2026–2030 Strategic Plan
Our Path to
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra’s 2021–25 Strategic Plan helped guide a period of significant artistic and organizational development, including the appointment of Music Director Kwamé Ryan, strengthened artistic direction, expanded community partnerships, and the successful completion of the $50M Comprehensive Campaign. As that chapter comes to a close, we enter a new phase of opportunity. The 2026–30 Strategic Plan reflects both a continuation of this momentum and a refreshed set of priorities for the years ahead.
At its core is a deliberate balance: a commitment to deepening artistic excellence — presenting performances of the highest caliber and advancing the orchestral art form — while also recognizing the necessity of meeting people where they are by expanding access, reaching new audiences, and creating meaningful connections beyond the traditional concert hall.
We will not succeed by pursuing one without the other. Together, artistic excellence and community engagement strengthen relevance, broaden impact, and drive long-term financial sustainability.
Maintaining that balance requires a shared sense of purpose across the organization. A strong organizational culture — grounded in trust, collaboration, and accountability — ensures that musicians, staff, and leadership are aligned in advancing this work.
This plan also comes at a moment of opportunity. Across the country and around the world, there is growing recognition of the role music can play in health and well-being. Located in a leading healthcare hub and building on existing partnerships with Novant Health and Advocate Health, the Symphony is uniquely positioned to contribute meaningfully to research and practice in the field of Music & Wellness.
These priorities define our path to 2030. Together, they position the Charlotte Symphony for continued success and purpose as it prepares to enter its second century.
OUR MISSION:
To ignite the human spirit through the passion and unifying power of live symphonic music.
OUR VISION:
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra is the musical heart of our region.
OUR CORE VALUES: Excellence. Integrity. Inclusion. Innovation. Community.
Strategic Pillars
The Charlotte Symphony’s 2030 Strategic Plan is organized around five interdependent pillars that guide the organization’s priorities and decision-making over the next four years.
Each pillar includes an overarching goal and is supported by a set of strategies that guide progress toward 2030.
The strategies outlined in this plan provide a clear framework for action. Detailed objectives, measurable progress indicators, and key performance metrics will be maintained internally, allowing the organization to remain responsive, adaptive, and accountable as the work evolves.
Artistic Excellence
CONTEXT
Building on momentum under the artistic leadership of Music Director Kwamé Ryan, this pillar takes a deliberate approach to balancing large-scale orchestral performances with broader community presence. It responds to changing audience expectations, new performance venues, and the increasing importance of digital engagement. At its core, this work is about strengthening artistic quality, engaging audiences, and ensuring the Symphony continues to attract and retain exceptional talent — key to its long-term vitality and relevance.
GOAL
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra will deepen its artistry, delivering consistently exceptional performances and elevating our national profile while expressing our uniquely Charlottean identity. In so doing, we will inspire greater attendance and affirm the essential role of live symphonic music in our community.
STRATEGIES:
1. Increase the number of performances that utilize the full orchestra in concert hall venues.
2. Prioritize the cultivation and allocation of resources to attract high-caliber guest soloists, conductors, and other creative collaborators.
3. Attract and retain outstanding musical talent and artistic leadership to advance the Orchestra’s quality and long-term artistic vitality, with upcoming contract negotiations serving as a key inflection point.
4. Select performance locations strategically, prioritizing acoustically strong indoor spaces across Charlotte and the region, that complement our performances in Blumenthal venues and support audience growth both Uptown and beyond.
5. Expand our artistic reach and audience base through outdoor performances in new venues, including an established presence at the revitalized Symphony Park, while always prioritizing balanced repertoire and highquality acoustic environments for sound reinforcement.
6. Strengthen strategic partnerships with established cultural institutions — such as Charlotte Ballet and Charlotte Master Chorale — while remaining responsive to changes in the region’s cultural landscape, including the performance of opera in Charlotte.
7. Develop compelling and innovative artistic programming through collaborations with guest artists and creative collaborators, including commissions, the continued evolution of our Spotlight Artist series, and other highprofile initiatives.
8. Create and implement a cohesive digital artistic strategy to diversify orchestral performance opportunities for our artists, expand the Symphony’s audiovisual market presence, and broaden awareness of our work, aligned with digital marketing efforts.
9. Cultivate and maintain a reputation for leadership in exceptional music enrichment and learning, through modeling high artistic standards and providing inspiration and encouragement to learners of all ages.
“[The Charlotte Symphony] continues to break new ground faster and farther than I remember in all of my 45 years in Charlotte.”
– LAWRENCE TOPPMAN, WDAV
Resident Conductor Christopher James Lees leads the Orchestra in new “CSO 360” concerts, where the audience surrounds the musicians
Community Engagement
CONTEXT
Drawing on insights from the previous strategic plan, this pillar is an integrated approach to how people engage with and experience the Charlotte Symphony. It brings together education, public relevance, and audience development into a unified focus on how relationships with the Symphony develop over time. It prioritizes strengthening visibility, creating meaningful pathways into engagement, and fostering a deeper sense of connection and belonging through music, learning, and shared experiences.
GOAL
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra will be a lifelong cultural partner that people grow with, deepening community connections, sparking curiosity and passion for learning, and cultivating an expanding and enthusiastic audience who embrace the Symphony as a meaningful and vital part of life in Charlotte.
STRATEGIES:
1. Strengthen our digital storytelling to increase engagement and expand visibility across both traditional and emerging channels.
2. Grow and sustain our audience by attracting new attendees, encouraging repeat attendance, and growing loyalty over time.
3. Elevate the Symphony’s visibility and reputation locally, while broadening national and international recognition for our artistic excellence, learning and community initiatives, and civic impact.
4. Expand our reach, deepen authentic connections, and increase access through partnerships rooted in the community that engage new audiences and enhance our shared impact.
5. Measure the impact of our work by understanding how our programs influence connection, curiosity, belonging, and civic pride, using those insights to guide future decisions.
6. Leverage our learning and engagement work locally to cultivate music lovers of all ages and serve as a model for community building on a national scale.
“The CSO has seemingly been on an upswing…working deliberately to reach new audiences outside of the traditional concert hall. Even the symphony’s programming has expanded and diversified.”
— NICK DE LA CANAL, WFAE
Financial Sustainability
CONTEXT
Following the success of the $50M Comprehensive Campaign, this pillar reflects the financial opportunities and challenges ahead over the next four years. Priorities include strengthening liquidity, successfully navigating collective bargaining negotiations, growing earned and contributed revenue, and bridging the gap created as expendable campaign support transitions to sustained annual revenue. The “Drive to 2030” provides the framework to secure this transition, ensuring long-term stability and positioning the organization to enter its centennial year in 2032 from a place of strength.
GOAL
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra will be a leader among our peer organizations by exceeding nonprofit best-practice standards for financial health, and will demonstrate our resilience by growing and diversifying both earned and contributed revenue streams, consistently balancing budgets, generating positive cash flow, and developing sufficient operating reserves.
STRATEGIES:
1. Accomplish the “Drive to 2030,” securing up to:
• $5M in new planned giving commitments, by growing the CSO’s Encore Society, and
• $5M in new endowment commitments, and
• $5M in (new) cash reserves.
2. Maintain healthy liquidity by a combination of growing cash reserves, posting positive year-end results, and ensuring access to credit as needed.
3. Grow earned revenue as part of a healthy diversified mix, as measured in subscribers and other repeat buyers, in single ticket sales, and in other earned revenue opportunities.
4. Finalize the next Collective Bargaining Agreement amicably with the Charlotte chapter of the American Federation of Musicians, ahead of the August 2027 deadline, to bring clarity to fixed expense projections through 2030, and, in alignment with our goals, ensure that the compensation and benefits of our musicians and staff are competitive, support recruitment and retention, and maintain high quality.
5. Navigate the anticipated challenges expected in FY28 and FY29 when expendable gifts from the last Campaign will need to be replaced, especially by growing Annual Fund revenue to compensate sufficiently.
6. Ensure the integrity of the $50M endowment through responsible stewardship, objective and expert investment oversight, and collection of all outstanding pledges.
7. Maintain a multi-year outlook to financial planning, incorporating stringent analysis of all programs on a project basis.
“The
Charlotte Symphony Orchestra has surpassed its $50 million campaign fundraising goal, ensuring the stability of its endowment.”
— CATHERINE MUCCIGROSSO, THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER
NET ASSET GROWTH 2020–2030
Organizational Culture
CONTEXT
Alignment, trust, and purpose are foundational to success across every area of the organization. Already recognized as a leader in this area, the Symphony is committed to building on that strength by fostering transparent communication, inclusion, accountability, and an environment where everyone feels empowered to contribute fully to shared success.
GOAL
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra will model a culture of trust, belonging, and shared purpose that empowers musicians, staff, and volunteer leaders to thrive together, through transparent communication that respects all voices and creates space for inclusive dialogue and collaboration.
STRATEGIES:
1. Foster a unified internal community where musicians, staff, and volunteers collaborate in alignment with the organization’s mission and goals.
2. Nurture a culture of inclusion and belonging which will be guided by our core values to ensure musicians, staff, and volunteers feel recognized, connected, and supported.
3. Strengthen transparent, respectful communication that promotes trust, invites feedback, honors differences, and empowers members to advance shared goals.
4. Attract, develop, and retain exceptional talent among musicians and staff by cultivating a positive environment that encourages professional growth and continued engagement, built upon a compensation and benefits structure competitively aligned with peer nonprofit organizations.
5. Be accountable by setting clear expectations, modeling inclusive leadership, and creating structures that welcome diverse perspectives and reflect the community we serve.
6. Champion employee wellness, in coordination with our Music & Wellness initiatives, by supporting the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of all our employees as essential to organizational excellence.
Music Director Kwamé Ryan poses for a selfie with members of the CSO staff — and his new Grammy Award
Music & Wellness
CONTEXT
As research continues to demonstrate the connection between music, health, and well-being, the Symphony recognizes a unique opportunity to contribute meaningfully to the growing field of music and wellness. Building on partnerships with leading healthcare systems and Charlotte’s participation in the NeuroArts Blueprint Initiative, these strategies expand access to restorative musical experiences for the community while advancing specialized support for musicians and staff in response to the physical, mental, and performance-related demands of the profession.
GOAL
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra will become a national industry leader in Music and Wellness, leveraging live symphonic music in both community and clinical environments. In addition, we will develop a comprehensive research and practice wellness program with health system partners to optimize the health and well-being of our musicians and staff.
STRATEGIES:
1. Increase the reach and impact of the CSO’s live-music wellness programming, and measure community participation and participant-reported outcomes related to well-being and social connection.
2. Help shape a regional culture that recognizes music as a pathway to wellness, expanding equitable public access to restorative symphonic experiences and fostering crosssector partnerships across community and healthcare settings that maximize impact, informed by the NeuroArts Blueprint framework.
3. Measure engagement of symphony-goers and wellness event attendees, and publish an annual engagement and outcomes dashboard, using proven measures that reflect impact across health and well-being domains.
4. Partner with selected healthcare institutions to equip healthcare providers with specialized understanding of musician health, improving diagnosis, treatment, and trust between providers and artists, through sustained learning and collaboration.
5. Increase the utilization of the full spectrum of evidencebased health resources for musicians and staff that contribute to well-being, performance, and health, including both evidence-based traditional and complementary therapies and social-emotional supports.
6. Use existing evidence and conduct additional evaluations to understand and measure the impact of enhanced connectivity to musician and staff-centered healthcare on their health and well-being, generating evidence to inform best practice, organizational strategy, and national thought leadership.
Charlotte was selected as one of eleven inaugural communities in the NeuroArts Coalition Network .
As a member of the steering committee, the CSO will help shape this national movement at the intersection of arts, science, and well-being.
Moving Forward, Together
This plan reflects a belief in what the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra can become in the years ahead — and in the role it is positioned to play in shaping a growing and evolving Charlotte. It sets a clear direction while remaining intentionally flexible. As the work unfolds, the Symphony will learn from experience, strengthen what proves effective, and adapt where needed.
Across its work, the Symphony is expanding what it means to be a modern American orchestra — advancing artistic excellence, reaching new and more diverse audiences, and capitalizing on its emerging leadership in the field of music and wellness.
Taken together, these efforts position the Charlotte Symphony not only for institutional growth, but for broader civic impact: a Charlotte where live music is more present, more accessible, and more deeply woven into everyday life.
To realize that vision will require sustained commitment from musicians, staff, and leadership, as well as from supporters and partners, including the longstanding Symphony Guild of Charlotte, whose belief and investment make this work possible.
With that shared effort, the Charlotte Symphony can move confidently through 2030 and into its second century — strengthening its leadership in the orchestral field, elevating Charlotte’s visibility as a cultural center, and shaping what an orchestra can be for its home city.
The Path to 2030
KEY MILESTONES AND INFLECTION POINTS
2025–26
• Kwamé Ryan’s first full season as Music Director
• Launch of the $15M "Drive to 2030" to support financial health and build on the successful completion of the $50M Comprehensive Campaign
• Charlotte selected to join the Community NeuroArts Coalition through the NeuroArts Blueprint Initiative
2026–27
• CSO leads Charlotte’s America 250 celebration with a July 4 concert at Truist Field
• Symphony Park closes for redevelopment
• Completion of negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement ahead of the 2027–28 season
2027–28
• TowneBank Symphony Park re-opens in Fall 2027
• Music Director Kwamé Ryan’s current contract up for renewal in August 2028
• President & CEO David Fisk’s current contract up for renewal in August 2028
• Midpoint progress assessment of the “Drive to 2030”
2028–29
• Resident Conductor Christopher James Lees’s current contract up for renewal in June 2029
• Continued implementation and scaling of strategic priorities across all pillars in preparation for centennial planning
• A feasibility study is commissioned for the CSO Centenary Endowment Campaign
2029–30
• Artistic planning begins for the Symphony’s centennial season in 2031–32
• Final commitments from the $50M Comprehensive Campaign are collected and invested
• The “Drive to 2030” reaches its conclusion
Acknowledgements
Thank you to members of the Planning Committee and partner committees, comprised of administrative staff, board members, and musicians, for their extraordinary ideation, visionary thinking, and generous investment of time.
STRATEGIC PLANNING COMMITTEE
Steve Makris, chair
Maribeth Baker
Aram Kim Bryan
Mike Butterworth
Shayne Doty
Christian Drake
Allison Drenkow
David Fisk
Scott Freck
Craig Froelich
Fran Hyde
Frank Impelluso
Richard Krumdieck
Jason McNeel
Sarah Frances Peck
Juliette Pryor
Moira Quinn
Nicholas Ritter
Manley Roberts
Kwamé Ryan
Matt Spanjers
Brienne Tinder
Amy Orsinger Whitehead
PARTNER COMMITTEES
Artistic Excellence
Calin Ovidiu Lupanu, co-chair
Alex Wilborn, co-chair
Community Engagement
Nick Clements, chair
Finance
Denise DeMaio, chair
Organizational Culture
Sara Garces Roselli, co-chair
Ylida Scott, co-chair
Music & Wellness
Sid Fletcher, MD, co-chair
Jen Sullivan, MD MPH , co-chair
The Charlotte Symphony extends its appreciation to McKinsey & Company and Andi Stevenson for their guidance and support in helping shape this strategic planning process.
The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra gratefully acknowledges the support of individuals, corporations, foundations, and government partners at the local, state, and national levels who invest in the power of live orchestral music. Each plays a vital role in sustaining and advancing the Symphony’s mission. Thank you.