The Moods of Music

Although the local orchestral scene has not been without flare-ups of fiscal desperation in recent seasons, none of our professional orchestras are currently imperiled. The moods of orchestral administrators in the area range a narrow gamut from cautious optimism to equally controlled worry.

The king among major orchestras in income from ticket sales and other revenue, the Los Angeles Philharmonic will earn almost 80% of its $27-million budget. Much of that money comes from the summer throngs at the Hollywood Bowl, and the condition of the aging facility is a concern for executive vice president Ernest Fleischmann. “The Bowl provides a tremendous income, but the Bowl is also going to require an enormous capital infusion over the next 10 years,” he says. “Otherwise, we are managing to balance our budgets and keep our heads above water.”

The Pacific Symphony also earns 80% of its budget, and just received a $150,000 challenge grant from the Irvine Foundation, designed to stimulate large individual contributions. The orchestra, however, is also showing some of the stigmata that characterized the final years of the Oakland Symphony. Last year, it generated a $250,000 deficit on a $3.8-million budget, despite starting the season with a surplus.

This season the budget has increased again, to $4.7 million, with a projected surplus that would be used to reduce the accumulated debt. “We’re working very hard to meet that goal,” says executive director Louis Spisto. “It’s trying to keep pace with tremendous growth--that’s the challenge.”

The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra budget has also been growing, boosted in part by its role as the orchestra for the Los Angeles Music Center Opera. The budget this year is $2.8 million, and “so far, we are on target,” states executive director Deborah Rutter. Nonetheless, she warns: “The struggle to sell tickets and raise money will never end until we have an endowment to support us.”

The Long Beach Symphony had a highly publicized brush with death in 1984-85, but is now operating in the black on a $1.3-million budget, buoyed by a 25% increase in ticket income. “Last year was the first time in a decade that the Long Beach Symphony has been in a stable situation,” reports general manager Mary Newkirk. “Oakland, New Orleans, Long Beach--we’re all pages out of the same book.” She predicts that the next three to five years will be a period of stable growth for the orchestra.

Last season--its 60th--was particularly successful in fund raising for the Pasadena Symphony, according to executive director Robert McMullin. Still, he says, “It’s difficult for me to see how we’re going to be able to keep pace with inflation. I think we have some real challenges ahead of us.” The budget for this season is $725,000, and without a deficit.

The Glendale Symphony faces no deficit on its $500,000 budget, supported by a strong subscriber base--which renews annually at a 95% rate--and a hefty bank account. “We have reserves that could carry us a year,” says association vice president Shirley Seeley. “We’re very careful what we do. We don’t spend anything we don’t have in the bank.”