Cleveland Orchestra embraces diversity

Cleveland Orchestra embraces diversity

Orchestras

norman lebrecht

January 10, 2023

Press release:
Today, The Cleveland Orchestra announced the hiring of Jejuana C. Brown in the senior team role of Director of Diversity & Inclusion. Ms. Brown assumes this position starting Wednesday, January 11.

Reporting directly to The Cleveland Orchestra’s President & CEO and in close collaboration with the Vice President, Human Resources, as well as all executive and senior leadership, the Director of Diversity & Inclusion is a new position responsible for guiding and implementing efforts to define, understand, assess, and cultivate diversity. The position will develop a comprehensive equity, access, diversity, and inclusion plan that aligns with the Orchestra’s objective to promote diversity as an essential element of the organization’s core values, goals, and mission, which is to inspire and enrich lives by creating extraordinary musical experiences at the highest level of artistic excellence….

Jejuana C. Brown is an equity and inclusion professional with a passion for leadership development, mentoring, and building inclusive workplace and board cultures. During her time as Director of Inclusive Culture & Talent Initiatives at Greater Cleveland Partnership (GCP), she led equity and inclusion programming as well as a regional workforce diversity strategy. Prior to joining GCP, Jejuana led strategic projects for several departments at Cleveland State University where she also earned a Master of Education in Adult Learning and Development and a Graduate Certificate in Diversity Management. She is currently pursuing her Doctorate of Executive Leadership at the University of Charleston, West Virginia. An active community member, Jejuana serves on the boards of the Journey Center for Safety & Healing, Cleveland Society for Human Resource Management (CSHRM), and Facing History & Ourselves (Cleveland).

photo: Roger Mastorianni

Comments

  • Carl says:

    Bravo. Let’s hope that this is just a first step and the orchestra can start to look more like the city in which it lives. It’s smart economics if anything else.

    • MMcGrath says:

      The key is to have the best players. Not “look like” anything. Musical Excellence alone will let the Cleveland continue to be economically successful.

      • anon says:

        Your premise that having “the best players” and a musician corps that is more representative of Cleveland’s community are mutually exclusive goals betrays your own bias. Black people are more than capable of musical excellence.

        • L Fields says:

          MMcGrath said nothing about “color” & there’s not a single professional musician on the planet who does not respect another musician who is excellent in their field or on their instrument of choice. ALL music is black and white. Period. Musicians in professional orchestra are hired by “blind audition” processes which means the hiring committee (made up of other musicians in the orchestra) only get to “hear” the person auditioning, they do not get to talk to them or see them. In fact, they are usually in different rooms with a proctor directing the audition. There’s no observation of color or bias of sexism allowed.

      • Carl says:

        Strongly disagree. You’re setting up a false dichotomy by suggesting it’s a choice or one or the other.

      • Byrwec Ellison says:

        No, the “key” is that the “best players” look like the greater community because every deserving person has had the opportunity to excel.

      • showbusiness schmobusiness says:

        Private donations make an orchestra economically successful in the US. Ticket sales are financing less and less of the operational budget each year, and so new donors need to be brought in. Some new donors want to use their charitable gifts as a means to avert criticism of racism so they’ll demand that, in exchange for money, a token gesture of representation be made. Sometimes it’s a minority fellowship, sometimes it’s hiring a person of colour to fill out a spreadsheet once a year… Guess we landed on the later here.

    • mary says:

      “the Orchestra’s objective to promote diversity as an essential element of the organization’s core values, goals, and mission”

      Start by getting rid of the white male Western European cliché of a music director? And hire an American (Alan Gilbert would be a natural fit)

      Or is “diversity” just for the little people, the lesser positions, the seats to be filled rather than the seats of power, where “diversity” just means “how do we tap into the Black, Asian, Latino markets and their buying power?”

      • L Fields says:

        Alan Gilbert has his chance with the New York Philharmonic. He lasted two years? Did you know his Mom and Dad were in the orchestra as well??!

    • Gerry Feinsteen says:

      “We can’t program Beethoven anymore because he didn’t express any views on American slave owners.”

      “No more Mahler. His music demonstrates free-time privilege.”

      “Tchaikovsky was in the closet. But he was white and he was obsessed with hetero-love stories. Bye, PIT.”

      “Haydn was employed by slave owners.”

      “…Bartok appropriated the music that was ultimately lost during WWII. …He profited from their demise.”

      “Shostakovich didn’t write any music for non-whites. Toss him off the stage.”

      “Let’s drop Brahms. He had and needed too much free time to perfect his craft. Obviously a mediocre composer at best. No

    • soavemusica says:

      Indeed, I’m sure that a Director of an entity called Diversity & Inclusion is able to make the orchestra not just look, but sound like a city that lives.

      Smartest economics is that you don`t have to pay the players anything, because there is no orchestra.

      I hear the Golden Globes got woke and, well…the ratings are gone.

    • Wise Guy says:

      “Looking like the City” has got to be the most inane thing a person could say about what an orchestra ought to do.

  • Paul Dawson says:

    Auditions – blind or not?

    • Name says:

      Hiring admin personnel isn’t a blind audition process

    • Old Man in the Midwest says:

      Cleveland was one of the last major orchestras to adopt blind auditions and it has been successful.

      The new principal clarinet player is African-Canadian and is a wonderful player. As good as any principal in the world.

      Give the CO credit for moving forward on stage.

      Not sure how these new D&I positions in the administrations will work but it seems to be an effort to engage the population of the City.

  • Bulgakov says:

    There’s such a thing as a ‘Doctorate of Executive Leadership’?

  • Habib says:

    boston symphony version 2.0 ?

  • mem says:

    Exactly what the royal family needs.

    • Matias says:

      They need people with a sense of duty who are not solely interested in cherry picking events that present the best photo opportunities.

      The last arrival didn’t.

  • PaulD says:

    And how much are the donors going to be hit for to pay for this position?

    • anon says:

      Inconsequential amounts for their bank accounts, it’s throwing money around so that they don’t get accused of being an “old white establishment” but really she won’t be doing anything other than filing an annual report on diversity. It’s a bullshit corporate job, which most companies are made up of these days, but whatever, if it helps liberals feel like good people without requiring any actual systemic change then we can allow it I guess…

  • MacroV says:

    I assume we’re going to get the usual outrage from SD-erati.

    But I’d be interested to hear the thoughts of some of the conductors who visit SD and have actually led U.S. orchestras. Leonard Slatkin and Fabio Luisi are kind enough to visit SD on occasion; any chance you could supplement this post with some comments from them on the subject?

  • Terence says:

    A statement of total waffle and a money-wasting unnecessary appointment.

    They should be ashamed to insult the public like this.

  • Norabide Guziak says:

    That’ll send the standard of the orchestra through the roof. Go, Cleveland!

  • Couperin says:

    Yay, another admin to siphon funds from other recipients.

  • Sue Sonata Form says:

    Oh goodie (claps hands together very quickly). Another gravy train position for orchestras which are cash-strapped.

    • Name says:

      At last, Susan has spoken

    • anon says:

      It’s the Cleveland Orchestra. They have probably one of the highest endowments in the country, and Cleveland is a relatively poor city with very little in the way of overhead costs to running organizations so they’re pretty much rolling in it. Their musicians live in freaking castles compared to those of other major orchestras.

  • Anon says:

    In unrelated news, the cost of tickets will be going up next year.

  • Name says:

    Can’t wait for Sue Sonata Form’s comment to show up

  • Bone says:

    Great news! I’m sure the orchestral performances will benefit from this knockout hire. It’s super important to incorporate DEI in all performance areas, including
    pitch (all notes deserve equity, so no more sharps and flats),
    rhythm (maybe Brahms played over a trap beat would be nice), and articulation (“mumble rap” is a thing).

    • Infidel says:

      Excuse me, we no longer call them sharps and flats. They’re now known as “notes of color”. And yes, Schubert’s “Great?!?!” C Major Symphony will soon be seen as the white supremacist anthem that it is.

    • L Fields says:

      A=415 right??!!

  • Vadim says:

    These positions represent the only growth area in the arts and the academy. Sad times

  • Matt says:

    Why is a diversity officer always a black women? Are other races and genders welcome to apply for these positions?

    • MMcGrath says:

      Perfect! “Diversity” equals female or black. Preferably both in one. A big plus is a PhD in “diversity.” All this is essential to overcome cynicism.

    • Gus says:

      From the woke dictionary

      Black. A fashionable colour, to be worn under the skin. Frequently mentioned by pale-skinned women like Meghan Markle and A.O.C. “Kwasi Kwarteng is only superficially black.“

    • E Rand says:

      *super morbidly obese black women. Every time. And, to answer your question-No!!

  • frank says:

    Now that is what I call a serious CV. So long as the Cleveland Orchestra continues blind auditions we should remain safe.

    • Name says:

      Auditions in Cleveland are typically blind, though the CV screening round is notoriously difficult to pass. Some auditions specify a limited amount of highly qualified applicants only will be selected, no indication of what they consider “highly qualified”, though.

  • japecake says:

    I don’t see any music, classical or otherwise, in her background. Is experience in the world of music really irrelevant at *checks notes* one of the greatest orchestras in the world? Or is it all about checking boxes—apart from the one “representing” the core purpose of an orchestra—now?

    • MMcGrath says:

      Music! Egads! What has music got to do with anything. Diversity is like in the old Soviet days on the collective farms. Not productivity but politically subservient thinking and behavior is important.

      I wonder how much longer Welser-Möst will put up with this Concerto in Fascist Woke Minor?

      • showbusiness schmobusiness says:

        You seem really worried that hiring a black woman will have adverse effects on your beloved Austrian maestro.

  • Brian says:

    What does she know or care about classical music? I don’t see a thing on her resume that would suggest that this appointment will bring classical music to a wider audience. It will probably just be the beginning of the destruction of a cherished and historic musical institution on the altar of wokeism.

  • E Rand says:

    “Embraces diversity” is the shorthand for – “hires total and complete incompetent with minimum acceptable melanin pigmentation with zero to negative knowledge of serious music who despises the institution and aims to do maximal damage by pushing for the hire of equally incompetent ignoramuses while extracting the maximal compensation thanks to white guilt”. I hope Cleveland is ready for a whole lot of Florence Price.

    • MacroV says:

      I hope so, too. And maybe some more George Walker, Anthony Davis, Wynton Marsalis, Duke Ellington, Jessie Montgomery…

      • L Fields says:

        All of the above musicians are very good composers and I’ve performed pieces by almost all of them several times. The music itself is black and white.

  • IP says:

    What instrument does she play? Can she read music?

    • showbusiness schmobusiness says:

      You don’t have to be able to read music to work in orchestra admin.

      • L Fields says:

        You should be required to do both. This smacks of the corporate managerial world trying to wedge itself into the musical world and it is definitely NOT a fit!!!
        Change your audience demographics by EDUCATING all children in the joys of playing and hearing GREAT music-no matter who wrote it!! Wokeism does not belong in music!

  • Pianofortissimo says:

    The old new trend, almost everywhere: institutional death by bureaucracy.

  • Nah says:

    Her CV just sounds like corporate-speak jibber-jabber, with no numbers to support her accomplishments. Sounds like the kind of stuff I’d put in a job application to fluff up what I’ve done. I’m sure she’s qualified, but this reeks of the orchestra brushing off the issue of representation in classical music by saying “see? We’re not bad, we gave an important job to a black woman!” Meanwhile, she’ll likely spend most of her time there filing diversity reports or something else that has 0 impact whatsoever on how the industry operates. Wanna actually make changes? Get your musicians out there teaching young people without exorbitant fees. Chicago has a fantastic inner-City affiliate program for young percussionists run by their musicians, and it’s totally free of charge. Many young players who otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford music lessons broke into the field through this. Yes, it’s true that’s statistically families of colour haven’t been able to afford music lessons for their kids on an equal footing to white families, but that’s an income problem with a racial correlation, and stopping dead at calling it a race problem ignores the other facets. Great that they have the capacity to create bullshit jobs in Cleveland though.

  • Lightbringer says:

    They forgot to mention the need to fertilize before cultivating.

  • Dixie says:

    I simply cannot understand why such appointment is made for something that should standard procedure. What difference does a musician’s skin color, ethnicity, sexual preference, etc. make if he/she is competent as a musician? THAT is the only thing that counts! Paying someone to ensure the obvious is a waste of resources and time. Come on, Cleveland, and other orchestras just like you! Grow up!!!

  • Singeril says:

    I’m not talking about Cleveland. But, when a leading musical organization asks an artist (white) to hold dates for performances in order to be hired (for many months)…and then, informs the artist that the board has decided that they need to diversify the cast by hiring a person of color and let’s the white artist goes, THAT is racism as well.

  • MacroV says:

    Of course the usual bloviating from old White men, who probably have no idea what this person will actually do.

    I’m quite sure a hiring like this has nothing to do with deciding whom to hire to play in the orchestra – their usual audition process will probably continue as is, for better or worse. But an orchestra like Cleveland is a big institution, and employs a lot of people besides its 100 musicians. Diversifying THAT staff to make it more representative of the city they serve makes a good bit of sense if they want to remain relevant. Or projects to engage the not-just-white-upper-class community.

    Again, Norman, rather than just posting this kind of thing without any more context, you’d do SD and your readers a favor by having some industry insiders comment about what this is all about. Otherwise this is just musical Tucker Carlson.

    • Singeril says:

      Perhaps you didn’t know that the person making most of the artistic decisions until very recently, is gay and black?

      • MacroV says:

        Now that you mention it, I think I did. And your point?

        • Singeril says:

          The point is that the Orchestra has had a diversified staff in major positions. This is only one example. It is also not a unique example. It is also not unique throughout the entire arts community.

    • E Rand says:

      The orchestra and administration could be 100% black and it wouldn’t change the demographic of the ticket buyers in any way. There are real reasons the audience isn’t “diverse” and it has little to do with how many blacks work in the administrative offices.

    • Hayne says:

      “…the usual bloviating by old white men…”
      Congratulations! Misandry, racism and ageism in one sentence. I’m impressed)

  • Alank says:

    There goes a great orchestra. The Cleveland Orchestra in both programming and in hiring personnel have managed to eschew some of the worst aspects of wokism. We shall see what this hire does to ruin that tradition. The recently hired principal clarinetist is of Ethiopian heritage and I we can rightly assume he was selected based on merit. Going forward such appointments will likely be second guessed.

    • Nope says:

      1) admin personnel and musical personnel aren’t hire via the same processes, the later is blind.

      2) the selection committee for the musicians is made up of members of the orchestra, upper management gets no say in this.

      3) IF you really wanna blame someone for bad race-based decision making, blame capitalist economical structures. Somewhere in an office, a committee assembled to run a focus group to find an answer to dropping ticket sales, that focus group pointed out that they want more representation of people of colour, so in a cynical cash grab move, the orchestra is responding to supposed market forces that demonstrate profit increases when they hit on hot button issues of race and gender diversity, so in an effort to compete for market share they too have decided hire a DEI worker. It’s really simple: no profit incentive = no cynical cash grab hires. But yeah sure, let’s let this discussion begin and end at “I’m a white person and i feel offended that the WOKE CLEVELAND ORCHESTRA hired a black lady in their office staff.” Congratulations for making classical music audiences look dumb as rocks.

    • MacroV says:

      Really? Do you have any evidence that the orchestra will change their audition procedures?

      OTOH, Cleveland has long had a reputation for hiring CIM grads and students of its members; but that’s ok, I suppose.

      But you’re right; their new principal clarinetist is fantastic.

      • L Fields says:

        The Orchestra musicians are all members of the American Federation of Musicians Union. They will not change audition methods or practices for new musician members.

  • Allen says:

    According to a quickly Google search only 13.6% of Americans are black. I would be curious to learn from orchestras what percentage of their audience is black and how much they realistically expect that to grow. I have been to concerts where the majority of the repertoire was by African American composers but only two or three people of color in the audience. Instead of the intended effect, orchestras should consider that they might be turning away the majority of their audience by overly emphasizing what the minority wants. Sure, representation is needed but in appropriate moderation.

  • La plus belle voix says:

    From her CV: Journey Center for Safety & Healing. Can’t wait.

  • Fenway says:

    Not at all surprised by more wokeness in the rust belt. This new hire should use the same speech writer as Kamala Harris:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3_nN0ERPL4

  • L Fields says:

    I’m going to ask the questions that must be asked for a professional manager to be involved with a symphony. Other than the obvious features & credentials of diversity that she has, what professional musical degree or professional musician experience does she have? What instrument does she play or voice does she sing? What pedagogy program did she go through? What method does she use to determine whether a prospective Symphony member has the right diversity qualifications? How does she determine this? Most symphonic organizations are already diverse. There are qualified people of every flavor and background that are hired to perform with them regardless of their physical features. Becoming a professional musician who is completely masterful on their instrument or voice takes YEARS of study with qualified professionals on that instrument or voice. This is based solely on their own study and professional knowledge along with degrees and certifications that allow them to teach. I am not being obnoxious by asking these questions. I sincerely want to know why Symphony organizations are trying to bend over backwards to meet pc quotas when we already are doing these things. If you have ever auditioned for a professional organization, you audition behind a screen or in a separate room with a proctor who relays the requested information to you for you to demonstrate your abilities. This is called a “blind audition”. You do not talk, you don’t wear shoes that would give away whether you’re a man or a woman. Doing these things effectively gives you anonymity and is truly very effective bc no one knows whether you’re a man or woman or purple with pink polka dots. It is truly about your ability to perform, period. Whoever is chosen IS chosen bc of their performance ability and not the way they look or the way they might identify. No one cares about that! They care that YOU have the chops to play whatever music they hand you in a matter of minutes, the very best you’ll ever play that music.

    • James Minch says:

      ‘Becoming a professional musician who is completely masterful on their instrument or voice takes YEARS of study with qualified professionals on that instrument or voice.’

      What makes someone a ‘qualified professional’? Nearly all singing teachers are charlatans.

    • CA says:

      I’m sure it will reflect in the administrative staff hiring. Positions will likely be created, this person may br on the search committee etc. Whites need not apply. I’ve seen this happen already with other orchestras. Watch and wait.

  • Fenway says:

    Not surprised by more wokeness in Cleveland. I think they should only have black guest conductors and soloists. Also, this new woman should use the same speechwriter that Kamala Harris uses:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3_nN0ERPL4

  • Tiredofitall says:

    The description above is typical HR speak. If you try to dissect it, it is meaningless. Every time I read about one of these diversity appointments, it makes me profoundly sad.

    Would that these organizations invest as much in public school arts education to prepare and enrich the lives of the next generation. But that would be logical. Better to spend that money on a new senior executive.

  • tms says:

    Classical music is the least racist undertaking on the planet. If you can deliver, you can be part of the team.
    Very sorry to hear this. Another one down the tubes.

  • David A. Boxwell says:

    Cleveland still needs to hire a Director of Equity.

  • Fernandel says:

    Musical issues take a back seat. An heavy trend.

  • Ludwig's Van says:

    Let’s work on diversifying the audience members. As for the orchestra members, blind auditions are the only way to go, and then come what may.

  • Gustavo says:

    I am not sure why the reactions are what they are. Cleveland has a notoriously negative hiring reputation and a very public history of nepotism and sexism. It is basically the Vienna Philharmonic of North America, in both positive and negative respects. Only one female principal (harp) and principals are historically hired by private audition, (with sham advertised auditions) by the conductor, who programs very little music by women or people of color. This might be the beginning of better things for a very fine orchestra that needs to look at how it has historically treated women and minorities.

    • L Fields says:

      Music compositions are NOT based on sex or color. In case you haven’t looked recently, ALL MUSIC is black and white, just like the PIANO. So, are you going to change the color of the keys to something else in order to be pc???!!

  • James Minch says:

    Very little of any value has ever come out of Africa. What really matters is that the magnificent edifice that is European culture (mankind’s greatest achievement) is treasured. If black people come to appreciate it then fine but that’s not what’s important.

    • Old Man in the Midwest says:

      I guess the Great Pyramids in Egypt (which is part of Africa) don’t count.

      And the architecture of Morocco, Tunisia, and other Islamic countries in Africa don’t either.

      I kind of get your point as related to orchestral music but you’re being a bit too harsh.

    • MacroV says:

      Pretty racist and downright wrong. Europeans looted a lot of the great art of Africa, for starters.

    • Nope says:

      Sounds like somebody’s children didn’t visit them over Christmas.

    • showbusiness schmobusiness says:

      The magnificent edifice of European culture was only possible because of natural resources and free labour from Africa, so yes actually, quite a lot of value came out of Africa. Your move.

      • L Fields says:

        I don’t truly remember African slaves in Europe…

      • Piston! says:

        — okay, as opposed to the free labor from millions and millions of Russian serfs, British and Irish indentured servants and child-laborers, and the slaves of the eastern lands of the Habsburg and Ottoman Empires?

    • Tiredofitall says:

      Study history. Also look up racism.

  • John Ferguson says:

    Since when are musicians not inclusive? When do they shun people by race? They don’t. This is equality of outcome instead of equality of opportunity.n95no

  • Wise Guy says:

    Two questions:
    1. What does this actually person DO?
    2. How much are they paying her?

  • M2N2K says:

    It is sadly ironic that all of these so-called “diversity officers” are the least diversified group of people – not just in classical music but in most other fields as well.

  • just saying says:

    They created and hired this full-time position when they just could have programmed their obligatory Florence Price work and be done with it.

  • Sara K. says:

    More US empire theatre. A show about nothing.

  • Mark says:

    Cleveland Orchestra recently released an album of music by George Walker, who received a commission during the Maazel era. Point being that not everything has to be about Florence Price.

  • Steve Owens says:

    That’s really groovy! And her background in classical symphonic music is? Oh, never mind. ..

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