Congratulations to the board of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra on their perspicacity in appointing Caroline Sharpen as the next CEO.
Ms Sharpen has a considerable reputation on the mainland in areas vital to the future of the orchestra – audience development and philanthrophy.
She is, of course, not the first woman to fill this role. I had the pleasure of working with Julie Warne who, back in 1994, facilitated the memorable appearance of the TSO in the opening night gala concert of the Melbourne International Festival of the Arts.
The orchestra, conducted by Swiss maestro, Marcello Viotti, one of the leading figures on the European concert platform and in the opera house, was acclaimed by audience and critics alike. A landmark triumph for the TSO.
While there is cause for celebration of Ms Sharpens’s appointment there is, at the same time, considerable disappointment that the newest and most exciting musical development in Tasmania, the emergence of the splendid Van Diemen’s Band, has again been bypassed in the latest round of government grants from Arts Tasmania.
It’s a moot point as to whether some of these should rightly be funded from welfare budgets rather than what is in reality a pretty miserable allocation to the arts.
If Tasmania is to provide proof of a proclaimed growing cultural presence in the country, then a group with a proven track record that performs with distinction in both the north and south the state, that has toured to the mainland and that has produced acclaimed recordings surely deserves funding ahead of self-declared ‘emerging artists.’
Leo Schofield is a legend of Tasmanian arts. He created Hobart Baroque, then Brisbane Baroque … and won several Helpmann Awards.
A list of Leo’s credits …
Take a bow, Leo
Take another bow, Leo
Hobart Baroque: Leo Schofield’s ‘small island with big ideas’
The last of Leo …
