League of American Orchestras

Tonight! The Late Show with Stephen Colbert will feature string players from the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras as part of a special performance of Peter CottonTale’s Together!

Next week, the National Endowment for the Arts launches the Sound Health Network with a free event exploring how music can provide insights into brain functioning, reduce social isolation, promote community solidarity and influence health. The Sound Health Network will promote research and public awareness in the intersection of music and health.

On this day, the League of American Orchestras honors the memory and the moral leadership of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Caring for caregivers: A pilot program in Boston provides weekly private music lessons to frontline health care workers. The goal wasn’t to teach them skill or technique, but to provide a refuge from day-to-day life on the COVID ward. https://www.bostonglobe.com//turning-music-lessons-into-t/

Musicians from fourteen orchestras across the country will perform in a virtual event to mark the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Produced by Classical Movements President Neeta Helms, it will be conducted by Marin Alsop on Tuesday, January 19. Conceived to bring together a divided country through the power of music, says Helms, this diverse and representative ensemble of musicians from across the United States reflects and celebrates our country’s own beautiful patchwork. Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, LA Phil, Minnesota Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Pacific Symphony, Peabody Institute St. Louis Symphony Orchestra Utah Symphony

This Sunday at 3:00pm PT/6:00pm ET, Oakland Symphony presents Oakland Salutes, a free virtual event honoring Oakland-born Madame Vice President-elect Kamala D. Harris and featuring a collection of performances and words from members of the Oakland Arts Community. Details on their event page.

The League of American Orchestras has become aware of a racist Facebook post attacking Daniel Bernard Roumain, a highly valued member of our board of directors and an important and much admired creative artist. We unreservedly condemn this attack, which is a stark reminder of the racism that exists in the orchestra field and which underscores the need for the work we outline in our August 11 Statement on Racial Discrimination (https://bit.ly/racialdiscriminationstatement). In solidarity with Daniel, we encourage all to attend virtually the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra's premiere of Daniel’s composition, i am a white person who _____ Black people, on November 19: njsymphony.org/dbr. The Detroit Symphony Orchestra has newly announced that it will also perform this work in the spring.

Applications are now open for the League's 2021 Ford Musician Awards for Excellence in Community Service! The Ford Musician Awards celebrate and honor professional orchestra musicians engaging in their communities beyond the concert hall and pivoting in new and creative ways to deliver this work virtually during the pandemic. Visit our website to learn more: http://bit.ly/fordawards

The NAMM Foundation’s 2021 Best Communities for Music Education program, a special edition to reflect current realities and honor innovation, is now open. Encourage your district or school to apply before the Jan 31 deadline to celebrate your community with national recognition! http://bit.ly/1xdehcs

Music makes a difference! As part of World Mental Health Day earlier this month, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra shared survey results that found that 71% of people who listened to orchestral music during home isolation cited tangible and lasting positive impacts on their mood and wellbeing https://www.rhinegold.co.uk//70-of-adults-report-improved/

12-year-old Grace Moore, a participant in the New York Philharmonic's Very Young Composers program, had an exciting moment on national television when her work was performed by the New York Philharmonic's Bandwagon https://www.cbsnews.com//12-year-old-composer-teams-up-w/

Thank you to everyone who joined us for this week’s sponsored webinar on engaging women in philanthropy with Aspen Leadership Group. If you missed our insightful discussion with Marlah Bonner-McDuffie, Anne Johnson, Kathleen Loehr, and Trine Sorensen, you can register to watch the on-demand recording https://americanorchestras.org//women-philanthropy-webinar

Researchers and musicians continue to collaborate in studies, learning how to get musicians back on stage safely and contributing to a broader understanding of the role of aerosols in the pandemic. A new study by the University of Minnesota with musicians from the Minnesota Orchestra suggests that body temperature can create a thermal plume that lifts aerosols upwards. Mitigating risks created by the plume will be the subject of an upcoming report. Findings also include a categorization of instruments by risk level; read the initial report in the Journal of Aerosol Science: https://www.sciencedirect.com//arti/pii/S0021850220301555

Like many of our American Orchestras’ Futures Fund grantees, Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras' historic 63rd Season began virtually this past September. BYSO firmly believes that music and self-expression are important in the lives of young people. For this reason, BYSO remains committed to upholding its mission: bringing young people together to make music, and sharing their talent with the wider community in creative and unique ways. Learn more about BYSO: https://bit.ly/3dLjuUE Learn more about the League’s Futures Fund: https://bit.ly/2YdPcSB

League President and CEO Simon Woods has worked with and for orchestras for decades. Being able to support this field I loveespecially in a time of great need and challengeis a moment that holds deep vocational meaning for me. In the latest issue of Symphony magazine, we talked with Woods about his journey and his hopes for the future. https://americanorchestras.org/sym/symphony-fall-2020.html

What will the future be like for nonprofit arts organizations? Today at 1pm ET, The Wallace Foundation launches their free arts conversation webinar series, Reimagining the Future of the Arts. Today’s session will address the question, What do audiences expect from the arts and how can organizations respond? and will be presented by Arthur Cohen of LaPlaca Cohen, moderated by artnet critic Ben Davis, and featuring Kate Maguire of the Berkshire Theatre Group, Lisa Richards... Toney of the APAP Conference NYC, and Franklin Sirmans of the Pérez Art Museum Miami. Registration is free, and webinars will be available on demand after the initial date. https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_2uuQf3zCTzC4UqCC0FgyQQ

Tomorrow! Don't miss our sponsored webinar, Women are Now Driving Philanthropy. Are Orchestras Engaging Them? developed by Aspen Leadership Group. Research shows that women and their networks give more during times of crisis, making them a vital part of any fundraising strategy. Joining us for this session: Marlah Bonner-McDuffie, Vice President of Development at League of American Orchestras, Anne Johnson, Senior Consultant and Vice President at Aspen Leadership Group, Kathleen Loehr, Senior Consultant at Aspen Leadership, and Trine Sorensen, Donor, Board Member of the League of American Orchestras and San Francisco Symphony. Registration is free for League members: https://americanorchestras.org//women-philanthropy-webinar

The is the last round of the League’s Catalyst Fund. Grants are used to hire a consultant who can assist orchestras, like 2020 grantee Pacific Symphony, at any stage of their equity, diversity, and inclusion work. Applications close on November 6. Apply now: https://bit.ly/3lPGtkO

Interesting tidbit about Lovecraft Country, airing on HBO on Sunday nights: the "gothic, orchestral R&B" score, co-composed by Laura Karpman and Raphael Saadiq, was performed by musicians recording remotely from their homes. The online orchestra includes musicians from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and Toronto Symphony Orchestra, among others. https://variety.com//lovecraft-country-online-orchestra-l/

For younger musicians, the indefinite intermission due to the pandemic has been particularly difficult. The Wall Street Journal’s Betsy Morris spoke with players whose careers have been put on pause just as they began. She also spoke with the League’s CEO and President, Simon Woods, who noted, Musicians’ lives are about playing music for people and communities, and they’ve been silenced. There’s an emotional strain along with the financial hardship. https://www.wsj.com//what-happens-to-the-musicians-when-th