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The Long View What’s ahead at the League’s 2014 National Conference, “Critical Questions, Countless Solutions.” By Robert Sandla
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Ben VanHouten
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iktionary, everyone’s favorite online source of all knowledge, defines “see the forest for the trees” as: “To discern an overall pattern from a mass of detail; to see the big picture, or the broader, more general situation.” You don’t want to be “overwhelmed by detail to the point where it obscures the overall situation.” That’s a feeling we can all identify with as we forge our way through a work day: it’s hard to get the big picture when you’re smack dab in the middle of things. And that can be particularly tough right now, at a time of seismic change on the cultural landscape, when audiences expect to experience art in entirely new ways and orchestras are experimenting with concert formats, expanding repertoire, and engaging with their communities at an unprecedented pace. How to make sense of it all? The League of American Orchestras’ National Conference gives board members, conductors, musicians, staff, and volunteers fresh perspectives on how orchestras are adapting to shifting demographics, discovering what works— and what doesn’t—in emerging practices, and reflecting on the latest insights and research from provocative thought leaders and experts. This year’s Conference theme is “Critical Questions, Countless Solutions”—a strikingly appropriate and relevant premise as orchestras confront a cultural scene in flux. The Conference runs June 4-6 in Seattle, Washington, and is hosted by the Seattle Symphony. Preceding it are a vari-
Seattle Symphony Music Director Ludovic Morlot and the city of Seattle, site of the League of American Orchestras’ 2014 National Conference.
ety of intensive, comprehensive seminars on June 2 and 3 that tackle such timely issues as capitalization planning, the impact of alternative concert formats, and how to help orchestra boards reach their full potential. “The Foundations of Collective Bargaining,” a three-day Pre-Conference seminar presented by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, gives musicians, staff, and board members the must-have knowledge they need for effective labor negotiations. The “Collective Bargaining” session at last year’s League Conference was completely sold out. What was the thinking behind this year’s “Critical Questions, Countless Solutions” theme, and how does that relate to
where orchestras are today? “It would be hard to find an orchestra anywhere in the country that is not, in some way, exploring something new,” says Polly Kahn, the League’s vice president for learning and leadership development. “Whether via artistic initiatives, community and education investment, audience engagement strategies, or approaches to the financial model, orchestras are moving ahead—and fast. Our Conference will celebrate and embody that change, looking not only at multiple pathways to new work, but perhaps most significantly, at the ways that these areas intersect and interact with one another. “Conference delegates can expect to be stimulated by new ideas, inspired by new voices, engaged by new musical choices, and challenged at every step of the way to make their own individual sense of it all,” Kahn continues. “We anticipate that our delegates will leave Conference energized to think of their orchestra’s potential for felicitous ‘entanglement’—the interweaving of countless possibilities in the context of ever-growing engagement with their communities.” Claire Chase, founder of International Contemporary Ensemble and classical-music agent provocateur, will give the keynote address at the League’s 2014 National Conference.
The Conference’s Opening Session on June 4 promises to be stimulating with keynote speaker Claire Chase on the podium. She’s the MacArthur Award-winning flutist and founder of ICE, the International Contemporary Ensemble, which was named Musical America’s 2014 Ensemble of the Year. Chase describes ICE as “a new model for a new century: a contemporary, innovative, modular, artist-driven organization.” As League President Jesse Rosen asked symphony
SPRING 2014