I Don't Want to Learn any more Skills!

I was extremely fortunate to have had excellent training as a pianist and a musician. (I’ll do another post about my early years and my teachers later). I’ve been thinking a lot about my time at the Mannes College of Music in NYC. Mannes is one of the top conservatories in the country, and as a student, my only responsibility, the only expectation, the only goal was to be the best musician that I could be. Yes, I had to work, but apart from that, my singular focus was to become an excellent musician. When I wasn’t practicing, I was thinking about music, going to concerts, discussing music, surrounded by music- a piece of heaven that was all too brief.

When I was invited to start Orchestra Miami, the only thing that I really knew how to do was to make music. Of course, I had the  help of some incredibly patient people who taught me valuable skills along the way, but I was singularly unequipped to start a business.

As we approach our 20^th anniversary, my goal is to get back to more music and leave the administrative work to someone else. So, I thought I would give you an idea of all the non-musical things that I have learned and am responsible for, in order to keep Orchestra Miami going.

In the beginning, there were the 77 Q & A’s (the what? I had never heard of this!) which needed to be asked and answered in order to write the business plan (Business Plan? I thought we were going to play music?) and create the artistic vision and statement. Then a Board of Directors had to be formed, By-Laws written, legal filings done to form a corporation, and so much more. I never would have been able to do any of this without the brilliant, eternally generous and patient Javier Reynaldos, for whom I will forever be grateful.

Me & Javi

Then you have to raise the money. I had to learn how to make a presentation, give the 30 second “elevator” pitch, learn how to arrange meetings and go talk to people who thought that I didn’t have a snowball’s chance of success. I learned how to not fall apart when people laughed at me. It took me a very long time to learn that no doesn’t always mean no, that it often means “not now”. Without the friendship, dedication and support from Orchestra Miami’s first board president, Elizabeth Yeh Singh), none of this would have happened.

Elizabeth Yeh Singh

I had to learn how to write grants. I will always be grateful to Xavier Cortada for giving me his creative and extremely helpful advice on how to write budgets for grants. I had to learn how to write concise narratives, how to collect and analyze data, how to quantify metrics- all of the things that make me want to scream and run away. The patient, extremely helpful and kind staff at the Miami-Dade Department of Cultural Affairs talked me off a ledge many times and helped through many of the grant processes.

Then once the money was there, I had to learn how to produce a concert. How to pick the date, rent the hall- is there staff at the hall? Who takes care of the box office? What about PR? Security? Parking? All of this had to be learned.

I learned how to hire personnel and manage staff. I learned where and how to acquire and rent or purchase the music we were playing, how to make sure that the music was properly bowed and distributed for practice before the rehearsals. Make sure the royalty is paid and the ASCAP and BMI licenses are up to date. All this in addition to, of course, deciding on the repertoire and soloists, learning, rehearsing and conducting the concerts.

I had to learn about creating a budget and making a payroll. I will be forever grateful to the talented and extraordinarily patient Susie Diaz for teaching me how to use QuickBooks, how to reconcile the accounts, how to create and issue the 1099’s each year and so much more. Tax acknowledgement letters needed to be created and sent and for years I wrote every thank you note by hand, no matter how small the donation.

Susana Diaz, accountant and a gorgeously talented soprano!

I had to learn how to build a website and how to utilize social media to promote the orchestra. Kicking and screaming, I finally learned how to use Instagram this past year- we had to let go the nice person who was helping with social media (no money now that the State of Florida grant is gone).

I have had to learn how to manage bureaucracy and politics, and how to approach corporations for sponsorships. I have learned more than I ever wanted to know about tech: building a stage, what sound and lights do we need? How many cameras? Do we need a wind screen for the mics or wind walls for the stage? What kind of projector do we need? Can we project against the back wall or do we need a screen? Do we need a permit for that. The permit costs how much??!! Daniel Sell and Barbara Goicoechea from ACT Productions have been Godsend. And God bless Ray Breslin- our New Year’s Eve Celebration would not exist without him.

Ray Breslin greeting the crowd at our 2025 New Year's Eve Celebration

What else? I got a scholarship to go to fundraising school in Indiana for a weekend seminar. I learned a lot, but I still hate asking for money. I learned that if I let one thing drop, it comes back to me ten-fold. Deadlines are hard, sleep be damned, and inevitably, they all come at once.

There are so many more intangible things that I have learned. This list really is just a drop in the bucket. During the season, my days are spent entirely at the computer, sadly not at the piano or studying scores. I want my life back and I want to be a musician again. That’s why I’m pushing for help.

Oh, and did I mention that for most of this, I don’t get paid? I only recently started paying myself a salary, but when the money is gone, I don’t get paid. As I write this, I haven’t been paid since March. So if you can, would you donate $20 to celebrate our 20 years? Of course you can always give more, but $20 is a great way to start. And I would be very grateful. You can make your gift here. Thanks for reading and for being a part of the Orchestra Miami family.