It's About The Music

I see this from a somewhat simplistic point of view.  Ultimately, it’s about the music, which brings us beauty and joy, fills our hearts and souls, challenges our minds, changes our lives. Next it’s about the orchestra which plays the music, and, in essence, serves as the bridge between the composers of the music and those who hear the music.   Everything else - everything else - evolves from that – management, sales, the audience, the chorus. 

Because there is music, the orchestra can do what it does.  Because there is music, played by the orchestra, all the rest of us can do what we do – sell tickets, manage, sing, come and hear.  I’m in the sing part, and have been in the chorus since the very early Robert Shaw days.  Regarding choral music, I have long said that when it all comes together – great music, a prepared orchestra, a prepared chorus, and a great conductor – the experience is like dancing on the mountain tops.   I have been incredibly fortunate and privileged to get to dance on the mountain tops over the years with this orchestra.

So I find it outrageous that the orchestra, which is the reason that all the rest of us can gather in Symphony Hall, is being asked to shoulder the major burden of years of poor financial decisions made by others, and being asked to partner in an agreement that guarantees moving backward, or worse, destroys what they have worked to build.  The players have done their job of building an outstanding musical organization, while those in charge of running the ship have been grossly inadequate in doing their part of the job, and now seem to have taken the role of spoilers.

When Robert Shaw first came to town in 1967, he took over a part-time orchestra which performed in the old Municipal Auditorium, a venue that was also used for wrestling, with wooden floors and wooden chairs (the combination was not quiet).  His chorus was the Atlanta Choral Guild, a community chorus. At the end of that first Shaw year, the orchestra converted to full-time and some of the members, all of whom had day jobs, were reluctant to take a chance on the uncertainty of this new venture, and chose to stay with their day jobs.   Mr. Shaw took that newly full-time orchestra and built an orchestra and chorus (establishing the ASOC in 1970) that the world took note of. While he was building and conducting, he gave speeches, knocked on doors and button-holed anyone who might contribute to the goal of a superior orchestra. Eventually, when he passed the baton to the next generation of conductors, the ASO had indeed become a superior orchestra.  Each successive conductor has continued the process in maintaining the ASO as a World Class-Orchestra.

It’s incomprehensible that after all the love, and blood, sweat and tears which have been spent by countless people to build this orchestra (and chorus), the current keepers of the legacy would take that legacy so lightly, that they would deliberately choose a path that would diminish or wipe out all that has been accomplished.  These keepers were put in place to protect the legacy, not destroy it.  Why are they not turning over every rock, knocking on every door, making every call, petitioning every organization and corporation and company in this City, for help, in order to keep that legacy in place?   (I can’t remember the last time someone from the ASO management called me to request a donation, something that used to happen often.)   Why are they not doing the job everyone thought they were brought in to do?   It would appear that they are insensible as to what they should be doing, and like a bull in a shop of fine china, seemingly uncaring and oblivious to the fact that they could destroy something of incalculable and irreplaceable value.

So ultimately, it is about the music.  Our hope and prayer should be that The Music will not be the thing that is lost or reduced to a significantly inferior quality. We want the world’s great music in our lives, presented by a World-Class Orchestra and Chorus. Therefore, our task should be to insure that The Music will not be sacrificed for the “bottom line”, by leaders who apparently are not interested in ensuring the orchestra's future as a top-tier orchestra.  

We all need the music in our lives.  We need this symphony orchestra -- undiminished and whole -- to bring us the music.  We also need people at the top who will care and work for the music and the orchestra; people who will behave like they are on the same team, and not behave as if they -- not the music -- are the most important part of the ASO.  We have come too far since that part-time orchestra Robert Shaw started with in 1967 to have it be otherwise without a significant fight by all of us who do care:  about the orchestra, about the music.

Ellen Dukes

Soprano II - #403