Re: Re: Re: Florida Philharmonic


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Posted by Steve Dedman on May 11, 2003 at 00:44:56:

In Reply to: Re: Re: Florida Philharmonic posted by TubaRay on May 11, 2003 at 00:17:01:

Best wishes, Jay...

From cnn.com:


Near-broke Philharmonic seeks
'hero'

Saturday, May 10, 2003 Posted: 9:33 AM EDT (1333 GMT)


BOCA RATON, Florida (AP) -- The near-broke Florida
Philharmonic Orchestra needs a "hero" to give it $500,000
by Saturday.

Either that, or a sold-out house Friday night saw the 19-year-old
orchestra's final performance.

The philharmonic's seemingly imminent collapse would follow the failures
of several others nationally, most recently the Colorado Springs,
Colorado, San Antonio, Texas, and Savannah, Georgia, orchestras.

"It's very sobering," said Ben Hausmann, 25, who played the oboe in the
Savannah Symphony Orchestra until it stopped performing in February
and recently performed for seven weeks with the Florida Philharmonic.

Sluggish ticket sales and a steep drop-off in donations have contributed
to the money woes for the philharmonic and its 80 musicians. Board
director Daniel Lewis has personally pledged $16 million, but that alone
has not placed the orchestra on firm financial footing.

Orchestra officials recently said $4 million was needed to prevent
bankruptcy, but they lowered that figure to $500,000, which could keep
the nonprofit afloat through the summer.

"The future's just not going to be easy. It's going to be the same uphill
battle this organization has always faced and I'm not sure it has the
energy to overcome this one," said Susan Moyer, 34, who's played cello
with the philharmonic for 10 years.

Following the matinee performance Friday, the orchestra announced it
would fire all its musicians and temporarily suspend operations as of
Saturday. Musicians, some tearful, shared hugs after receiving a rousing
standing ovation at the Spanish River Church.

Philharmonic executive director Trey Devey made one final plea to
patrons.

"It's not too late. If you have the potential to help us and to be a hero
then call us," Devey said. "We need a hero."

But some musicians and community members are holding out hope in the
orchestra's waning hours, citing the wealth of a region where
multimillion dollar donations to arts organizations are not uncommon.

"It's a shame we've come to this point but we only need $500,000 and
that's nothing for three counties," cellist Robert Devere Moore said of
the orchestra that performs in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach
counties. "I feel there's still time left in the day."

Jack McAuliffe, vice president and chief operating officer of the American
Symphony Orchestra League, said the failures of orchestras around the
country are merely a sign of the faltering economy.

In March, the debt-ridden Colorado Springs Symphony dissolved itself in
bankruptcy court, ending its 75-year run, and the San Antonio Symphony
couldn't pay its musicians, who already had accepted a 20 percent pay
cut. In February, the Savannah Symphony Orchestra canceled the rest of
its season after it couldn't pay a $1.2 million debt.



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