North Arkansas Symphony Finds Harmony With WAC
by March 17, 2003 12:00 am 73 views
After shuffling through at least three administrative directors in five years, the North Arkansas Symphony Orchestra has turned over its management to the Walton Arts Center.
The symphony could save $50,000 or more a year of its $600,000 budget by sharing administrative costs with the WAC, said Terri Trotter, vice president of communications for the WAC. Trotter is also handling public relations for the symphony now. The symphony funding comes from membership contributions, outside donations, grants and ticket sales.
The change is an effort to reduce overhead and coordinate efforts on arts programming, she explained.
“Symphony orchestras across the country are in dire shape,” Trotter said.
The Tulsa Symphony Orchestra closed recently, and the Houston Symphony is among a list of seriously struggling orchestras, she said. The musicians’ strike on Broadway is also indicative of the problem as managers try to reduce production costs by using recorded music.