The Kris Sinclair Leadership Award is given to an ACSO Organizational Member that demonstrates recent successful leadership initiatives by its staff and/or board in one or more of the following areas: finance, governance, staff development, audience development, education, or community engagement.

This $5,000 award is made possible by the Kris Sinclair Fund for Professional Development, consisting of contributions made in Kris Sinclair's name to support professional development and technical assistance offered by the ACSO. Sinclair was the executive director of the Association for 31 years and provided members with technical assistance, professional development opportunities, and consultation on a myriad of orchestra management topics.

The Association of California Symphony Orchestras (ACSO) Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Sarah Weber has been selected as the association’s new Executive Director. She began her tenure in that role on January 1, 2019.

For the past two years, Sarah has served as ACSO’s Membership and Development Manager. During that time, she has executed membership renewal campaigns, written successful grant proposals, and secured corporate and individual donations. She has been a partner in program planning, managed the delivery of member services, and played a key part in producing ACSO’s signature annual conference. Her enthusiasm for inviting and growing individual participation, maintaining organizational continuity, and directing energy towards purposeful work and accomplishment will serve ACSO and its membership extraordinarily well as the organization prepares to celebrate its 50th Anniversary.

We send our thoughts and prayers to our members affected by the wildfires in Northern and Southern California. We will update this feed as we learn more from our members. Also, we will share resources with those in need and ways you can help.

Resources for those Affected

ArtsReady
ArtsReady is your cultural organization’s online source for readiness resources, and a web application that can make disaster planning easy.

It is bittersweet to share the news that ACSO executive director Mitch Menchaca has been appointed as the new executive director of arts and culture for the City of Phoenix and will be stepping down from his ACSO post November 30 to assume his new role.

Mitch joined ACSO at a transitional time when Kris Sinclair stepped down after 31-years of service. During his tenure, he worked with the board and staff to start the next era in advancement of the organization and its unique mission. This included moving the office from Sacramento to Los Angeles, finding new revenue streams in LA County, and managing the development process of a new strategic plan. Mitch also upgraded the association’s technology, hired terrific new staff and retained key contractors. He facilitated the continued growth and excellence of ACSO’s program offerings, and he invested time in enhancing the profile on the organization's advocacy efforts.

ACSO joins thousands of arts organizations and communities across the nation to celebrate National Arts and Humanities Month throughout October. National Arts and Humanities Month is coordinated by Americans for the Arts, the national organization working to empower communities with the resources and support necessary to provide access to all of the arts for all of the people. This month-long celebration grew out of National Arts Week, which was started in 1985 by the National Endowment for the Arts and Americans for the Arts.

ACSO welcomes two new board members and elects new officers for 2018/2019. New board members include Steve Friedlander, executive director of the Carmel Bach Festival and Scott Vandrick, chief development officer, Pasadena Symphony Association.

Steve Friedlander is the executive director of the Carmel Bach Festival and was previously the Managing Director of Artistic Operations of the Grand Teton Music Festival with responsibility for the administration of the music program, musician housing, facilities, and education and outreach. Mr. Friedlander joined GTMF as Stage Manager for the 2011 summer season and joined the full-time staff in November 2011 as Director of Artistic Operations. During the 2012 summer season Mr. Friedlander served as Acting Executive Director and Director of Artistic Operations.

The Association of California Symphony Orchestras (ACSO) announced today that the San Diego Youth Symphony and Conservatory is the recipient of the 2018 Kris Sinclair Leadership Award for its Community Opus Project, a music education program for elementary students.

This award is named after Kris Sinclair who was the executive director of the ACSO for 31 years and is given to an ACSO Organizational Member that demonstrates recent and measurable leadership initiatives by its staff and/or board in one or more of the following areas: finance, governance, staff development, audience development, education, or community engagement.

It is an honor and pleasure to officially welcome you to the 2018 Annual Conference – the first of many events leading up to our 50th Anniversary celebration next year. Look for special programs and activities to take place over the next twelve months as we celebrate this milestone.

We applaud our members from across the state and region for the work you do in your communities, and we are especially grateful that you made the journey to Sacramento to help us kick-off ACSO’s year-long anniversary celebration.

The California Arts Council announced its plans to award $25,500 to ACSO as part of its Statewide and Regional Networks program. The Statewide and Regional Networks program is rooted in the California Arts Council’s commitment to supporting arts service organizations reflective of California’s diverse populations. The program provides general operating grants for arts service organization networks with regional or statewide reach. Arts service organizations serve as networks to provide specialized, practical services for artists, arts organizations, and cultural communities.

ACSO is one of 43 grantees chosen for the Statewide and Regional Networks program. The award was featured as part of a larger announcement from the California Arts Council.