Symphony Affects Local Economy

Packing 1,200 seats in the Walton Arts Center concert hall with every performance, the North Arkansas Symphony hums through its 46th season of music. Business sense helps the nonprofit organization increase popularity and meet the changing demands of the community.

Last year, Steve Olans arrived fresh from the New Hampshire Philharmonic to take the administrative reins as executive director of the symphony.

Hiring Olans and a director of development, Kelly Zega, were strategic steps taken to help the symphony evolve. Maintaining fresh community interest is vital to the organization’s success, Olans said. Attracting and fostering a younger generation of orchestra fans can help the symphony.

“We’re a truly dynamic organization at a very exciting time in our evolution,” Olans said. “Funding an arts vision must be run as responsibly as for-profit businesses.”

According to the 2000-01 budget, $20 general tickets and $8 student tickets will total $122,170, or about 19 percent of the symphony’s $656,719 net income.

Business sponsorships, such as those from the Arvest Bank of Bentonville and Greenwood & Associates of Fayetteville, will provide $53,500, and grants will offer about $55,000. Non-concert-specific income, such as private donations and fund-raisers, amount to $386,614.

Offering six concerts at the Walton Arts Center, five less formal Pops in the Park shows and one holiday concert in Springdale, the symphony costs about $648,000 per season. That figure includes administration, musician and crew wages, and guest musician expenses.

Olans estimated the cost of each orchestra rehearsal to be $4,500, and each concert requires five rehearsals. A nationally recognized guest, such as trumpet player Doc Severinsen, costs $30,000-$100,000 for one concert. Just renting the music to perform costs $500-$1,000.

Olan said that within the next five years, he expects the seasonal budget to top $1 million.