On the Hunt for a Job

Ah, so much in life revolves around the beauty of the annual season: the blossoming of stunning Japanese cherry trees, loving families celebrating the holidays, the bright glow in childrens' eyes at the first sight of snow, and…oh yeah, the heightened blood pressure of Fellows looking for jobs!

Indeed, the process has begun. Everyone asks: “So what happens after June when you’re done in Pittsburgh?” Boy, I wish I knew! A great many options are out there in the field but typically they fall into two categories: working as a bigger fish in a smaller budget orchestra or a smaller fish in a larger budget orchestra. Looking at the Fellows of ’03, ’04, and beyond, you can see that both paths have been successfully pursued. There are Fellows working as #1’s, #2’s, or #X’s in orchestras of all sizes. Some are in a period of career building while others are settled in for the long haul. So, strictly by the numbers, what does history teach us about what Fellows “should” do at the end of the year? Answer: nothing. In the end, as you may have guessed, it is all up to the individual.

So what am I doing? First of all, I am trying my best not to let the search interfere with my day job, working for the PSO. This means that I mentally “check out” of the office at a regular time each day while physically sticking around to work on resumes and the like into the night. Unfortunately, this cuts into my blogging time and usually gets me home just in time to sleep (lather, rinse, and repeat for 14 weeks). I know, on screen, it sounds pretty harrowing but really, I am still having the time of my life (keeping in mind that this is a temporary situation)!

Well, that’s the general skinny on my job search so far. As for the details, those will have to wait for another blog, another time (after June).

Home is where the concerts are…Heinz Hall

Life over these past two weeks has been very different than the first two weeks at any of my previous assignments. For starters, the day after I arrived, the orchestra left for their tour of Florida with guest conductor Charles Dutoit. It wasn’t until just this week that I was finally able to begin meeting the musicians and listening to the orchestra…and listen to them I did.

In an attempt to get as much as possible out of this year, I promised that I would attend as many events (performances, fund-raisers, etc) associated with my host orchestras as possible without going nuts. This, of course, was much easier at my previous assignments with the smaller budget orchestras of the Memphis Symphony and LA Chamber Orchestra. Keeping my promise, I have almost literally been living in Heinz Hall this weekend.

This week’s concert set included the following program conducted by Vladimir Fedoseyev with guest violinist Nikolaj Znaider:

• Mozart | Symphony No. 31, “Paris”
• Bruch | Scottish Fantasy for Violin and Orchestra
• Tchaikovsky | Suite from Sleeping Beauty

This concert set was a “triple” (three performances). I assisted backstage for first and second concerts (Friday and Saturday) and sat in the house to enjoy the third (Sunday). Also, as part of a new music festival called “U3” (named after the three local universities of Duquesne, Carnegie Mellon, and U. of Pitt), one student composer from each school had a work tweaked and performed at a new music reading session performed by the PSO on Saturday morning in the Hall.

(A little bit of context: Our involvement with U3 is the first of its caliber that I know of in the world. Any composition student can tell you what an incredible opportunity this is to have a work read by a top-tier orchestra. Usually, they are restricted to hearing playback by university orchestras at best. The session was very successful, has great potential to develop, and will likely turn into an annual event.)

Between going to these concerts, hanging around the office to get extra work done, and preparing to apply for jobs, I might as well have set up a cot in Heinz Hall this weekend!

Nevertheless, it has been a wonderful weekend. The orchestra sounds absolutely incredible and I look forward to many more weekends of concerts over the remaining 12 weeks.

Touchdown Pittsburgh (no not the Steelers)!

Today marks the end of my first week with the Pittsburgh Symphony and the beginning of my final assignment as a League Fellow. Honestly, I don’t know where the time goes. Almost exactly one year ago, I was a nervous wreck at my sister’s place in Jersey trying to calm down and get at least a couple of hours rest before commuting into New York City for the final-round selection of this year’s Fellows. Tonight, twenty new finalists await their very own two-day gauntlet of group and individual interviews, exercises, and discussions in their own unique housing arrangements.

A note to these folks: none of you will probably see this before the morning but I wish you all the best of luck. Be yourself, try to relax, and think of the love of music that brought you to NYC in the first place. Just remember, that love and the capacity to become a positively influential orchestra leader/manager still exists, Fellowship or not. I just hope you don’t have to commute from Princeton like I did!

Anyways, during a conversation over the course of this year, an executive director once likened working in a larger orchestra to having a bigger trampoline to jump on. Holding fast to that analogy, I just climbed aboard a trampoline approximately ten times larger than those of both the LA Chamber Orchestra and the Memphis Symphony!

Oh yes, the Pittsburgh Symphony, one of the premiere world-class orchestras in the world is my stomping ground for these last 14 weeks. It is, in a word, huge. Fortunately, working with the Chicago Symphony prior to this year prepped me quite a bit for the culture shock of such a comparatively large institution.

At the advice of my new mentor, CEO & Managing Director Larry Tamburri (he also happened to be one of nine selection committee members that selected me as a Fellow), I have taken a different approach to defining my work plan here at the PSO. As opposed to preparing potential projects before my arrival a la LA and Memphis, my project prep began this week (that of my arrival) and continues into the next. During these first two weeks, I will spend one day with each of the PSO senior managers shadowing them, getting familiar with the staff, and creating a laundry list of projects (WAY more than any individual can handle in 14 weeks). Then, after the first two weeks are through, Larry and I will sit down, prioritize, and cut/add projects to create my finalized work plan that will carry me through the remaining 12 weeks.

At first, I was a little hesitant about this approach, wanting to get started immediately but have since found that this is a great way to focus my thoughts and get a wide perspective on how projects relate to one another as well as the organization as a whole. Plus, taking the time to meet and greet the entire staff on a day-by-day basis really helps me form a solid foundation to work cooperatively with these wonderful folks once I really dive in.

So that’s it. This week, after an introductory day, I hung out with Audience Development & Sales, Finance, Education & Community Engagement, and…well for lack of a better term, Partnerships. Next week, it is Public Affairs, Hall Management (the PSO owns and operates its home, Heinz Hall), Donor Relations, Operations, and Artistic Administration.

Stay tuned for more in the weeks to come.

Thank 'ya, thank 'ya very much

Boy has this been as busy week! Today is my last day with the Memphis Symphony. Tomorrow, once again, I pack my life in my Camry and hit the road. I plan on splitting up the drive over two days with a friendly stop at the Nashville Symphony along the way. Then, on Monday, I switch gears to the symphony of my birthplace, the city of steel, Pittsburgh. This final stop with the Pittsburgh Symphony is a 14-week residency under the mentorship of Larry Tamburri. Then, after spending one week at the League’s National Conference in Washington D.C., I am officially unemployed!

Leaving Aspen was tough and I tell you, it does not get any easier down the road. I left many great new colleagues behind in Colorado and LA…Memphis is no different. I want to thank all of the wonderful staff, musicians, and board that I had the privilege of working with on a regular basis. You made my experience truly fabulous and will definitely be missed. I will forever think fondly of this great city and its great people…especially this guy!


BBQ-faced baby Alex

Getting more mileage out of a hybrid?

As I briefly mentioned in a previous blog, the Memphis Symphony Orchestra uses a somewhat unique hybrid orchestra model. 34 musicians comprise what is known as the “core” orchestra. These guys and gals are compensated on a consistent salaried basis over the 39-week season.

Aside from the core, the MSO also employs two sets of per-service musicians (“A” and “B”). 27 musicians make up the “A” per-service group and they are guaranteed at least 80 services a season while 14 “B” musicians get at least 62 services (services can be anything from rehearsals and performances to chamber group run-outs to local schools). Of course, on top of these contracted players, additional musicians can be hired on an as-needed basis.

What does it all mean? As you probably know, classical music can take many forms. Some music calls for as little as half a dozen players (or less) while big thumping Mahler symphonies can require over 100 bodies (that MET Orchestra concert I went to in NYC had over 120 musicians on stage!). Speaking in VERY general terms, the older music, the less players it requires (this is why the LA Chamber Orchestra plays more Mozart while the LA Philharmonic plays more Tchaikovsky). Therefore, in terms of size, a hybrid orchestra has the flexibility to be the LA Chamber Orchestra one week and the LA Phil the next. So the obvious upsides of a hybrid (compared to a full 100% core orchestra) is a wider range of repertoire and flexible fixed costs.

Unfortunately, no orchestra model is perfect. Hybrid orchestras also carry their downsides. Being a small chamber orchestra one week and a huge philharmonic the next means that you do not have a consistent set of musicians outside of the core. When playing the big works, it is similar to having a soccer team that only practices with a full roster part of the time. Inevitably, this flexibility makes it more difficult to reach your full potential every concert. Also, having multiple "sets" of musicians carries with it inherent personnel challenges tied to egos and respect that can lead to a less than ideal working environment (thanks for pointing this out Patty).

You will typically see hybrid orchestra models in mid-budget orchestras. They are not all that common (to this degree at least) and I am glad to have the opportunity to witness one firsthand.