The Sault Symphony Orchestra Written by David Lind and Pelham Matthews (07/20/20) Introduction The Sault Symphony Orchestra is an orchestra linked to the border towns of the same name Sault Ste Marie, Ontario and Michigan. The main office is in Sault Ste Marie Ontario. The orchestra performs in both countries and was formed in the 1950's, by Don Buchan, Ed Shrubsole and Ed and Katherine Gartshotre. On inception, the orchestra was known as the Sault Symphonette Their principal sponsor was Algoma Steel Corp. and they would give live concerts and perform on multiple radio broadcasts throughout each yer. In the late 1960's, the organization renamed itself as the Sault Symphony Orchestra, a Nonprofit entity, and the orchestra established a Board of Directors and joined the Ontario Federation of Symphony Orchestras. In the mid-1970's the organization re-branded themselves as the Sault Ste Marie International Association to show that there was an increasing interest for the orchestra from both sides of the border. They also developed a partnership with the Sudbury Symphony Orchestra and performed many joint concerts with them. Later the name of the organization would again change to the current name, "The Sault Symphony Association". Dr. John Wilkinson would be given the title of music director and conductor, a position he still holds to this day. With additional funding from the Ontario Arts Council, the Sault Symphony Association and the Conservatory (a local Sault Ste. Mario Ontario music school and Ontario's second largest music conservatory) established a CORE musicians' program, and retained two musicians Anya Mallinger (concertmaster) and Bernadette Merritt (principal cellist), who are still with the Symphony today. Programming The Sault Symphony Orchestra (SSO) currently performs 4-6 concerts a year. Their season generally extends from October to April. In October the orchestra performed The Ultimate Halloween Concert and in December they performed The Nutcracker by Ballet Jorgen. Future plans include the performance of Beethoven's 250th birthday and a special performance by The Pierre Schryer Band. Depending on the predicted size of attendance the symphony chooses what venue to perform at, with two primary venues in Sault Ste Marie Ontario, being the Sault Community Theatre Centre, and the Central United Church, while the venues in Sault Ste Marie Michigan include St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral, and the Soo Theatre. As one of their major fundraising projects the SSO also performs at the Beer, Beethoven, and Bratwurst Festival each year. This festival is a local day-long event that includes, food, games and music. Some of these events, however, regularly operate at a loss. Promotion activities The SSO has a Facebook page, and both Twitter, and Instagram accounts, as well as a its own website. SSO use these mediums to advertise current and upcoming events. There have been some comments that the current set up of the website, makes it difficult to obtain relevant potential concert information. The complaints state that: The website is disorganized and uninviting. The Twitter account has not been updated since April of last year and The Instagram was last updated in February, it is now March It seems none of these media platforms are not being used effectively, as most people are unaware of the Sault Symphony Orchestra. Funding and Donations Currently in addition to revenue from ticket sales from their various performances, and other fundraising efforts, the SSO relies on numerous levels of funding. The SSO website has information on ways the general public can donate. The organization receives donations from both private citizens and corporations. Their donations and sponsorships are grouped based on the amounts received: Concert sponsors are those that donate $2000 +, Platinum Sponsors for donations between $1000 - $1999, Gold Sponsors for donations between $750 - $999, Silver Sponsors between $500 - $749 and, Bronze Sponsors between $250 - $499. In the past, SSO also received a grant from the Ontario Arts Council. Two years ago SSO generated total revenues of $18,200 from all sources. Last season SSO generated revenues of $11,071 from all sources. The partial income sheet for the first part of this season reveals revenues of $13,000. It also appears that SSO have not again been successful in receiving the funding previously received from the Ontario Arts Council. There has been a steady decline in the funding SSO receives. Finances There are different venues utilized by the SSO , and the costs for these venues varies according to which one is used: The Community Theatre costs vary based on the size of the audience. The Symphony has to pay a fee which is $3 per person in a seat. Central United costs $800, St Luke's costs $375 and, the Precious Blood Church is free. There are additional expenses are incurred for each performance in order to generate the sale of tickets. The box office charges $4 per printed ticket, and on top of the cost of the ticket and printing SSO must pay 3.5% to the credit card companies on all ticket credit card purchases. Should the patron purchase online SSO are charged the online sale charges of $2.50 for each electronic ticket issued. If a patron picks up the ticket at the box office, there is no service fee. In addition to these expenses , some of the musicians are paid for their services. The concertmaster Anya Mallinger is paid $150 per service for rehearsals and concerts. Maggie the cellist receives, $65 per service, Barbara the bassoonist, $65 per service when needed. Randy who plays the horns, receives a stipend of $150 USD per concert. There are other musicians that are brought on as extras for certain concerts. These musicians are paid a $65 CDN fee for their services, with traveling expense of $50 CDN for those traveling from afar. Musicians attend 3-4 practices prior to a concert. The bigger the musical work/production, the more expensive it is with respect to musician expenses. The Symphony usually imports 2-4 brass and 1-2 extra horn players. Viola player Jan gets a $150 USD stipend when needed. Cellist Liz is often called upon and gets $65 CDN plus travel per service. The players brought on are usually paid for three sessions: the Friday night rehearsal, Saturday rehearsal, and Saturday concert. If there are two concerts back to back (such a special Sunday concert), then the players are paid for four services. Conclusion The Sault Symphony Orchestra seems to lack an appropriate marketing strategy designed to increase their revenue. There has been a decrease in concert attendance which can be attributed to lack of awareness, as well as the disinterest of the younger generation in symphonic concert music. It also seems that as the city's population ages, concert attendance decreases. 

Does the SSO have the right programming to attract a younger audience to come out to SSO concerts. There has also been decreases in both donations and grants. Should a plan be developed to deal with these issues? The Board is looking for one year, three year and five-year plan to help stimulate SSO revenue growth in the Algoma district and northern Michigan communities. In order to see revenues increase, a concrete plan should be developed that will increase attendance, sponsorship, and donations. The Board believes such a plan should incorporate a marketing campaign, that might also include community outreach to foster relationships between all levels of musicians in the Algoma Region and northern Michigan communities, that will increase the public awareness of the Sault Symphony Orchestra