A Conversation With An Orchestra Website

Properdiscord.com recently posted a video entitled A conversation with an orchestra website preceded by the following description: “I was looking at orchestra websites today. They annoyed me. I started to wonder what they would say if they could talk.” True that. And the resulting video is laugh out loud hilarious. With the annual orchestra website reviews about a month away this video couldn’t appear at a better time so take a moment and watch the video… (more…)

Looking Like A Genius Has Never Been Easier

Have you ever wondered what separates a mere schmuck with a stick from a bona fide maestro? Are you strangely attracted by the magnetic charm of a cape and ascot? Are batons really more magical than magic wands? If you answered “Oh dear God, YES!” to any of those questions (who are you kidding, of course you did), then brace yourself for one of the most remarkable websites endorsed by one of the most mystical maestros of our time… (more…)

Brusilow’s Big Top

It seems that the Richardson Symphony Orchestra (RSO) situation is catching the attention of a diverse cross section of readers including none other than Dixon, the ever-sharp mind behind the hit orchestra biz comic strip, Who’s Minding The Score? Apparently, the entire to-do has him so inspired that he went out and bought a box of crayons in order to draw an editorial cartoon in blazing techknowcolor*… (more…)

Excellence In Excellence!!

This was just too good not to post. Yesterday’s hugh’s daily cartoon absolutely made my day. It manages to sum up a lot about this business in three simple words. The Hugh in hugh’s daily cartoon is Hugh MacLeod, author of Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity. More about all of that here.

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Debbie Does Dvorak?

Perhaps the best we to preface this is to say it comes from the digital desk of conductor Bill Eddins who started off a recent post with the following: “My Board chair is going to have fits, and I can just hear our Executive Director banging her head against a wall.  But folks, sometimes you have just got to throw the stuff out there.” With an intro like that, you know it’s gonna’ be good and Bill doesn’t disappoint as he provides a blow by blow account of one of the funniest patron complaint letters ever… (more…)

League Acquires Inside The Arts Cultural Blogging Exchange

The League of American Orchestras is pleased to announce that it has acquired the Inside The Arts Cultural Blogging Exchange. This new responsibility includes directly managing the Inside The Arts portal and exercising editorial control over each of the member blogs; Adaptistration, Brian Dickie, Butts In The Seats , Double Bass Blog, Neo Classical, non divisi, Scanning The Dial, Sticks and Drones, and There’s Always Room For Cello. With the exception of Adaptistration, all blogs will feature the existing authors. Details of the agreement are available in the following press release… (more…)

It’s Officially A Hit!

Since its launch earlier this month, Adaptistration’s new orchestra life cartoon, Who’s Minding The Score?, has been a unmitigated, smashing success! Traffic on publication days is through the roof (as in twice of the blog’s daily average traffic, which is great to begin with) and it stays strong through the remainder of the week. Thanks to Google Analytics, the metrics confirm that readers are coming in from all over the country and posting pointers at Facebook, Twitter, and email. The good news is if you haven’t discovered it yet, you have four strips to enjoy back to back… (more…)

Who’s Minding The Score?

It’s official, there is now a comic strip dedicated to the insanity we call the orchestra business. Who’s Minding The Score? will be published (more or less) every Sunday and you can keep track of the satirical goodness at: http://www.adaptistration.com/toons. The newest toon goes live this Sunday, 3/7/2010 and we’ll be adding supplementary content to the site on a regular basis over the next several months so make sure you stop by to see what’s new… (more…)

Every Veiled Insult Conceals A Shit-Eating Grin

One of the real challenges of communicating solely though print is the inability to rely on body language or inflection to convey intent. Case in point, in his Huffington Post article from 2/16/2010 Michael Kaiser writes that he is sorry for causing any arts manager grief if their institutional stakeholders pushed back against proposed artistic cuts using Kaiser’s mantra that fiscal health and large, important artistic projects are not mutually exclusive… (more…)

San Antonio Announces New Music Director SPOILER!

The San Antonio Symphony (SAS) plans on announcing their new music director today at 10:30am CT but one of Adaptistration’s moles inside the organization has gone to great lengths to leak the name in advance of the announcement. As is the trend, the SAS opted for a young conductor; someone with boundless energy who isn’t afraid to teeter on a ledge to get the most out of ensemble. Adaptistration has obtained confidential video of the young dynamo in action. Read on for the spoiler announcement… (more…)

Financial Crisis In The Board Room!!

There are few emotions as powerful as the urge to blame, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be funny. Mel Brooks, a master at disarming animosity through humor, once said “Bad taste is simply saying the truth before it should be said” and if you take a long hard look at some of the things we do in this business (all of us) you begin to see that we’re ripe for satire. After all, if we can’t laugh at ourselves then, well, you know the rest. So enjoy this orchestra cartoon sneak peek…

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Secret Lives Of Great Composers

You have to love serendipity. A few months ago, I came across a new release in my neighborhood book store, Secret Lives of Great Composers: What Your Teachers Never Told You About the World’s Musical Masters by Elizabeth Lunday. I spent a good 20 minutes reading the book and was going to buy a copy but unfortunately, I didn’t have my wallet. Not two days later I get an email from Melissa Monachello, the Publicity Manager for Quirk Books (Ms. Lunday’s publisher) offering a review copy of the book… (more…)