columbus Dispatch] carried a half-page ad from the musicians asking the public to step in and make their voices heard… Last week, sky banners touted a new grassroots website. Now [the] new ad is asking people to write the symphony board and express their frustrations.” Talks between musicians and management at the CSO broke off earlier this summer.