Professor Elam

Sat Oct 8, 2011

David Hendricks wrote a good piece on the San Antonio Symphony.   Can we combine your marketing and accoaunting courses to analyze what is going on here, you bet we can.

Oh, remember my saying

It is quite difficult to stop a bad idea cloaked in Good Intentions….

Now with that thought in mind, consider the $195 M re make of the Municipal Auditorium to become

The Tobin Center. SA A & M had a few graduations as did other area universities there until it was closed for the, now how much did you say, $195 M make over. The idea is to create a Center for the Performing Arts that befits  ( and you see this next phrase a lot in such projects ) a World Class Center to establish San Antonio as the true Seventh Largest CIty in the US with the culture and arts commitment such a city 'should' reflect.

Well that's wonderful. Now to the Symphony, presumably one of the groups that will be showcased at Tobin.$100 M will come from

1987 SA Orchestra and Symphony salary negotiations break down, both groups finally merge

2003 Symphony season closes early and symphony takes Chapter 22 bankruptcy (class, this is a clue…)

Fourth drector since 1987 resigns

2004 New director leads until Nov 2004

2006 David Green from the beverage industry becomes CEO

2008 Jack Fishman from the Long Beach Symphony becomes CEO

Meanwhile the symphony fnished in the red last season even with musicians taking a pay cut. The current deal calls for base pay of $23, 218 for the season, the official US poverty line by the way is $22,250.

The article finishes with a classic 'bad idea wrapped in good intentions phrase' The question is not how can San Antonio afford a symphony but how can the community afford not to have a great symphony orchestra?

At this point, hmm, I was going to finish the story and anlysis but this is such a good idea, I think we will move forward with a class discussion. So do some research how about it on

trends in classic music

trends in symphonies in US Cities – hint, google symphony bankruptcy ( not for San Antonio just that phras alone and see what comes up)

hint, is there a classical music radio  station in San Antonio?

If you were on the Symphony Board what would be your recommendation?