A symphony of thanks

RALEIGH -- My name is Jimmy Gilmore and I play clarinet with the North Carolina Symphony.

I'm calling to say thank you.

Symphony musicians hope those two simple sentences will hit donors in the right place - in the heart, not necessarily in the wallet.

Hunkered down in cubicles in the symphony offices at North Hills shopping center, they called donors on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings last week, and plan a final phone bank Monday, with a goal of trying to reach 700 to 800 supporters each night.

"Jimmy [Gilmore] got one donor who said, 'So are you calling to ask for money?' Jimmy said, 'No, we're calling to thank you,'" said Mary McFadden Lawson, the symphony's vice president for philanthropy. "And the donor replied, 'So you're buttering me up for next time?'"

No, really. The symphony is feeling pretty appreciative. In the first half of the 2009-10 fiscal year, the people who gave money and bought tickets to shows helped the symphony raise $4.63 million. The symphony has to raise $8 million by June 30 to trigger a state challenge grant of $1.5 million.

The musicians are working from a script but often segue to real conversation with people who had donated any amount of money to the symphony since July 1. About 30 minutes into Tuesday's shift, percussionist Ken Whitlow came up to Lawson, the symphony's vice president for philanthropy, needing help.

"It didn't take me long to get in trouble," Whitlow said. "Now how do you pronounce this name?"

Forty-six of the symphony's 69 musicians were scheduled to participate. Conductor Grant Llewellyn also made trans-Atlantic calls from his home in Wales on Tuesday.

The musicians, through their orchestra committee, came up with the idea for the "thank-a-thon." The orchestra committee and management met in October, searching for ways to get the musicians more involved with the symphony's efforts to get out of debt.

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We thought it was a good idea for the musicians to reach out to our audience," said principal trombonist John Ilika, who is part of the orchestra committee.

Connecting with listeners

Violinist Jess Levin was chuckling during one of his calls. He didn't know the donor, but they shared memories of concerts in Wilmington in the run-down concert hall there years ago. They were remembering the white sheet that had served as a backdrop and the hard metal chairs the audience occupied at the hall at one time, glad that the space had since been refurbished.

"It's interesting to try to make a connection," said Levin, a symphony member for more than 35 years. "I'm not accustomed to cold-calling. But we're thanking them and a number of times they turn around and say they want to thank us for playing. It's a little bit like what we feel when we play and the audience applauds."

Violinist Bonnie Stoughton was another symphony lifer on the phone Tuesday. She had hooked up with a number of donors who said they remember seeing the symphony while in grade school.

Stoughton got excited after talking to a woman who had recently moved with her husband to North Carolina from New York. The couple had come to a concert out of curiosity. Impressed with the quality of the music, they bought season tickets.

Soothing hurt feelings

Before the thank-a-thon, the symphony sent thank-you notes and acknowledged donors in their seasonal programs. If the gifts were big enough, someone sent a personal note. The symphony also gives a secret concert each year for its donors.

Lawson said now the symphony has people assigned to different groups of donors. No one wants to risk missing a donor.

Not every donor was happy. The musicians had to troubleshoot. Gilmore deftly handled a donor who was frustrated that her family's name did not appear in the season's program and was angered by the initial response she received from symphony staff.

Gilmore called her back and explained what had happened. Gilmore said the woman was happy someone responded, a real someone on the other end of the phone.

Bassist Bob Anderson, who is on the orchestra committee, had settled in one cubicle with his feet up on the desk while talking to one donor for about 15 minutes. They were both having fun.

The donor, who sits in Row G, close enough to see musicians' faces, had noticed a green ribbon tied to Anderson's double bass and was curious what it symbolized. She told Anderson she wouldn't let him off the phone until he explained.

He told her the green ribbon commemorated Neda Soltan, a 26-year-old Iranian woman who was shot and killed while protesting the election hijacked by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Building rapport

Many of the musicians had never had that kind of contact with the audience before. It's as if they work behind an invisible barrier between them and the audience.

"People are supportive but at the same time, a little hands off," Ilika said. "They look at us and see people who have studied so hard on our art. But we're also regular working people."

Ilika thinks gathering outside the concert and rehearsal halls is also building more esprit de corps among the musicians. Their morale has been tested over the last 18 months.

The symphony had to cut $2 million from its 2009-2010 budget, down to $11.9 million. It dropped performances that would have required hiring more musicians or paying guest artists. Everyone took a pay cut. It canceled a European tour scheduled for this year.

But the symphony has been supported by other musicians. Master violinist Joshua Bell played a private concert, and the $10,000 auction price for the performance went to the symphony. Renowned French pianist Pascal Roge waived his performance fee last month to keep a scheduled date on the symphony's calendar. Symphony board member Branford Marsalis will play a benefit show in June.

The musicians are grateful that the orchestra looks to be turning a corner.

"You know how in all our ads it says "It's Your North Carolina Symphony!" Anderson said. "Well really it's 'ours' - fans, donors, the orchestra, etc. It does take all of us to do this."