Orchestra Leadership Academy —A professional development program designed to enhance the institutional strength of orchestras. Distinguished faculty in management and the arts offer dynamic seminars to orchestra staff, board members, musicians, conductors, and volunteers, focusing on strengthening orchestra leadership, building skills in specific program areas, and creating opportunities for those new to orchestra management. The Academy also offers the three-year long Institutional Vision Leadership Initiative for teams of executive directors, board members, and key artistic leaders.
Orchestra Management Fellowship Program —A year-long training program for individuals aspiring to leadership positions in American orchestras. Fellows complete a summer residency with the Aspen Music Festival and three orchestra assignments, during which they receive hands-on training across a range of topics, including artistic planning, production, strategic planning, contract negotiations, board development, and leadership.
Web-based Mentoring Circles —Orchestra professionals, such as executive directors, board chairs, and marketing directors, in their first few years of service, meet with a mentor once each month for six months via web conferencing to discuss current challenges and to receive support and guidance.
Executive Leadership Program —The League will help grow the supply and capacity of executive talent by investing in accomplished individuals of high potential in their early-to-mid-career trajectory, ensuring they are equipped with the tools to meet the challenges of increasing responsibility as they advance in their careers.
Marketing and Development Fellowships—The League is designing specialized, in-depth programs to help supply department leaders in critical revenue-generating roles—marketing and development.
Recruitment Center—A staff member will spearhead a recruitment campaign for the orchestra field intended to identify and bring into the orchestra field staff at all levels.
Board Leadership—The League is expanding its annual
governance offerings to include a comprehensive array of training
opportunities targeted to the unique needs of this constituency. A new
partnership with BoardSource will expand the field’s access to
knowledge in this area.
New Partnerships—The League has also developed a partnership with National Arts Strategies. Member orchestras now have access to NAS seminars on topics such as
strategic marketing, financing the future, managing people, and
building evaluation capacity in five key cities across the U.S.
Annual National Conference —The League’s annual Conference attracts more than 1,300 artistic, administrative, and volunteer personnel from orchestras nationwide. The Conference provides a forum for members of the orchestra community to come together to discuss issues related to the field. The next Conference will take place in Denver, CO, June 10-14, 2008, in conjunction with the National Performing Arts Convention.
Constituent Meetings & Online Discussion Groups—Meetings for the League’s twenty-seven constituent groups are held at Conference and during the year for the groups to exchange ideas, discuss emerging issues, and spur new thinking about current challenges. Online discussion groups provide a national network for more than 3,000 constituents to converse with and learn from each other.
The League identifies contemporary American composers whose works merit a prominent place in the orchestral repertoire and promotes performances of these pieces.
• Music Alive —In partnership with Meet The Composer, the Music Alive residency program connects composers with a wide range of orchestras and local communities. During Short-Term (two to eight weeks) and Extended (up to three years) Residencies, composers share their perspectives and expertise in performance, new music advocacy, and outreach with the host orchestra and its community.
• Ford Made in America, in partnership with Meet The Composer, brings together smaller-budget orchestras, at least one from each of the 50 states, to jointly commission full-scale orchestral works by leading American composers. The second round of the program is being led by the Reno Chamber Orchestra and will involve the commission and premiere of a new work by Joseph Schwantner.
• Awards for Adventurous Programming , offered each year by the League and ASCAP, celebrate American orchestras that program concerts that stimulate audiences, build the repertoire, and strengthen support for American composers.
The League offers fellowships and showcases for conductors, which help them develop artistically and provide professional skills that will ensure their success as orchestra leaders.
• The American Conducting Fellows Program supports the artistic and leadership development of talented conductors in the early stages of their careers and prepares them to assume music directorships of our nation’s orchestras. The program offers up to six, full-year residencies of 2-3 years’ duration to provide Fellows with guided, on-the-job training and performance opportunities.
• The Bruno Walter National Conductor Preview showcases promising American conducting talent chosen by a national advisory committee based on their talent, accomplishments, and preparedness to assume professional conducting responsibilities.
• The League develops the week-long seminar, Leading an American Orchestra, as part of the training curriculum for the National Conducting Institute at The Kennedy Center.
• New Conducting Work—To be a catalyst for systemic change in the career development of conductors, the League is testing a strategy that joins orchestras and schools of music to provide the training necessary for the successful transition to a professional career. The League will also be proactive in providing opportunities that will support women as they assume leadership of our nation’s orchestras.
In partnership with the Sphinx Organization, the League provides tuition assistance for instrumental study to gifted young African American and Latino musicians pursuing orchestra careers.