tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8060605.post6364764121844623593..comments2024-03-26T15:57:13.443+00:00Comments on On An Overgrown Path: How Maestro Dudamel is saving classical musicUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8060605.post-82200621857878905772017-01-11T09:10:38.002+00:002017-01-11T09:10:38.002+00:00Mathias Broucek writes "Whenever I see a cond...Mathias Broucek writes "Whenever I see a conductor in a Rolex add, a bit of sick comes up into my mouth :-("<br /><br />A surprising number of classical musicians have Rolex endorsement contracts - https://www.rolex.com/arts-and-culture/the-arts.htmlPliablehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10616598845886342325noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8060605.post-17712867350350645602017-01-11T08:08:57.664+00:002017-01-11T08:08:57.664+00:00I think that what is called for in the orchestral ...I think that what is called for in the orchestral sphere is the 'pay ratio' concept. An article on this appeared in the Guardian today, one of only a few I've come across. The article would have been the better for more examples of companies and other organizations that have implemented it, but the one prime case cited was that of Lord Richard Rogers' architecture firm. Rogers set a ratio of 6:1, meaning that the person running the company is paid no more than six times the income of the toilet cleaner. This should apply to both conductors and President/CEOs (formerly known as managers). Both would be out of work without the newest member of the back row of the second violin section. Indeed, conductors may well be out of work if they get on the wrong side of orchestras such as the NYPO or the LSO. No shortage of examples of that.Philip Amoshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11739418522974972567noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8060605.post-38665737556950560992017-01-10T13:13:37.472+00:002017-01-10T13:13:37.472+00:00I work in the contentious area of executive pay (i...I work in the contentious area of executive pay (it's how I fund my record-buying habit). We're always being told by the media that the amount CEOs get paid is sickening and the relativity between their pay and that of the workers is too wide. <br /><br />Whilst recognising that these are legitimate concerns, I'm far, far more worried by what goes on in the music business where the ratio of pay from conductor to rank and file is almost as high. After all:<br /><br />- the vast majority of companies led by well-paid CEOs are self sustaining and profit-making; by contrast most orchestras depend on direct or indirect government subsidies (Europe) and/or sponsorship (N America);<br />- major companies often employ thousands of people (the largest, tens or even hundreds of thousands) as opposed to no more than a couple of hundred (including back-room roles) in an orchestra; and<br />- a company CEO has complete leadership accountability, whereas in the orchestral world there is generally a split between artistic and commercial leadership and the former is often shared...<br /><br />All this suggests to me that star conductors are far more "overpaid" than CEOs. <br /><br />Of course top sports people and popular entertainers also make $$$$ but unlike the classical elite this is typically funded from box office receipts, CD/DVD sales, merchandising and the like.<br /><br />Whenever I see a conductor in a Rolex add, a bit of sick comes up into my mouth :-(<br />mathias broucekhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16231883003973609948noreply@blogger.com