On July 22, 2000, I stood before a large Eastern Philharmonic Orchestra audience to make a plea to raise $200,000 to save the Eastern Music Festival (EMF) and avoid its imminent shuttering. The Greensboro community rallied in support, contributing more than $300,000.
In response, EMF committed to improving its financial stability, a promise it largely fulfilled. With the strong leadership of its board and Executive Director Chris Williams, EMF was operating in the black as of 2018. This is a remarkable accomplishment given economic gyrations over the same time.
The Eastern Music Festival’s 63rd season has just concluded. More than 12,000 people from Greensboro and around the country attended one of EMF’s 60-plus events this summer, enjoying the same captivating musical experiences that have made the festival part of the fabric of the Greensboro community since 1962.
Thanks to successful seasons like this one, EMF serves as a forward-facing organization that manages its finances efficiently and focuses on long-term sustainability. Just as most of us do with our personal finances, EMF gauges the impact of projected expenses against projected revenue with an eye on sustainability. It’s not an organization that is willing to sacrifice long-term viability in exchange for short-term gain.
That’s why sustainability should be top of mind as EMF representatives continue collective bargaining negotiations with newly unionized faculty now represented by the American Federation of Musicians. I was surprised to learn that seasonal faculty were seeking a 100% raise in total compensation, inclusive of salary increases, housing and pension contributions, among other considerations. According to EMF leaders, that will likely add hundreds of thousands of dollars to their annual expenditures.
Many EMF patrons have come forward in recent weeks off ering to initiate fundraising eff orts in support of the organization. I’m sure EMF welcomes these donations. This issue is not just about fundraising — as valuable and needed as that is — it’s also about preserving EMF’s fundamental purpose and student-centric mission.
I applaud EMF leaders for their steadfast commitment to remaining a teaching festival for exceptional students. To ensure the educational focus remains unchanged, EMF’s leadership must consider the practicalities of things like growing faculty size and exponentially increasing expenses. Leadership must also include provisions regarding the hiring of the number of faculty necessary to meet EMF’s educational goals, with flexibility to adjust based on budgetary and programmatic requirements.
In 2000, I promised not to make another public plea for EMF if we reached our fundraising goal. Keeping that promise, it’s my hope that the EMF board and faculty will work toward an agreement that reduces the financial risk for the festival and ensures sustainability for the organization, faculty and students for decades to come.…Read more by
