Orchestras Canada

The helpful people at Arts Consulting Group have published a useful primer on branding – what it is and why it matters. You can link to this article – and subscribe the ACG’s monthly newsletter – here: artsconsulting.com

This week, we’re focusing on resources to help member orchestras and ensembles ensure that their programming and services are accessible to all! And it’s not just a nice idea: by January 1, 2012, all Ontario businesses and not for profit organizations with at least one employee will need to meet new provincial standards for making their services accessible to Ontarians with disabilities. And if you’re outside Ontario, it’s still worth thinking about and acting on.

1. Access Ontario has developed a host of materials to help organizations meet the new standard, including free on-line tools, webcasts and information breakfasts in communities across the province. You can find out more about these at ontario.ca.

2. The most recent issue of ArtsInsights (the monthly newsletter of the Arts Consulting Group) focuses on ways that arts organizations can evolve to better engage with individuals with disabilities. You can find the newsletter here: artsconsulting.com.

3. VSA Arts, an international organization that focuses on improving access to the arts, has a great guide entitled Arts Access Made Easy. You can find it here:
vsarts.org.

4. Creative New Zealand, the New Zealand federal funding agency, has published a very helpful guide entitled Arts For All, which incorporates examples of creative accommodation from arts organizations large and small. You can find it here: creativenz.govt.nz.

We’ve got three recommendations this week.

First of all, some moderately provocative thoughts by Kennedy Center CEO Michael Kaiser on ticket pricing for performing arts organizations, on the Huffington Post, here.

Next up, some good, common sense marketing “new year’s resolutions”, courtesy of the team at Arts Consulting Group.  You can find them here.
Even better, you can sign up on-line to get their monthly newsletter in your inbox.

Finally, the League of American Orchestras is now making its award-winning Symphony magazine available on-line.  In the perky communique from the League, they state

“To celebrate the arrival of 2010, we’re introducing SymphonyOnline. Every new issue of the award-winning Symphony magazine is now available online – with all the same in-depth reports, provocative essays, and cutting-edge research that you love – plus additional content not found in the print issue.  Read, see, and hear Symphony wherever you are – at work, home, or on your iPhone. Live links, audio and video, and the ability to forward on your favorite article are just some of the exciting features of SymphonyOnline.”  You can find it all here.