Constituency Meetings

Throughout the Conference, you’ll gather together for stimulating meetings with those who best understand the challenges of your position: your peers. Whether you’re an executive director, board member, volunteer, staff member, or musician at a member orchestra or a member of our student constituency, there is learning designed specifically for you.

Select your constituency below to view your group’s meetings.

If you are unsure about your constituency group before Conference, please contact Member Services at member@americanorchestras.org. While in Houston, please go to the Registration Area with any questions.

Click here for a list of League staff constituent liaisons.

Any times listed are Central Time. Agendas will be posted in early spring and are subject to change; check this page for the latest version.

Artistic Constituencies

Artistic Administrators

Gather with your artistic administrator peers to discuss strategies for programming amid the total absence of certainties and with increased financial pressures and audience demands.

Composers

Gather with fellow composers and composer-supporting organizations for a mix of discussions and presentations focused on the important opportunities and challenges facing orchestral composers today.

Conductors

Gather with your conductor peers to share your most creative programming ideas and biggest challenges, plus learn how to improve your mobility and prevent injuries for a long and fruitful career.

Musicians

Join your orchestral musician colleagues for discussions, presentations, and fellowship. A wide variety of topics will address personal and musical growth, orchestral trends across the country, and opportunities to highlight work being done by musicians in our host city of Houston, Texas.

Staff and Volunteer Constituencies

Development

Topics to be announced soon!

Education/Community Engagement

Education and community engagement professionals will gather in a mix of open discussion and panel presentations to discuss topics specific to both sides of this portfolio: education and community engagement. Topics are in development but typically include strengthening partnerships, assessing program effectiveness, improving internal collaborations, and more.

Please also join us for a dedicated Pre-Conference Half Day Meeting discussing one or more topics, hearing from peers and local guests, and sharing your challenges and successes. More specifics for this valuable time of networking and learning will become available soon, but one possible area of focus is Valued Partners: How Orchestras Can Strengthen and Support Music Education.

Equity, diversity, and inclusion

All orchestra professionals who have significant involvement in their orchestra’s work in equity, diversity, and inclusion are welcome to join this constituency for fellowship and discussions about the opportunities, issues, and emerging practices in EDI across our field.

Finance

Topics to be announced soon!

General Managers & Operations

The General Managers and Operations Personnel meetings will include the following topics: Advocacy Updates, IMA and EMA Updates and Discussion, “Successes and Challenges” Roundtables, Managing Teams, Building a Stronger Constituent Community, and a must see Back-of-House Tour of Jones Hall.

Marketing, Groups 1-2

Gather with your marketing peers from Group 1-2 orchestras for roundtable discussions and presentations on topics such AI-assisted campaign ideation and generation, concert format research and development, membership models, and perspectives on working in the arts after coming from other industries.

Marketing, Groups 3-8

Gather with your marketing peers from Group 3-8 and youth orchestras for roundtable discussions and presentations on topics such as best practices using AI at a small or mid-size organization, printed vs. digital program books, subscription models, marketing guest artists, and creating well-crafted video and graphic assets with limited time and budget.

Orchestra Board Members

Gather with your orchestra board member peers to celebrate the governance you provide your orchestras, share strategies to energize and engage your board, and discuss ways to ensure ongoing leadership succession and continuity.

Public Relations

The PR constituency will utilize a roundtable format to meet informally with peers, addressing the question of success in a challenging media market and hearing from voices outside our field. New this year: we’ll have the opportunity to interact with other constituencies in a series of Discovery Sessions.

Volunteers

Meet volunteers from orchestras across the country to discuss how we can rethink, reconstruct and “reboot” the volunteer experience; learn about award-winning projects and how to scale them to your orchestra; network with your peers; and much more.

Youth Orchestra Division

In addition to opportunities to network with your YOD peers, topics may include navigating the challenges of engaging today’s music student (attendance, overcommitment, social emotional learning); engaging alums in fundraising; and strategies for building a highly effective staff culture.

Executive Directors

Executive Directors, Group 1

Join your Group 1 executive director peers for fellowship and constituency conversations about the urgent strategic and operational issues facing our field.

Executive Directors, Group 2

Join your Group 2 executive director peers for conversations and learning sessions on the latest operational issues, strategy, and inspiring artistic opportunities.

Executive Directors, Groups 3 -4

Join your Group 3 and 4 executive director colleagues for discussions, professional development, and fellowship. Topics will include fundraising, organizational culture, technology, and more.

Executive Directors, Groups 5-6

Join your Group 5 and 6 executive director peers for fellowship and constituency conversations focusing on topics such as financial sustainability, audience development, and board and staff engagement.

Executive Directors, Groups 7-8

Group 7-8 executive directors will network with peers of a similar size budget, exchanging ideas and exploring top-of-mind topics which may include fundraising, marketing strategies, optimizing board participation, and community engagement. Constituency input will be sought as the agenda is finalized in the coming months!

Students

In addition to networking with your peers and orchestra professionals, student topics may include how an orchestra operates, a career panel, and skills you didn’t know you needed for success in the orchestra field (with how-to crash courses).

Banner: Attendees at Conference 2023. Credit: Jason Cohn.