Janna Sailor Wins the Betty Webster Award 2023

Vancouver, Canada (27/9/2023) – Conductor Janna Sailor is the winner of the Orchestras Canada Betty Webster Award for 2023.

???? Watch the Award Announcement on YouTube!

Janna Sailor was nominated by the Allegra Chamber Orchestra, one of the few all- female orchestras in the world. The award celebrates Janna’s innovative approaches to developing programs and audiences, her quest for equity and representation at every level of the orchestra, her commitment to championing Indigenous artists and creators, and her efforts to build community through music and social justice.

The Betty Webster Award was established in 2002 to honour Mrs. Elizabath Webster, C.M. (1925-2018), Orchestras Canada’s founding Executive Director. Past winners include distinguished musicians, volunteers, educators, ensembles, and arts managers: a tribute to Mrs. Webster’s inclusive vision for Canadian orchestras. In 2023, the jury focused on the calibre and impact of the nominees’ contributions to innovation of one or more Canadian orchestras.

Janna Sailor is a conductor and violinist pursuing a diverse career delving into contemporary, world, early music, jazz and improvisation, chamber music and interdisciplinary projects with dancers, visual artists and electronics. She regularly conducts major Canadian orchestras, including Symphony Nova Scotia, Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, and Saskatoon Symphony. She has also performed with Vancouver Symphony, Victoria Opera, Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, and many more. Moreover, she has built a number of arts based social initiatives, including instructing disadvantaged youth on Vancouver’s downtown Eastside, fundraising and outreach activities for immigrants, establishing music therapy programs, and founding of the Allegra Chamber Orchestra: an all-female professional ensemble, which regularly commissions, mentors and premiers works by Canadian, female and minority composers.

In response to receiving the award, Janna Sailor said:

“I am deeply grateful and humbled to be selected as the recipient of the 2023 Betty Webster Award, and to Orchestras Canada for their inspired and important efforts in supporting Canadian orchestras, propelling our industry forward as we work together as a community; striving for inclusivity, creativity, and reconciliation.

I am in awe of the accomplishments of the Betty Webster’s past award recipients, and am honoured to be in their company – I will strive to live up to the amazing contributions they have made to the orchestral scene.

To stand on the podium in front of an orchestra is a privilege and beautiful responsibility – and one that I could never take for granted, working together with my fellow artists to make the world a better place through music brings me indescribable joy. I continue to explore and learn alongside my ensembles and those I am privileged to work with, and am deeply grateful that this award will facilitate future exploration and collaboration.”

The award includes a plaque and a donation to an orchestra or a group of the winner’s choosing. Ms. Sailor has asked that this year’s donation be directed to Allegra Chamber Orchestra.

The national jury was chaired by OC board member and Symphony 21 Artistic Director, Jaelem Bhate, and included T. Patrick Carrabré (Composer, Director, UBC School of Music and Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, Orchestras Canada Board member); Jim Tranquilla (Executive Director, Tutta Musica Orchestra & Director of Community Engagement, New Brunswick Youth Orchestra); Marie-France Mathieu (Conductor; Orchestre Philharmonique de la Relève du Québec); and Katelin Coleman (Artistic Director, Artemis Musicians’ Society.).

Speaking about the Award, jury chair Jaelem Bhate noted, “Janna is a remarkable artist and advocate whose generous spirit and devotion to the betterment of the community through music is inspiring. We were unanimous in our appreciation for her accomplishments and creativity with the Allegra Chamber Orchestra. Her positive impact on the artists and audiences she interacts with was clear from her nomination letters, and I am thrilled that she is this year’s Betty Webster Award winner.”

Circular Portrait of KatherineOC’s Executive Director, Katherine Carleton commented, “Janna Sailor’s vision of a world in which classically-trained musicians can unite their social beliefs with their artistic skills is both compelling and inspiring. I suspect that Betty Webster herself would highly approve!”

 

 

???? Watch the Award Announcement on YouTube!

Statement of Solidarity – Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony

Orchestras Canada (OC) stands in solidarity with musicians, staff, board and community following the announcement that the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony (KWS) will not be proceeding with their 2023-24 season.  

The KWS has a long history of artistry, innovation and resilience. Yesterday’s announcement should serve as a wake-up call about the ongoing challenges facing many Canadian not-for-profit performing arts organizations in this post-COVID period. 

As Canada’s national association for orchestras, we believe in the power of music and musicians to change lives. Advocacy is a key pillar of our work, and we actively advocate for the policies and funding frameworks that will make it possible for musicians and arts workers to lead lives of dignity, creativity and contribution in Canadian communities.  

We will continue to advocate for KWS and all our member orchestras, and to provide support, guidance, connections and resources. Our hearts are with you.  

$112,800 OTF Grant Supports Resilient Ontario Orchestras Project

Peterborough, ON (December 8th, 2021) – Today, Orchestras Canada held a ceremony at the closing of its dynamic online Festival of Learning, celebrating the $112,800 Resilient Communities Fund grant it received from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) in late 2020 to help with its Resilient Ontario Orchestras project. Local MPP Dave Smith sent greetings and congratulations to the participating orchestras. The Resilient Communities Fund grant program was created by OTF to help Ontario’s non-profit sector rebuild and recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

 

 

“Investing in the arts community spurs development in the local creative economy; boosts the social and cultural fabric of our community and enables passionate individuals to pursue what they enjoy,” MPP Dave Smith said. “We may not know what the future holds, but the pandemic has shown us we need to rebuild and encourage organizations such as Orchestras Canada to become more resilient. This investment will deliver just that; expanding their digital capacity and educational programs,” MPP Smith added.

The Resilient Ontario Orchestras project was designed to help Ontario’s smaller budget orchestras and youth orchestras (groups with annual, pre-pandemic revenues under $500,000) by enabling access to customized consulting help and resources at a critical time. Twenty-three orchestras were matched with expert consultants, who undertook short-term work with them, focusing on their areas of need, including: artistic planning, audience development, marketing, governance, strategic planning, volunteer management, financial management, human resources, revenue generation, risk management, health and safety and pandemic protocols, digital technology adoption, digital content capture and distribution.

“We are so grateful to the Ontario Trillium Foundation for its leadership and vision,” said Katherine Carleton, Executive Director of Orchestras Canada. “This grant has enabled us to respond to the unprecedented challenges faced by Ontario’s orchestras with both precision and generosity. Thank you, OTF!”

Orchestras Canada has curated and hosted an online “Festival of Learning” throughout November and December to share what’s been learned during the Resilient Ontario Orchestras project with the broader orchestral community.

Orchestras Canada is the national association for Canadian orchestras, with a mission to support, connect, and challenge Canadian orchestras, helping them accomplish together what they cannot do alone. Orchestras Canada proudly serves and represents orchestras in every Canadian province, including youth and training orchestras, volunteer-driven and community-based smaller budget orchestras, as well as regional and major professional orchestras.

The Ontario Trillium Foundation is an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations. Last year, nearly $112M was invested into 1,384 community projects and partnerships to build healthy and vibrant communities and strengthen the impact of Ontario’s non-profit sector. In 2020/21,OTF supported Ontario’s economic recovery by helping non-profit organizations rebuild and recover from the impacts of COVID-19. Visit otf.ca to learn more.

Celebrating 50 years of serving Canadian Orchestras!

From November 12-14, 1971, the Association of Canadian Orchestras (ACO) held its first in-person Steering Committee Meeting in the board room at the Canada Council for the Arts in Ottawa.  This meeting – at which the function and form of the new association were discussed and approved – was the culmination of many months of exploration and discussion; and by some measures, it was the official start of the movement now known as Orchestras Canada/Orchestres Canada. 

In short: November 12th 2021 is (arguably) Orchestras Canada’s 50th anniversary!  (Other important dates to remember1952, when a group of community orchestra leaders in Ontario first met to talk about common challenges; 1955, when the Ontario group met again and elected a steering committee; and 1964when the nascent Ontario movement “was recognizedas the voice of Ontario community orchestras by the newly created Province of Ontario Council for the Arts.”) We salute these take-charge Ontarians: however, the national association’s founding clearly stems from the early 1970s and the leadership of such people as Jan Matejcek, Ezra Schabas, Robert Sunter, Ken Winters, Terence Wardrop, and Betty Webster. 

To mark the occasion, we’d like to share the story of the founding of the Association of Canadian Orchestras, an entertaining and enlightening tale about our origins researched and written by the late Dorothy Beckel.  Mrs. Beckel (1924 – 2021) was President of the Association of Canadian Orchestras, a founding member of the advisory council for Orchestras Canada, and a long-time supporter of orchestra music in every community she graced.  She captured the momentum, personalities and major pre-occupations that led to the founding of ACO – and quite a tale it is.  

Our favourite excerpt? It’s a quote from the redoubtable Helen M. Thompson, long-time head of the American Symphony Orchestra League, who came to talk to Canadian orchestra leaders about priorities and values as they began the critical work necessary to establish a national association for Canadian orchestras.  

If you have 41 symphony orchestras in Canada, be quite sure of this fact in all your operations on their behalf: 38 of those 41 are the most important ones. To be sure, the three at the top are your finest flower, but the 38 are the plant, and it is from them that everything stems: your new audience development; player development; symphonic-environment development. The fine flower at the top is immeasurably strengthened, beautified, insured, by a healthy and flourishing plant. It is a proof of experience that all orchestras are served by all audience development, player development and development of symphonic environment.  

Every orchestra, large-budget or small budget, needs strength and stature in its own community. A function of an orchestral association is to assist in the attainment of these by doing things for the individual orchestra which the orchestra cannot do for itself”  

How ACO Began by Dorothy Beckel (Original PDF) 

How ACO Began by Dorothy Beckel (Text)  

Linda Penner Wins The Betty Webster Award 2021

Peterborough/Thunder Bay, Canada (September 29th, 2021) – Linda Penner is the winner of the Orchestras Canada Betty Webster Award for 2021.

Linda Penner was nominated by the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra. The award announcement, delivered by video, celebrates her long-time contributions to the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra, the communities it serves, and the role she has played in sustaining the spirit and resilience of its musicians, staff, and volunteers.

The Betty Webster Award was established in 2002 to honour Orchestras Canada’s founding Executive Director. Past winners include distinguished musicians, volunteers, educators, ensembles, and arts managers: a tribute to Mrs. Webster’s inclusive vision for Canadian orchestras. Starting in 2021, the guidelines for the Award were refined to better celebrate Mrs. Webster’s legacy, by specifically honouring an individual who has made an under-recognized but sustained and significant contribution to the Canadian orchestral community through their work (paid or volunteer) with one or more Canadian orchestras. Additionally, in 2021, the jury focused on the calibre and impact of the nominees’ contributions to the resilience of one or more Canadian orchestras.

Linda Penner began her association with the TBSO in 1984 by joining the TBS Chorus. In 1999, in the midst of a severe financial crisis, Linda joined the TBSO Board of Directors. In addition to its monetary struggles, the TBSO was searching for both a new Music Director and General Manager. The orchestra was on the verge of collapse. With the assistance of an Interim Music Director, Linda took on governance and administration responsibilities well beyond the volunteer role that she had accepted.

The TBSO persevered, albeit with a long-standing and significant debt. After serving on the board for 17 years, Linda accepted the position of President in 2016. Today, the TBSO is debt-free and poised for the brightest of futures serving Thunder Bay and region – a tribute to Linda’s tireless perseverance, quiet insistence, belief in teamwork, the new initiatives she has championed, and engaging personal style.

In response to receiving the award, Linda Penner said:

“I am deeply touched and honoured to receive the Betty Webster Award from Orchestras Canada.

The TBSO and other similar organizations would not be here today were it not for the sustaining presence of Orchestras Canada. In concert with determined generous individuals who care deeply and commit to making a difference in communities such as Thunder Bay and across Canada, they help us achieve what we cannot do on our own. I wish to thank all those who throughout the darkest hours of our past and continuing into our present believe in the vision of giving life to music and music to lives. Together we ensure a bright and rich music-filled future with lifted spirits.

Thank you all from the bottom of my heart!”

The award includes a plaque and a donation to an orchestra of the winner’s choosing. Ms. Penner has asked that this year’s donation be directed to the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra.

The national jury was chaired by OC board member and Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra Director of Artistic Operations, Jennifer MacDonald, and included Daniel Mills (Executive Director, Kamloops Symphony); Anna Hewitt (Past President, Oakville Symphony); Eliot Britton (Composer; Assistant Professor, University of Toronto); Allegra Swanson (Executive Director, Music Nova Scotia; Orchestras Canada Board member); plus last year’s laureate and an honorary member of the jury Yannick Nézet-Séguin (Artistic Director and Principal Conductor, Orchestre Métropolitain, Music Director of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera).

Speaking about the Award, jury chair Jennifer MacDonald noted, “Linda Penner’s long-time, quiet, determined and effective work on behalf of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra deeply touched members of the jury for this year’s Betty Webster Award. We were unanimous in our appreciation for her accomplishments and for her selfless commitment to the TBSO over so many years.”

OC’s Executive Director, Katherine Carleton commented, “I have been a fan of the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra for many years. The TBSO serves Northwestern Ontario with thoughtful education programming, strong community partnerships, and undeniable artistic flair, and it’s such an honour for us to be able to recognize Linda Penner, who has played such an essential role in making this great work possible.”

Major Federal political parties’ arts and culture platforms

Now that most of the major parties have published their platforms, the OC team has spent some time with arts- and culture-specific commitments – and they are summarized below.

Bloc Québécois

Click here to view the platform (French only)

The Bloc Québécois platform includes a section about arts and culture, with a specific focus on protecting Quebec arts and culture.

The Bloc Québécois has pledged: 

  • To repatriate all arts and culture decision-making powers
  • To create a Quebec agency to replace the CRTC
  • To improve and reintroduce reform for the future of French-language creation, including the Bloc’s amendments which aim to protect Canadian and Quebec content and to strengthen the discoverability and promotion of Quebec arts and the production of francophone content
  • To tax the revenues of digital giants at a rate of 3%, mirroring practices in place in France. The Bloc Québécois will force Web multinationals to negotiate with Quebec and Canadian content creators in order to establish fair revenue sharing
  • To ensure the sustainability and predictability of cultural and tourism programs and subsidies to help the sector, its creators, its broadcasters and its small and large events to weather the consequences of the pandemic over the next few years
  • To ensure that print and regional media are included in this reform
  • To demand that the money collected in taxes from the digital giants be redirected to a fund dedicated to Quebec’s arts, culture and media.

Conservative Party of Canada

View the platform in English and in French 

The Conservative Party of Canada’s arts and culture platform focuses on cultural industries; the word “arts” does not appear. 

We thank the BC Alliance for Arts and Culture for their summary of the CPC platform.

The Conservatives have pledged: 

  • To create the “Canada Job Surge Plan”, which would pay up to 50 per cent of the salary of new employees for six months; 
  • Business loans of up to $200,000 for small businesses in the hospitality, retail and tourism sectors; 
  • To give Radio-Canada a separate and distinct legal and administrative structure to reflect its distinct mandate of promoting francophone language and culture; 
  • To create a new Canadian Heritage Preservation Fund to provide a total of $75 million in grants to municipal governments over the next five years for the repair and restoration of historical monuments, statues, and heritage buildings; 
  • To require large digital streaming services like Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video to reinvest a significant portion of their Canadian gross revenue into producing original Canadian programming, of which a mandated proportion must be French-language programming; 
  • To recognize and correct the adverse economic impact for creators and publishers from the uncompensated use of their works in a manner consistent with the unanimous recommendations of the Heritage Committee of the House of Commons Report in 2019; 
  • To conduct a review of federal book publishing policy to enhance the commercial viability of Canada’s independent publishing sector.

Additionally, and of interest to registered charities: the CPC platform also includes a commitment to raise the disbursement quota for charitable foundations to 7.5% of their fair market value calculated over the preceding 24 months.

Green Party of Canada

The Green Party of Canada released its 2021 campaign platform recently.  

View the platform in English and in French 

The arts and culture component of the Green Party platform is comprehensive, and focuses on the role that artists and arts organizations can play in addressing the climate crisis, respect for Indigenous knowledge and practices, official language and minority language rights, access to the arts, and copyright reform.  

If elected, the Green Party of Canada pledges to:

  • Increase funding to all federal agencies including the Canada Council for the Arts, the National Film Board and Telefilm Canada to initiate programs to support creative programming that addresses the climate crisis
  • Enable pandemic recovery (by increasing support for indoor or outdoor arts performances and ensuring the viability of cultural infrastructure)
  • Increase funding to $1 billion over 3 years to all of Canada’s arts and culture organizations including the Canada Council for the Arts, Telefilm Canada, orchestras, theatres, galleries and publishers
  • Establishing stable base funding for arts programs and facilities at a set percentage of the federal budget
  • Protect Canada’s cultural identity during trade negotiations and ensure arts and cultural representation on international trade missions
  • Enact Copyright reform as envisaged by the current Heritage Committee report, and provide protection for Indigenous intellectual and artistic property rights
  • Reform the Canada Revenue Act to allow arts and culture workers to benefit from a tax averaging plan

Liberal Party of Canada

View the platform in English and in French 

The Liberal Party of Canada platform includes sections relevant to arts and culture organizations, and cultural industries. 

The Liberals have pledged:  

  • To launch a new Arts and Culture Recovery Program that will match ticket sales for performing arts, live theatres, and other cultural venues to compensate for reduced capacity.
  • To extend COVID-related insurance coverage for media production stoppages to support 150,000 Canadian jobs.
  • To Implement a COVID-19 transitional support program to provide emergency relief to out-of-work artists, craftsmen, creators, and authors who are primarily self-employed or independent contractors.
  • To ensure the realities of artists and cultural workers are considered in upcoming reforms to the Employment Insurance (EI) system.
  • To protect Canadian artists, creators, and copyright holders by making changes to the Copyright Act, including amending the Act to allow resale rights for artists.
  • To hold a summit, within the first 100 days, on plans to restart the industry.

New Democratic Party of Canada

View the platform in English and in French 

The NDP has pledged:

  • A dedicated re-building package for the performing arts, theatre, festivals and other arts that have been most severely impacted by the pandemic. 
  • To ensure that Netflix, Facebook, Google and other digital media companies pay the same corporate taxes as Canadian broadcasters, support Canadian content in both official languages, and take responsibility for what appears on their platforms. 
  • To modernize the Broadcasting Act fairly in order to create a level playing field between Canadian broadcasters and foreign streaming services, to rebalance negotiating power for Canadian independent producers and the Canadian cultural sector, and to ensure Canadian programming is owned by Canadians. 
  • To prioritize partnerships with Canadian independent producers, increase funding for Telefilm and enhance financial support for the Canada Media Fund.
  • To increase funding for CBC and Radio-Canada. 
  • To ensure stable, long-term funding to arts and cultural institutions.
  • To extend support to Canadian media to assist them in making the digital transition.
  • To provide financial support for Indigenous theatre at the National Arts Centre as part of a larger effort to honour and support Indigenous arts and culture.  

We will update you with additional information when it becomes available.

Are Canadians ready to return to the arts?

On Tuesday, Sept 22, Chief Data Scientist and Founder of Nanos Research, Nik Nanos shared findings of the latest Arts Response Tracking Survey (ARTS), a partnership between Business / Arts, the National Arts Centre and Nanos Research, which polled over 1,000 Canadians to gauge their attitudes on returning to and supporting the arts across Canada. The fieldwork for this study was completed on July 30th, 2020 and targeted Canadian arts-goers. 

These latest findings offer terrific insight for arts organizations, in particular, fundraisers to help inform programming and fundraising models.

ARTS focused on three axes: 

1- Timing of Return, which tracked the impact of the pandemic and when arts-goers plan to return.

2- Conditions for Return, which tracked what precaution Canadian arts-goers would like to see in place prior to returning to arts and cultural events

3- Donations, which captured reported donation activity for 2019, 2020 and projected to 2021 to understand the likely immediate impact of the pandemic and to plan for 2021. 

Key findings:

 

• Timing of return: 

For indoor cultural activities, 23% of Canadian arts-goers would go back immediately, while 38% said they’d wait 6 months on average before going back. 1 in 3 still unsure about going back.

As for outdoor cultural activities, 37% said they’d go back immediately, 30% would wait 5 months on average, and 1 in 3 are still unsure about going back. 

Museums and galleries are the venues which Canadian arts-goers are not certain about the most, with a whopping 43% who said they’re unsure about when they’d go back. 

 

• Conditions for Return:

Culture-goers increasingly say that masks are a precaution that would make them feel comfortable to attend in-person. This suggests an alignment with public health recommendations. 

For indoor performances, 40% of indoor culture-goers (compared to 27% in May) who plan to attend immediately after reopening want masks. 

As for those who plan to wait 1 to 5 months before returning to attending performances, 43% expressed that they want masks (compared to 29% in May). 

The numbers are very similar for Outdoor performances: the consensus is that people would feel much safer if precautions included masks. 

 

• Donations:

In 2019, 43% of culture-goers donated to arts/cultural organizations an average of $158. In 2020, it is anticipated that the numbers will go down: 39% of culture-goers except to donate an average of $126 , which is a drop of 20% compared to 2019. 

On the bright side, 2021 seems to be promising: 42% intend to donate an average of $222, which is a 40% increase compared to the current year. 

Nik Nanos highlighted the fact that arts organizations will be hit hard this year. However, depending on the economical environment, there will likely be a rebound in donations in 2021. 

It is worth noting that the 35-54 age segment plan to donate less in 2021. This, however, will be compensated by a growth in donation amounts by the 55 plus cohort: their generosity is expected to continue into 2021. 

 

There was a discussion after the presentation by five panelists:

1-  Wesley J. Colford from Highlanders Theatre shared an inspiring success story; This relatively young theatre company, based in Sydney, Nova Scotia, was expecting to go bankrupt by August 2020 due to the pandemic. Instead of giving up, they started a program called “Radical Access”, where they pivoted from selling tickets to a crowdsourcing model by requesting monthly donations. The model has been a great success and they are already at 98% of their funding goal.

2- Irfan Rawji from Glenbow Museum in Calgary discussed finances, and what the Canadian government could do to help arts organizations. He highlighted the example of a UK government program that covers 50% of restaurant-goers’ bills on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. In essence, the government is allowing the public to pick which restaurants will survive. 

3- Monica Esteves, ED of Canadian Stage in Toronto, said that they surveyed their audiences in June, and learned that their audiences were concerned about the company and its survival. At the same time, audiences were not willing to make long term commitments. In response, Canadian Stage is programming and selling their activities in three month “mini-seasons” and will continue to do so for the next 12 months at least. The board of directors reviews progress and approves plans in three month increments, enabling rapid organizational response to emerging situations.   

4- Claire Sakaki, ED of Bard on the Beach (Vancouver), spoke about their 31 year old Festival, which typically presents 300 performances in an iconic Vancouver location in the summer months. Ticket sales and donations make up the largest proportion of their $9 million annual revenues. Transcending physical location, they quickly re-branded to “Bard Beyond the Beach” with a temporary logo, and started “Bard in your Heart”, a brand for donors. At the same time, they re-imagined all of their activities on virtual platforms, ranging from (performances – you didn’t say?) through backstage tours and an annual dinner.

5- Jayne Watson, CEO of the National Arts Centre Foundation, talked about the NAC’s efforts to keep donors connected and happy at a time of great uncertainty.  She noted the strong connection between appealing projects and donor generosity, highlighting such initiatives as the NAC funding 12 theatre companies to deliver socially distanced performances, and the continued success of the Canada Performs series of free, live-streamed performances. She also noted their pivot from their traditional fall gala to an emphasis on individual donations, including a donation matching program. 

Slides from the meeting 

Video of the meeting

 

Small Budget Orchestra Day: National Conference 2019

We’re delighted to announce that, as part of our National Conference in Ottawa this June, we will be running a full-day small-budget orchestra session on Thursday, June 13th.

Date & Time: Thursday, June 13, 9am-5:30
Location: Canada’s National Arts Centre, Ottawa, ON
Cost: $100 + HST

Registration is now closed as we are at capacity

Program

9am-10am: Coffee, check-in

10am-12pm: Peer group meeting with invited guests. Topics on the agenda include:

  1. Perspectives on accessing funding for smaller budget orchestras: What makes a funding request successful? How do we find likely prospects?
  2. Doing great work on a shoestring: Identifying, attracting and retaining great board members and volunteers
  3. Building and maintaining a strong community orchestra: How do we attract skilled volunteer musicians, and keep them happy? What role does programming play? How do we balance “curb appeal” for the audience with the interests of the players? What role do we want and need our music director to play? How do we find the right music director?
  4. Growing audiences: How can we broaden, deepen, diversify our audiences? What’s working? What role does programming play?

12pm-1pm: Group lunch

1pm-2pm: Peer group meeting continues

2pm-4pm: Choice of conference breakout sessions, focusing on ways that orchestras can engage with increasingly diverse populations, however they define diversity in their communities. Choose one of four options:

  1. The Creative Case for Social Inclusion: what orchestras are doing to engage more community members
  2. Orchestral training and career paths: short term “hacks” and long-term changes to diversify orchestras
  3. Fundraising (panel discussion)
  4. Resilience and Business models, a workshop with Patrick Towell of Golant Media Ventures, co-author of What is Resilience Anyway?

4pm-4:30pm: Coffee break with other conference delegates

4:30pm-5:30pm: Panel presentation: arts data you can use! Canada Council’s recent research on orchestras, on the demographics of institutions funded through the Engage and Sustain, and on intrinsic arts impact.

5:30pm: Full day program is done. Those wanting to continue the experience can participate in the following evening activities at their own expense. Please register here your interest here, by June 1st.

  1. Indigenous Walking Tour of Parliament Hill (cost is $15-20 per person depending on the size of the group)
  2. OrKidstra’s season closing concert (tickets are free but will need to be booked in advance)
  3. Prix fixe dinner at Le Café ($50 plus tax, tip, and any beverages)

Full Conference

Should any smaller budget groups wish to join us for the full three-day conference, you’d be more than welcome. Information on this can be found in the National Conference area of our website.

Thank you, Micheline McKay, and welcome Éric Dubeau!

A message from our Executive Director, Katherine Carleton

Micheline McKaySince 2013, Orchestras Canada has been privileged to work with Micheline McKay as our government relations consultant. Micheline has served as trusted advisor, analyst and reliable source of information and feedback to the OC staff, board and Advocacy Committee. Her good sense, high ethical standards, discretion, hard work, and political insights have inspired us all. On a personal note, she’s the best and most patient co-writer I’ve ever worked with, handling my relentless editing and wild spins on things with great aplomb. I also recall with great admiration the role she played in our Orchestras on the Hill day in early 2018: the passionate tributes that Minister of Canadian Heritage and the chairs and vice chairs of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage paid to orchestras that day came about because of Micheline’s tact and effective organization.

In the fall of 2018, Micheline let us know that she was closing her government relations practice to focus on other things. We bade her a fond farewell in early March, and thanked her on behalf of the entire OC community. She has done exceptional work with us over the last five and a half years and we are grateful.

Éric DubeauStarting April 1, we’ll be welcoming Éric Dubeau as OC’s new government relations advisor. Éric, based just outside Montreal, has many years of experience as an arts advocate, political staffer on Parliament Hill, policy wonk, association leader, granting officer, arts consultant, and award-winning singer-songwriter. His unique skills and collaborative, informed approach make him an ideal successor to Micheline, and we can’t wait to get started!

Three reasons to be at the National Conference

Registration is now open for Orchestras Canada’s National Conference! This year, we’ve introduced new price points to ensure that the conference is as accessible as we can make it – and we’re beyond excited about the program, too! Take advantage of the early-bird discount by registering before the April 26th deadline.

1. Connect with learnings from innovative and engaging speakers

We’re thrilled to welcome speakers who are leading change in the arts industry. Among others, we’re delighted to introduce:

  • Nina Simon, will explore the risks and rewards of engaging more closely with our communities, and will arm you with the tools to talk to your board and colleagues about opportunities for community involvement that will strengthen the impact of your organization.
  • Donna Walker-Kuhne will share best practices and success metrics for community engagement programs and will present strategies on ways to expand and diversify your audience.
  • As part of our pre-conference digital workshop on June 11th, Fiona Morris and John White from The Space will look at how to integrate your strategic and business plans with your digital strategy.
  • Dylan Robinson will help us better understand and respectfully navigate issues of cultural appropriation through a workshop and panel discussion.

2. Become part of the conversation on designing the 21st-century orchestra

Attend expert-led, peer-driven breakout sessions that connect you to vital conversations about how orchestras are adapting for the 21st century. With sessions running simultaneously on subjects such as governance, marketing, fundraising, community engagement, and orchestral training systems, these conversations will challenge us to consider the transformations we can make in our own organizations.

3. Meet your peers from orchestras large and small across the country

Whether over a cup of coffee before starting the day, during structured peer group meetings, or at a social event, the National Conference is an important reminder that you’re not alone. The conference includes dedicated time with peers who do similar work to you, to discuss the most pressing issues you face, and to brainstorm solutions.