8 minute read
Enchanted Piano & Personal Favorite, Nov
with the CCM Philharmonic. I also became knowledgeable of the reality of how difficult it would be to become a clarinetist in a major symphony orchestra. As with all other challenges in my life, I learned to create and execute a Plan B. My Plan B was to become an arts administrator. During the second year of my graduate degree, I did research and heard of the Orchestra Management Fellowship Program from what was then called the American Symphony Orchestra League (now the League of American Orchestras). I knew it would be a long shot to be selected because I didn’t have an MBA or an Arts Administration degree, but it didn’t stop me from applying. I was one of eight selected to become an Orchestra Management Fellow in the 1989-1990 season. As a Fellow, I would be assigned to several orchestras and gain experience in all aspects of orchestra management.
You would think my life would be easy moving forward, but it was just the opposite. I was assigned to the New York Philharmonic for four months, the Florida West Coast Symphony for four months and the Houston Symphony for four months. I remember hearing from orchestra officials that I would fail and they were waiting for me to prove that I was not cut out to be an arts administrator. While that year was very challenging, never did my desire to become an arts administrator waver.
Over the past 32 years, I have had an exciting professional career in arts management. I have worked with orchestras of different budget sizes and scopes, in different parts of the country and in different capacities. I have experienced the highs of leading orchestras from the brink of destruction, creating exciting concerts and programs, reversing downward trends and being an active member of communities. I have also experienced many lows. I have had orchestra representatives tell me that I am not the “right type” for their orchestra, headhunters refusing to consider me for positions despite my being highly qualified, being regularly mistaken as the security guy, and feeling alone and not accepted. I have been employed by major, regional and smaller orchestras across the country over the past 32 years. I have worked with amazing classical, pops and educational guest artists, participated in many live and studio recordings, served on the teams for international, U.S. and regional tours, and expanded the base of symphony patrons within the communities they serve.
I am a truly blessed and happy man! At 58, I know who I am. I know what I am excellent at and what I am capable of doing. I know what cities would be a good fit for me to reside in and what cities I need to avoid. I know how to say no. Strangely enough, I was offered a job with another arts organization a month before Madison, but I declined the job because the Madison Symphony Orchestra (MSO) was the job that felt right to me and worth waiting for. The MSO is an excellent arts organization. It was an easy choice for me to want to become the Executive Director of this orchestra. The artistic level is extraordinarily high. The MSO’s performance home, Overture Center for the Arts, rivals many performing arts centers in major cities. The MSO has wide community support and respect. It is not alive because of one or two donors but because the community loves it and supports it. The MSO has a strong financial structure and has the capacity to grow and become an even more active part of Madison, Dane County and even the state of Wisconsin.
Even with all these superlatives, the MSO has challenges. COVID-19 has negatively affected us. We, like most arts organizations across the country, need to rebuild and grow our audience. We need to go out into the community more and make sure the entire community knows we are here for them. We need to plan ahead for how best to celebrate some significant anniversaries in the coming years. We need to continually cultivate our patron base. The reality is that we lose donors and ticket buyers every year due to major changes in people’s lives. We must continually work to add patrons. There is nothing better for an orchestra than to experience full houses and audiences wanting more. I also want to ensure that the Madison Symphony Orchestra is here to serve all people of different ages, colors, backgrounds, socio-economic levels and musical tastes.
The 2022–2023 Season of the Madison Symphony Orchestra opened in late September with a bang! With an orchestra and chorus and five guest artists, all conducted by John DeMain, the audience experienced approximately 200 quality musicians onstage making the music of Mozart and Beethoven come alive. There will be seven additional subscription concerts during the season (one Friday-Saturday-Sunday performance weekend per month between October and May, with the exception of March), a single Beyond the Score® performance in March, a growing and dynamic Overture Concert Organ series, and numerous education and community programs for audiences of all ages. It will be a wonderful season! I hope you enjoy it and that you will be part of the Madison Symphony Orchestra family for years to come. I look forward to greeting many of you at the concerts and other events in the months ahead.
– Robert A. Reed Executive Director
/moments greg zelek
Thanks to everyone who experienced our Overture Concert Organ series premire performance on September 27! View more photos and memories: madisonsymphony.org/moments
Greg makes the whole performance a joy.
I love Greg’s warmth and I just love hearing the beautiful organ. We are extremely gifted to have Greg and the organ . . .
Greg is not only a highly skilled organist, but also a great entertainer.
Greg Zelek, Organ
PROGRAM Paul Fey, Toccata Claude Debussy, Clair de Lune J.S. Bach, Gigue Fugue and “Little” Fugue in G minor John Weaver, Fantasia Florence Price, Adoration César Franck, Grand Pièce Symphonique Greg is an outstanding talent both musically and with his charisma.
MAJOR SPONSORS Audrey Dybdahl, in memory of Philip Dybdahl Friends of the Overture Concert Organ
OCTOBER
25 TUE. 7:30 PM
christopher houlihan
Known for his dazzling and imaginative playing, Christopher Houlihan will make his debut at Overture Hall performing Liszt’s towering Fantasy and Fugue on “Ad nos, ad salutarem undam.” Mr. Houlihan will demonstrate his incredible musicianship and artistry in this tour de force. Mr. Houlihan will also perform a work that includes a narrated “tour” of the organ, with variations based on an American folk tune, and I will have the pleasure of narrating as the organ is explored. — Greg Zelek
PROGRAM J.S. Bach, Prelude and Fugue in A minor
Robert Edward Smith,
An Introduction to the King of Instruments: Variations on an American Folk Tune Franz Liszt, Fantasy and Fugue on “Ad nos, ad salutarem undam” Christopher Houlihan, Organ
MAJOR SPONSORS Shirley Spade, in memory of Gerald Spade Walter and Karen Pridham Charitable Fund
Curator Notes
I can’t think of a better way to have ended the 21-22 season than with one of the largest organ audiences in the history of our program! It was a joy to share the stage with the remarkable musicians of the Diapason Brass and Timpani, and John Jutsum and I are already planning our next collaboration. I then performed a week later for our biannual Voices of Spring fundraiser with my high school friend and soprano, Evelyn Saavedra. It was not only incredibly satisfying to have the beautiful event on the Overture stage after delaying it a year due to Covid, but we were also grateful that this was our highest grossing Voices of Spring event to date. It was wonderful to have our Farmers’ Market Concerts again this Summer, and Andrew Schaeffer and Anna Myeong delighted the Saturday morning audience with excellent playing and inventive programming. While I didn’t plan to perform for our final Farmers’ Market concert, our guest performer, Raphael Vogl, was unable to arrive in Madison due to canceled flights, and I had the pleasure of jumping in at the last minute and playing for a very appreciative audience.
I spent much of the Summer preparing for our events next season, as well as recording my debut organ CD on the Overture Concert Organ that was released at my September 27th concert that opened the 22-23 organ season. I performed many of the works that I recorded on this album, including Cesar Franck’s momentous Grande Pièce Symphonique. Just as its title would suggest, this work is a grand symphony for the King of Instruments and the perfect way to celebrate Franck’s bicentennial.
Greg Zelek with the Diapason Brass & Timpani May 2022 Farmers’ Market Organ Concert, August 2022
On October 25th, world-renowned organist Christopher Houlihan will make his Overture Hall debut, performing Franz Liszt’s towering Fantasy and Fugue on “Ad nos, ad salutarem undam,” among other works. This masterpiece will not only showcase all of the different colors and dynamic range of our Klais, but also Mr. Houlihan’s virtuosity and creative interpretation.
I had the honor of being interviewed by one of the premier organ journals, the Diapason Magazine, in August. This feature gave me the opportunity to discuss a bit about my position as Curator and Principal Organist of the MSO, as well as share the success of our unique program and express my gratitude for our audience and supporters. The article also highlights our special Carol Sing event, which I will again host and perform for this coming holiday season on Saturday, December 3rd at 11am. That interview can be found on their website: thediapason.com.
I can’t wait for the rest of the season!
– Greg Zelek Principal Organist and Elaine and Nicholas Mischler Curator of the Overture Concert Organ
Greg Zelek at Overture Hall CDs available for purchase during all MSO concert events in Overture Hall.
madisonsymphony.org/organ
