Changes in a chorus’s life cycle, such as moving from the founder stage or hiring its first paid administrative staff, often result in a reexamination of its governance structure. Many organizations...

1. Know why you need diversity We live in a very complex world. Few problems have simple solutions. Having a board made up of different kinds of people makes it more likely that issues will be looked...

For example, what if an involved and supportive board member offers to print your season brochure “at a reduced cost?” What if a father threatens to sue claiming that the new music director is...

[In this article, the term founder encompasses those individuals who have had significant and long-term impact on an organization, as well as those who were responsible for creating the organization.]...

Find the Right Prospects The first step in finding new board members is to take stock of your existing resources. A nominating or governance committee can review the skills and abilities of the...

“We work together to make an artistic vision possible,” says Tom Luhnau, former executive director of the Seattle Men’s Chorus. “The board guards the mission. The artistic director and I treat each...

A few months ago, I went to The Washington National Cathedral for the Cathedral Choral Society’s Carmina Burana Sing-Along where hundreds of people came to try their hand at the "O Fortunas" and...

Of all the nightmares that can disturb a choral conductor’s sleep, the one concerning the opening section of the “Pilgrim’s Chorus” from Wagner’s Tannhäuser must be among the most feverish. “There is...

It has been one of the holiest commandments of nonprofit religion for generations: Give and get, or get off the board. But it is an ethic that may well be obsolete, according to nonprofit leadership...

1. What is “success” for our chorus? How do we define success? Is success defined only in artistic, economic, or competitive terms? What incentives do we have in place? What do we reward? How do we...