US orchestra backs new baton with $41 million fundraiser
UncategorizedThe Charlotte Symphony caused a stir this winter by appointing Kwame Ryan, a Canadian from Trinidad, as its music director. Ryan, 55, has held posts in Europe but never in North America.
Next month he’s due to make a NY Philharmonic debut.
Meanwhile, the orchestra has been hitting the phones to great effect. They have pulled in $41 million in donations for the new maestro regime.
Congrats to Charlotte Symphony CEO, David Fisk and his team. To raise this amount of money, at this time, is a tremendous achievement .
They received a $10 million gift plus two $5 million dollar gifts, which certainly made things a bit easier. Congratulations to all concerned!
That leaves 21 million in individual gifts – pretty impressive.
Still left $21 million to raise bit by bit — a heck of an achievement. What on earth don’t we know about Charlotte?
Charlotte is the second-largest banking center in the United States, behind only New York City.
A Canadian from Trinidad… I told you they don’t like American conductors in the U.S. orchestra board rooms.
New MD or not, that’s an impressive amount of money to raise. If it all goes to endowment that’s a $2 million annual cushion for the operating budget.
Charlotte is one of the largest and wealthiest cities in the Southern United States. It is the headquarters of two of the ten largest banks in the United States. It has grown remarkably rapidly, and thus its cultural offerings are disproportionately small in relation to its economic importance. The current season consists of twelve subscription pairs, half or less than half of the season length of major orchestras in the United States. It is likely that the $40 million in contributions is substantially more than the annual budget of the orchestra, and the income from contributions of this size, if placed into an endowment, would pay for a good chunk of the orchestra’s operating expenses.
Just to quibble: he’s a Canadian, born in Toronto, of Trinidadian ancestry. He’s not “from Trinidad.”
Ryan was born in Toronto, yes, but his family left Canada for Uganda when he was about one month old and moved to Trinidad a few years later. He was raised in Trinidad and considers it home.
I have conducted them a couple times, and covered for Kwame’s first outing with them before he was elected MD. They are a great group who deserve the very best, and they’ve found it with him!
The last mile is always the hardest. Would be nice if musician salaries get a decent raise. Too many higher dollar admins on an ever growing staff.