Changes leave BSO in an upbeat mood

Dec. 6--A year ago, the sounds backstage at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra were almost dirgelike: The organization was saddled with a debt approaching $16 million, still bruised by a public fight with musicians over the appointment of a new music director and weakened by a talent drain among the staff and major board members.

After a complete sweep of top management in recent months, and with music director-designate Marin Alsop poised to jolt the scene when she leads her first concerts of the season next month, the organization seems to be on an upswing.

"Finally we have the right formula," says longtime BSO musician Jane Marvine, head of the players committee. "All the ingredients are in place. There's a very, very good atmosphere now. We all want and value the same things."

That mood got even sweeter last week with the announcement of a $1 million challenge grant -- dollar for dollar -- from the Joseph and Harvey Meyerhoff Family Charitable Funds.

If the initiative succeeds, the BSO's budget will get a welcome $2 million boost in contributed income, although that would still leave plenty of challenges.

The BSO's current annual operating budget of $25 million is dependent, in roughly equal measures, on earned income -- ticket sales, hall rentals and the like -- and contributed income from private, corporate and government sources.

The challenges of selling those tickets and raising those donations are no less daunting than in past years, of course. But the Meyerhoff Family fundraising initiative and the improved morale at the BSO should make the job a little easier now, as well as put a positive light on the regime change at the BSO, two months into Paul Meecham's tenure as president and chief executive officer, and less than six months into Michael Bronfein's term as board chairman.

"We're getting our house in order," Bronfein says. "We are rebuilding credibility." Meecham is likewise upbeat: "I have a sense that a turnaround has begun."

Starting in January, with the departure of James Glicker as president after 18 months, the situation began to shift.

Glicker had been a surprise, outside-the-box choice for president with no previous orchestral experience. The board chairman who hired him, Philip English, decided not to seek a second term and was succeeded in June by Bronfein.

The board took strong action last spring to eliminate the accumulated debt, using a portion of a $90 million endowment. And the effectiveness of the administration began to improve with interim President W. Gar Richlin, so much so that a new contract with the musicians was negotiated in September (a strike had been widely feared).

The brief Glicker era was "an experiment that failed," Bronfein says. "But there's nothing wrong with experimenting." (Glicker could not be reached this week for comment, but at the time he resigned, he said, "I felt I got a lot done -- turning around the orchestra's earned income, finding a new music director, increasing community involvement with the BSO.")

When a search committee of board members and musicians was formed to seek Glicker's successor, no one was in an experimental mood.

"We wanted somebody who was an insider, a total professional who knew the business," Marvine says, "someone who had great personal skills and leadership skills, and who could be the face of the orchestra to the community. We absolutely got that person."

The soft-spoken, affable Meecham, 49, has compiled an impressive resume.

Born in Bath, England, he studied violin and piano through his college years before taking a non-performance career path.

He has handled marketing for the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic; managed the London Sinfonietta (a contemporary music ensemble); and served as general manager (the No. 2 administrative job) of the San Francisco Symphony and the New York Philharmonic.

Meecham moved to Baltimore with his wife and two young children from the Northwest, where he was executive director of the Seattle Symphony.

"He knows how a successful orchestra is run," Marvine says. "He just gets it all."

Emil de Cou, associate conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra, seconds that. "He's one of the best," says de Cou, who was principal pops conductor of the San Francisco Symphony when Meecham worked there. "Paul is not just a great administrator. He really understands music and musicians. He'll do great things for Baltimore."

Meecham has set about replenishing the BSO staff. He appointed an interim vice president for development ("It may take a while to find the right person permanently"); a new orchestra personnel manager arrives shortly. Both of those pivotal positions had been vacant for months.

"And we're very actively looking for a new general manager," Meecham says of another critical, long-vacant post. "People are calling me about it, so I'm pleased about that. They know there's been a lot of change here. And I'm a fairly known quantity in this country."

Meecham's track record and visibility in the orchestra business should continue to yield dividends, just as Alsop's reputation and high profile will likely do when she settles in. Bronfein's confidence and commitment also bode well for the organization.

"It is rare for an orchestra to have a new leadership team coming together at the same time -- board, staff and artistic," Meecham says.

"I'm not trying to brush any of our difficulties under the rug, but I do think, in talking to musicians, key donors, the board and volunteers as well, that there's a great sense of energy and excitement about the future."

That excitement hasn't always been reflected in concert attendance this season. Many performances of classical subscription programs have drawn small crowds to Meyerhoff Symphony Hall.

Audiences haven't always looked plentiful at the Music Center at Strathmore, the BSO's second home, either, although subscriptions are up this year over last, Meecham says. Subscriptions remain flat at Meyerhoff.

"We are placing a lot of confidence in the new artistic leadership and vision to address that," he says.

"Sales in the latter part of the season, when Marin will be here, are already looking strong." (Alsop will conduct six programs between January and June; her first full season starts in September.)

The BSO's marketing has been heavily emphasizing Alsop, even in ads for concerts not conducted by her. Much is obviously expected of her in terms of pumping up box office and fundraising figures. "Marin will be a key element," Meecham says. "But the orchestra won't rest, or fall, on her shoulders alone."

Although BSO musicians famously raised objections when Alsop's appointment was pushed through by the Glicker/English administration, the talk today is all positive.

"We're looking forward to Marin's coming in January," Marvine says. "Right off the bat, there will be an incredible collaboration with the Peabody Symphony [creating a super-sized orchestra for a Richard Strauss work]. We'll be making more recordings later in the season. We've already made one -- and she isn't even officially music director yet."

Marvine is confident that Alsop will "energize the community," but is quick to add: "Frankly, it's up to the community to support a cultural jewel of this city."

The personable, straight-talking Bronfein, 51, managing partner and co-founder of a private equity firm, Sterling Venture Partners, has been encouraging the BSO board to set a strong example of that support.

"I asked members to make their contributions early, and some have made 20 to 50 percent increases," he says. "This will make it easier to go to the community."

Bronfein, whose cell phone rings Led Zeppelin's "Kashmir," has an individuality and dynamism that recalls that of a past BSO board chairman and super-fundraiser, Buddy Zamoiski. "I have a good dose of salesman in me," Bronfein says, "so I like raising money."

Some observers have wondered why board members weren't doing more to deal with the orchestra's problems during the past few years. "I don't have an answer for that," Bronfein says. "I'm guilty of some of that malaise."

But the chairman, who loves to quote his favorite motto, "Live life through the windshield, not the rear-view mirror," is clearly focused on the road ahead.

"The orchestra is way, way, way too important not to prosper and grow. I couldn't live with myself if it didn't," Bronfein says. "I want to see it become all it can be. One thing it won't be is undisciplined when it comes to fiscal management. There will be no betting the house, I can assure you."

Bronfein is concentrating on shoring up the fiscal side of the BSO. After years of accumulated deficits -- caused by declines in earned and contributed revenue, as well as increases in operating expenses -- the board withdrew $27.5 million of its endowment to wipe out all debts and provide cash reserves for the 2006-2007 season.

The remainder of the endowment, about $62 million, was transferred to a new trust fund managed by an independent board of trustees. Its principal cannot be touched.

Enforcing a balanced budget won't be easy, given the string of deficit years, but "the board is committed to fundraising," Bronfein says. "The reality is that that you have to live within your means. You can't have deficits. It's as simple as that."

Meecham will be heavily involved in the business of managing the BSO's finances. "My job is to help restore confidence," he says. "It will mean some very careful expense control. It's fair to say some members of the community are not happy we were running deficits. I think there will be people who will support the BSO when they know we are fiscally stable."

The new president will also be working on strengthening relations between management and musicians.

He has spent a good deal of time getting to know the players, holding Q&A sessions and riding the bus to Strathmore with them.

The musicians, who made many financial concessions when deficits began to rise, made even more in their latest contract, ratified in September.

"My job is to make sure their contribution was worth it," Meecham says. "It is essential that they are listened to, and heard. They have a truly vested interest in the orchestra's success."

Meecham will be looking at all aspects of the BSO. "Everything is up for analysis. I'll be looking at what is working, what is not as successful, what we need to cut back on," he says. "But changes should only be made when you're sure they're for the better, and when you have an audience for them."

Meecham, who has taken quickly to Baltimore, seems unfazed by the work of getting the BSO firmly back on track. "Before taking the job, Michael and Jane painted the situation truthfully for me," he says. "I like a challenge. I really do. And I love this business. I want to make a difference."

So, no second thoughts since arriving?

"No, not at all," Meecham says. "Quite the opposite, in fact."

tim.smith@baltsun.com

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Baltimore Sun

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