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My Conference (Youth Orchestras) 

TAKING ACTION TOGETHER

My Conference (basic) 

TAKING ACTION TOGETHER

The League of American Orchestras Conference at NPAC

Check this page regularly for updates to the day-to-day Conference schedule.  All contents subject to change.

Items with an asterisk (*) indicate advance registration and/or additional fee required.

Visit the calendar for a quick view of events.

Tuesday, June 10

9:00am – 5:00pm
Location TBA

Pre-Convention Programs from National Arts Strategies

On Tuesday, June 10 programs organized by National Arts Strategies (NAS) will provide insight and tools for building partnerships, funding opportunities and negotiating skills. Registration for these seminars is open to all attendees on a first-come, first served basis. Click here for more information about NAS, the programs, and the faculty.  

  • Opening the Right Doors: A Strategic Approach to Selecting Effective* Partners
    Professor Walter W. Powell, Stanford University

Today, the most creative initiatives are being achieved through partnerships. How do you identify the partnerships that are most likely to succeed? What are the secrets to creating those relationships efficiently? Learn frameworks for analyzing your “network” and targeting the right partners at the right time. Professor Powell is a leading expert in the areas of network theory and organizational research.  Click here for more information and bio. 

  • The Art (and Science) of Negotiation*
    Professor Margaret Neale, Stanford University Graduate School of Business

Negotiation is an art - and a science. Even the most experienced leaders get surprised by the complex psychology and group behaviors that drive negotiations. Enhance your ability to create negotiated solutions that support healthy long-term relationships; achieve your goals, negotiate successful coalitions, and learn to work together to “grow the pie.”  Professor Neale is a leading expert in negotiation. Click here for more information and bio.

  • Cause Marketing: New Strategies for Corporate Partnerships*
    Professor Kash Rangan, Harvard Business School

Corporate sponsorships and philanthropy are harder to find in today's world of strategic corporate philanthropy. Nonprofit organizations are going beyond traditional approaches to develop strategic “cause marketing” relationships with corporations. Explore frameworks to win more attention and financial support from corporations, create an optimal fundraising strategy that includes cause marketing partnerships, identify in advance the most promising cause marketing partners, and design an effective cause marketing program with a corporation. Internationally recognized expert in marketing strategies for mission-driven organizations Kash Rangan leads this program. Click here for more information and bio.

Wednesday, June 11 

The Exhibits at ArtsTown by Ovation TV at the Colorado Convention Center is open from 9:00am to 5:30pm. 

8:00am – 12:30pm
Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

ORCHESTRA LEADERSHIP ACADEMY Seminars

Let us help you invest in the future! The League of American Orchestras is committed to recognizing and encouraging effective and visionary leadership in the orchestra profession.  A healthy and growing talent pool of well-trained, dedicated professionals is critical to maintaining institutional vitality and future growth.  And, those who work for America’s orchestras need enhanced skill sets to undertake the complex tasks needed to ensure our collective success.

There are six half-day OLA seminars available; one of them is likely to be just right for you.  Empower yourself with new skills and access to best practices from leaders in our field as well as subject matter experts from all over the country. 

  • Branding: Beyond the Hype*
    Everyone thinks they have a brand, or need one—but most people aren't quite sure what a brand actually is.  Discover how brand-building is wider and deeper than identity, and how every communication—print, digital, environmental, conversational—can work hard to build your brand.
    Faculty: Roger Sametz, president, Sametz Blackstone Associates, Brandon Walsh, strategist, Sametz Blackstone Associates   
  • Putting Your Best Message Forward*
    Learn how to approach opportunities and challenges in your communications plan from a strategic perspective.
    Faculty: Mary Lou Falcone, owner, Mary Lou Falcone Public Relations

NOTE: Additional seminars will be available on Wednesday, June 11 offered by our partner service organizations. Click here for information. 

Exhibit Hall in the Colorado Convention Center is open from 9:00am to 5:30pm.

12:45pm – 1:15pm
Delegate Orientation
Location TBA

2:00pm – 3:30pm
OPENING SESSION:  THE POWER OF COMMUNITY BUILDING

Wells Fargo Theater, Colorado Convention Center

Celebrate the performing community and share exciting visions of what the future of the performing arts could be! With Mitch Landrieu, lieutenant governor of Louisiana; Bill Rauch, artistic director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival; Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper; Erin Trapp, director, Denver Department of Cultural Affairs, and Dana Gioia, chairman, National Endowment for the Arts.

This session lays the foundation for ideas that will be discussed and challenged throughout the Convention. Click here for more program details.

4:00pm – 5:30pm
AMERICASPEAKS CAUCUSES
Location TBA

In preparation for Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting™ three caucus sessions will be held, one each day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The caucuses are designed to cull ideas and create action agenda for consideration at Saturday’s Town Hall Meeting™—and all are aimed at ensuring a strong future for the performing arts in the years to come.

The National Performing Arts Convention has engaged AmericaSpeaks to lead this process of caucuses and town meeting, using the latest methods and technologies.  You’ll find a level playing field where every voice is equal, where all ideas are written down and considered.  Join the discussions—let your ideas, opinions, and hopes help shape the ideas, opinions, and hopes of others.

5:30 – 7:00pm
Opening Party
Sponsored by Target
Galleria of the Denver Performing Arts Complex

Expand your personal network as you mingle with many new faces from all over the performing arts universe, as well as orchestra colleagues, presenters, and business partners at the opening reception. Refreshments and cash bar available. Open to all.  Advance registration

With additional and deeply appreciated support from Center Plate (click here for more details)

7:30pm
Colorado Symphony Orchestra

Boettcher Concert Hall

Jeffrey Kahane, music director
Duain Wolfe, conductor and chorus director
Natasha Paremski, piano
Basil Vendryes, viola
Colorado Symphony Orchestra Chorus

Bernstein, Candide Overture
Bernstein, Chichester Psalms*
John Corigliano, Piano Concerto
Giya Kancheli, Styx

*CSO premiere
Conducted by Maestro Wolfe.  Balance of program to be conducted by Maestro Kahane.

Helen M. Thompson and Gold Baton Awards will be presented during the concert.

Following the performance
Hyatt Regency Denver

Tune-Up Party

Open to all League delegates and League Business Partners. Mingle with colleagues and friends and drink a toast to Henry Fogel at the Tune-Up Party back at the Hyatt Regency Denver following the performance. Your badge serves as your admission.

Hosted by the Colorado Symphony Orchestra

Thursday, June 12

Exhibit Hall in the Colorado Convention Center is open from 9:00am to 6:45pm.

8:00am – 9:30am
Constituent Block 1

Diversity in Youth Orchestras

10:00am – 11:30am

AMERICASPEAKS CAUCUSES
Location TBA

In preparation for Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting three caucus sessions will be held, one each day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The caucuses are designed to cull ideas and create an action agenda for consideration on Saturday, one aimed at ensuring a strong future for the performing arts in the years to come.  Click here for more details.

Noon – 1:00pm
GENERAL SESSION: FROM GOOD TO GREAT AND THE SOCIAL SECTORS 

Best-selling author Jim Collins discusses his groundbreaking theory on what makes the difference between a "good" organization and a "great" one, and how to achieve superior performance in the social sector.

Click here to read selections from Jim Collins’s monograph From Good to Great and the Social Sectors. 

1:15pm – 2:30pm
Grab some lunch in the Exhibits in ArtsTown and explore all the amenities within.

SmART Bar Consultations

New Works Sampler and Lunch
Ellie Caulkins Opera House

Opera Colorado and Central City Studio artists will perform excerpts from recent premieres that have received funding through OPERA America's Opera Fund. This is your opportunity to hear some of the latest opera and music-theater works from North American composers and librettists! This exciting performance will include excerpts from Elmer Gantry by Robert Aldridge and Hershel Garfein, A Flowering Tree by John Adams and Peter Sellars, Frau Margot by Thomas Pasatieri and Frank Corsaro, Hannaraptor by Allan Gilliland and Val Brandt, and Kirke Mechem's John Brown.

New Works Sampler admission is FREE for all National Performing Arts Convention attendees. For your convenience, you can pre-order lunch for an additional cost when registering. If you have already registered but would like to add a lunch order, please contact Paul Gosselin at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

2:45pm – 5:45pm

In-Depth Workshops, Sponsored Sessions, Breakout Sessions, and Art-Making Workshops 

Locations TBA

For this three-hour period you will have your choice of session(s) to attend.  In-Depth Workshops and Art-Making Workshops each last for 3 hours.  Breakouts are each 75 minutes. 

Below is the list of sessions by category.  Click on the category links below for complete details of each session. 

IN-DEPTH WORKSHOPS (3 hours)

Ten 3-hour comprehensive sessions on a range of topics are yours for the choosing. Hear thoughtful presentations from experts on big issues, engage in active problem solving and exploration in small groups, and, in many cases, create take-away plans and ideas to inform your work back home.

  • THE NOT-SO DISTANT HORIZON: THE NEAR FUTURE AND THE PERFORMING ARTS
    Moderator:
    Doug McLennan, ArtsJournal Speaker: David McIntosh, futurist

  • INDISPENSABLE: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE CIVICALLY ENGAGED?
    Speakers TBA
  • HIGHER EDUCATION AND THE REAL WORLD OF PRACTICE: CREATING A NEW ALIGNMENT
    Moderator:
    Jane Polin, philanthropic advisor
    Speakers: Warrick L. Carter, president, Columbia College (Chicago); Moy Eng, program director, The Hewlett Foundation; Christopher Kendall, dean, University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre and Dance; Ellen B. Rudolph, program officer for the arts, Surdna Foundation; Scott L. Steele, executive director, U/RTA; Andrew Taylor, director, Bolz Center for Arts Administration, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Business; James Undercofler, president and CEO, The Philadelphia Orchestra 

  • NURTURING TEACHING ARTISTS
    Moderator: Eric Booth
    Speakers: David O'Fallon, president, MacPhaill Center for Music; Daniel Renner, director of education, Denver Theater Center; Barbara Shepard, director of national partnerships, Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts 

  • ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION IN ARTS EDUCATION
    Speakers:
    Lynn Waldorf, principal evaluator, McREL; Robert Southworth, founder and director, The SchoolWorks Lab, Inc.  
  • NEW FRILLS OR DEEP CHANGE? INNOVATION AND THE PERFORMING ARTS ORGANIZATION
    Moderators:
    Melissa Dibble, general manager and director of client partnerships, EmcArts; Richard Evans, president, EmcArts; John Shibley, director of organizational learning, EmcArts 

ART-MAKING WORKSHOPS (3 hours)

Locations TBA

Take a master class with an artist from your own discipline or another. Workshops are open to anyone at the Convention, whether novice or expert. Take home something you create yourself! 

  • INSTANT OPERA WITH GOURMET RESULTS
    Artists:
    Roger Ames, composer and arts educator  
  • HIP HOP: THE BASICS
    Artist:
    Will Power, playwright and spoken word artist  
  • PLAYWRITING (MINI) BOOT CAMP
    Artist:
    Paula Vogel, playwright  
  • A PILOBOLUS FIELD GUIDE: THE NATURAL HISTORY OF COLLABORATIVE DANCE-MAKING
    Artists:
    Adam Battelstein and Matt Kent, co-creative directors, Pilobolus  
  • WE ARE ALL COMPOSERS
    Artist:
    Jon Deak, double-bassist and composer  
  • AFRICAN RHYTHMS AND RITUALS WITH BABA CHUCK DAVIS
    Artist:
    Dr. Charles "Chuck" Davis, founder and artistic director, African American Dance Ensemble and DanceAfrica  
  • CONDUCTING WORKSHOP
    Artist TBA  
  • RE-IMAGINING CREATIVITY AND COLLABORATION
    Artists:
    Paul Dresher, composer, Paul Dresher Ensemble; Rinde Eckert , playwright, performer, director 

2:45pm – 4:00pm and 4:30pm – 5:45pm

sponsor sessions

A number of our sponsors will be providing useful and informative sessions on a number of topics and that are open to all. Click here for a full description of these sessions.

BREAKOUT SESSIONS (75 minutes)

Locations TBA

Looking for a practical approach to a specific problem? Then these rounds of shorter, topic-specific breakout sessions will appeal to you. Because these breakout sessions will be multi-disciplinary, participants will be able to learn from experts and from one another in ways that are not available at regular annual conferences.  Note:  Some breakouts will be held twice, some only once, so please choose carefully.

  • NEGOTIATING BETWEEN INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speaker: Ann Daly, consultant, Ann Daly Consulting    
  • NEW TECHNOLOGIES/NEW OPPORTUNITIES
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator: Alex Shapiro, composer
    Speakers: Joe Kluger and Hollis Headrick, consultants  
  • A WAKE-UP CALL
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers: Deborah Cullinan, executive director, Intersection for the Arts; Naomi Iizuka, playwright; Jon Moscone, artistic director, California Shakespeare Company
  • TREASURE HUNTING: FINDING NON-TRADITIONAL SOURCES OF GOVERNMENT SUPPORT
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Moderator and speakers TBA  
  • THE FUTURE OF PRIVATE GIVING TO THE ARTS
    2 Sessions:  2:45pm – 4:00pm; 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speakers TBA
  • FROM BIG PICTURE TO BACK YARD: IMPROVING SUPPORT FOR ARTS EDUCATION
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers: Sarah Cunningham, director, arts education, National Endowment for the Arts; Richard Deasy, director, Arts Education Partnership; Sandra Ruppert, senior associate for research and policy, Arts Education Partnership   
  • PARENTS AS LEARNERS, ADVOCATES AND AUDIENCE MEMBERS
    1 Session:  2:45pm – 4:00pm
    Speakers: Gigi Antoni, executive director, Big Thought; Richard Kessler, executive director, The Center for Arts Education 
  • EFFECTIVE PARTNERSHIP AND COLLABORATION WITHIN ARTS EDUCATION ECOSYSTEMS
    1 Session: 4:30 – 5:45pm
    Speaker: Gigi Antoni, executive director, Big Thought

5:45pm – 6:45pm
All Delegate and Exhibitor party

The Exhibits at ArtsTown by Ovation TV
Start your evening by joining colleagues, presenters, and business partners at this reception in the Exhibits at ArtsTown at the Colorado Convention Center. Refreshments, hors d’oeuvres and cash bar available. Open to all.

7:00pm-10:00pm
Offsite
National Friends of the League Dinner (by invitation only)
For Donors of $600 or more to the League's Annual Fund.

Evening
Performances and Other Activities

Friday, June 13

8:00am – 9:30am
Constituency Block 2

Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

BEST PRACTICES IN CONSORTIUM BUILDING
The Big Thought consortium in Dallas is an outstanding example of a city-wide consortium that has had a major impact on the status of arts education in an entire community. And, as our orchestras have made the League’s “Statement of Common Cause in Support of In-School Music Education” their own, we are seeing some outstanding examples of local partnerships on behalf of arts education. Hear about some highly effective models.
Panelists/Presenters: Gigi Antoni, Executive Director, Big Thought; Diane Syrcle, Executive Director, Portland Youth Philharmonic, additional panelists TBA.
                
Shared with Education/Community Engagement

9:30am – 4:00pm
Exhibit Hall in the Colorado Convention Center is open from 9:00am to 4:00pm.

10:00am – 11:30am
AMERICASPEAKS CAUCUSES
Locations TBA

In preparation for Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting three caucus sessions will be held, one each day Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. The caucuses are designed to cull ideas and create an action agenda for consideration on Saturday, one aimed at ensuring a strong future for the performing arts in the years to come.  Click here for more details.

11:45am – 1:15pm
League Annual Luncheon and Annual Meeting

Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

For those in the know, the Luncheon is one of the “places you need to be” during Conference.  It’s where you’ll find out what’s happening at the League and, more importantly, what the League is doing for the field.

It’s not just lunch.  Aside from being a chance to sit down with colleagues in a convivial atmosphere—the event also comprises the League’s Annual Meeting, where you’ll be able to put our work in a greater context.

1:30pm – 3:00pm
GENERAL SESSION: RADICAL IDEAS FROM BEYOND THE BORDER
Location TBA

Celebrate the innovative work being done around the world. Each speaker at this session has introduced bold strategies that establish the arts at the center of community life. Meet José Antonio Abreu, the visionary founder of El Sistema, the Venezuelan music education miracle; Madhusree Dutta who founded Majlis, a center for rights discourse and multi-cultural initiatives in Mumbai, India; and Germaine Acogny, award-winning dancer and choreographer and the founder of an International Centre for Traditional and Contemporary African Dances in Senegal. Moderated by Marin Alsop, music director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra.

Click here for more information.

3:15pm – 4:30pm
Constituency Block 3

Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

YOUTH ORCHESTRA DIVISION ANNUAL MEETING

4:45pm – 6:00pm
Constituency Block 4

Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

EL SISTEMA WITH JOSE ANTONIO ABREU

Jose Antonio Abreu is the visionary behind El Sistema – Venezuela’s unique social movement built on a system of life-long investment in classical music. Join with executive      directors, conductors, musicians, and your youth orchestra colleagues to hear from Jose Antonio Abreu about his vision and his challenge to us, as we think about opportunities for our country and our orchestras, suggested to us by the achievements of El Sistema.
Presenter: Jose Antonio Abreu, Founder, Rodrigo Guerrero, Institutional Development, El Sistema         

Shared with: Executive Directors, Education/Community Engagement, conductors, musicians

6:00pm – 7:00pm
Dinner on your own

7:30pm
OperaColorado

Nixon in China
Ellie Caulkins Opera House

John Adams, Nixon in China
James Robinson, director
Marin Alsop, conductor

Maria Kanyova, Pat Nixon
Robert Orth, Richard Nixon
Marc Heller, Mao Tse-Tung
Tracy Dahl, Madame Mao
Thomas Hammons, Henry Kissinger
Chenye Yuan, Chou Enlai
Melissa Malde, Nancy T'ang
Julie Simson, Second Secretary
Jennifer Dedominici, Third Secretary

10:00pm – 1:00am

ALTITUDE ADJUSTMENT (DELEGATES 35 & UNDER)

ORANGE CAT STUDIO at 2625 Larimer St. in Denver's River North Arts District  

What happens when the next generation of performing arts professionals get together after hours?  Are you looking to shake things up and network with your open-minded peers?  Come hang out, listen to fresh live music at a trendy venue with a backyard garden, and talk informally about our ever-changing field at this laid back, late night session.  No ties, no paper, no laptops allowed…

Saturday, June 14

8:00am – 9:30am
Constituency Block 5
Hyatt Regency Denver Hotel

EL SISTEMA:  IMPLICATIONS ON THE YOUTH ORCHESTRA FIELD IN THE UNITED STATES

The El Sistema “phenomenon” has taken the U.S. by storm inspiring multiple projects around the country.  What does this new attention and expectation mean for youth orchestras in the United States? 

10:00am – 12:30pm
A 21ST CENTURY TOWN MEETING WITH AMERICASPEAKS CONCLUSIONS AND CONCLUDING SESSION

Location TBA

The ideas that surface at the caucuses the previous three days will be addressed at Saturday morning's 21st Century Town Meeting. Using the latest technologies, topics will be consolidated, discussed and voted upon by thousands of your peers, each with an individual touch pad.  Results will be projected on large video screens in order to identify and hone an agenda to be ratified by this newly unified performing arts community. 

At this concluding session, you will help set the agenda for how the arts will be perceived now and in the coming years: by our communities; by national, state, and local governments; by our supporters; and by our audiences.  Let your voice be heard, and your vote count, so that we will speak with one voice and together ensure a vital future for the performing arts.