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- The Jacksonville Symphony seeks Vice President/Chief Advancement Officer.
ZRG Aspen Leadership Group is proud to partner with the Jacksonville Symphony in the search for a Vice President/Chief Advancement Officer.
Reporting to the President & Chief Executive Officer, the Vice President/Chief Advancement Officer will be responsible for planning, implementing, overseeing, and assessing Jacksonville Symphony’s development plans in support of the organization’s strategic vision and growth. As a key member of the leadership team, the CAO will effectively represent the organization’s development interests to constituencies, both internal and external, and will work in close collaboration with the CEO, the Development Committee, and the Annual Gala Committee to achieve philanthropic goals and build a case for support.
The CAO’s primary responsibility will be to develop the overall strategy for the annual fund, estate planning and completion of the current capital campaign, especially the identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of major donors. In this effort, the CAO will primarily focus on high-net-worth individuals as well as cultivating relationships with major local and national foundations and corporations.
In addition to establishing and maintaining a personal portfolio of current and prospective major donors, the CAO will manage the development team, as well as oversee the data support function within the department, including prospect research. The CAO will succeed and lead by example in a mission-driven working environment that balances the need and relevance of programs with the efficiency of best business practices, fiscal accountability, and institutional impact.
The Jacksonville Symphony is North Florida’s leading nonprofit performing arts organization offering live performances in Jacoby Symphony Hall at the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts and other venues throughout the area. Founded in 1949, the Symphony has earned a distinguished national reputation for artistic excellence, innovative programming and meaningful community engagement. Led by President and CEO Steven Libman and Music Director Courtney Lewis, the Jacksonville Symphony reaches over 180,000 individuals through over 95 performances each season. The Symphony also provides musical instruction for youth and operates the Jacksonville Symphony Youth Orchestras.
The Jacksonville Symphony stands on the cusp of a transformative era, one that will see it reach new heights of musical achievement and community impact. Through the Orchestrating Excellence campaign, it will invest in a series of exciting goals that promise to not only enhance the Symphony’s artistic distinction but also deepen the connection with the community it serves. The Symphony’s plans are ambitious, reflecting its commitment to excellence and belief in the transformative power of music.
With excellence as their guidepost, the Jacksonville Symphony is pursuing a working campaign goal of $50 million that will result in the Symphony’s financial strength and resilience necessary to sustain their musical excellence and service to the community into the Symphony’s next chapter. $45 million has already been raised toward the Orchestrating Excellence campaign’s $50 million goal.
A bachelor’s degree and at least ten years of experience are required for this position. The Jacksonville Symphony will consider candidates with a broad range of backgrounds. If you are excited about this role and feel that you can contribute to the Symphony, but your experience does not exactly align with every qualification listed above, we encourage you to apply. All applications must be accompanied by a cover letter and résumé. Cover letters should be responsive to the mission of the Jacksonville Symphony and the responsibilities and qualifications specified in the position prospectus.
The salary range for this position is $150,000 to $170,000. The Jacksonville Symphony offers a comprehensive package of benefits, including medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 403(b)-retirement plan with employer match, paid parental leave, and generous paid time off.
The Jacksonville Symphony is committed to the inclusion of all qualified candidates. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, or participating in the selection process, please contact Tonya Malik-Carson at tonyamc@aspenleadershipgroup.com
To apply for this position, visit: https://apptrkr.com/9869057
- Seventy Thousand Met Opera Tickets, By Lottery
Good Morning,
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is paying for 70,000 Metropolitan Opera tickets to be given away by lottery, and a conservative columnist says the Right should be embarrassed that a self-proclaimed socialist thought of it first, though he expects it to convert only “a few thousand” New Yorkers (UnHerd). In Hungary, bookshops file nearly every short Japanese-style poem under haiku, senryū included, and the poet Zsolt L. Rakusz says the form took hold there because Hungarian poets already had the epigram (Asymptote).
Houston’s Ensemble Theatre, the city’s oldest Black theater company, opens its 50th season; it began in a converted pet store at 1010 Tuam Street with 60 to 75 seats (Texas Observer). Nathalie Stutzmann, music director of the Atlanta Symphony, conducted the first Rienzi ever heard in Bayreuth’s Festspielhaus and says she wants Atlanta to have a sound people can recognize, the way they once knew Ozawa’s Boston (ArtsATL).
Ben Affleck says he used AI “for lots of things” in Animals, his Netflix thriller opening October 9, but won’t say which, comparing it to a magician announcing the plant in the audience; he sold his AI company InterPositive to Netflix for nearly $600 million (The Hollywood Reporter).
And the San Antonio Philharmonic sued Harmonium of Texas, the orchestra founded by its former music director Jeffrey Kahane, the day before Harmonium’s first rehearsals, alleging he used donor and email lists to start it (San Antonio Express-News).
All of our stories below.
- How Haiku Became Hungarian
A foreign poetic form becomes local not when writers reproduce its original conventions faithfully, but when they discover what the form can do in a new language. In Hungary, Japanese short poetry encountered a literary environment already fluent in irony, epigrammatic compression, linguistic play, and knowing when to leave things out. – Asymptote
- Staying Human In The Age Of AI
The first step to building a better future is to acknowledge the reality of today. AI is not going away, and it is immensely capable across a wide range of domains. According to a recent Stanford study, 88% of organizations are using AI and the number is growing. – Think Like a Game Designer
- The Real Achievement Of Garry Trudeau’s “Doonesbury”
“(It) hasn’t simply been individual story lines, or how they jived with the historical reality in which we read them, but also the depth and breadth of human experience they charted. … Trudeau held the powerful to account, (yet) kept his attention on everyday people our politicians and (celebrities) often neglected.” – The New Republic
- The Conservatives’ Case For Mamdani’s Opera Ticket Giveaway (“Why Didn’t We Think Of It?”)
Realistically, Mamdani and his colleagues may convert a few thousand New Yorkers who would otherwise never have set foot in the Met. Even so, they will have achieved more than armies of arts administrators and music teachers, not to mention the conservative guardians of culture who deplore musical wokery. – Unherd
- Why Coltrane Still Matters
First and foremost, to him, the relationship between music and communicating with the divine was ultimately the most important thing. To him, music and doing it with excellence, was about communing with the divine, and his ultimate expression of that that everybody cites is, of course, the album “A Love Supreme.” – The Harvard Gazette
- Ben Affleck Says He Used AI Extensively In His New Movie
“I used [AI] for lots of things in that movie. I’m a little bit hesitant to point out what they are — or even talk about it — because in my business, we’re trying to foster the illusion of reality, right?” – The Hollywood Reporter
- Why Reddit Is Shutting Down Its RSS Feeds
In a word (well, two words), AI bots. – TechCrunch
- Atlanta Symphony’s Nathalie Stutzmann On Working With Orchestras
“I think musicians are artisanal people. Every morning we have to try to do better. We have to start again — to practice. Why do we practice every day? Why do we question every day a score? Why do we reread a score that we have known for 40 years?” – ArtsATL
- “Glee”s Outsized Impact On Broadway
In the 11 years since the last episode of “Glee” aired, one thing has become clear: The TV series was a game changer for musical theater. – The New York Times
- Stage Manager – The Most Stressful Job In The Arts
In theatre – and across dance, opera, musicals and concerts – the stage manager is like the air traffic controller of the production. Without them, chaos would ensue, yet they rarely get acknowledged. – ArtsHub
- Houston’s Oldest Black Theater Company Is Now 50
“Back in the mid-1970s, the late George Hawkins, founder of the Ensemble Theatre, imagined a place where Black actors could find work and perform plays that mattered. Even after he passed away, in 1990, his legacy and that dream continue to grow as the Ensemble prepares for its 50th-anniversary season starting this fall.” – Texas Observer
- Utah Bans Even More Books From Public Schools
Utah just banned seven more books from all public schools — the most it has ever banned in a single go since the state’s sensitive materials law went into effect. The additions bring the total number of books now prohibited in Utah public schools to 44. – Salt Lake Tribune
- World Monuments Fund: Funding Is The Biggest Threat To World Heritage
Of 372 nominations for the 2027 Watch list, 65% of nominators cited funding shortages and economic development as a primary challenge, up from 55% in 2024. – The Art Newspaper
- By Biological Definition, AI Is Life
There is nothing artificial about systems built from real atoms, powered by real electricity, running in real machines. The systems reproduce, vary, adapt, undergo selection and gather energy from their environment. By any working definition that draws on biology rather than philosophy or religion, that is life. – Noema
- Choreographer Pam Tanowitz, Contemporary Dance Star, On Working With Ballet Companies
“Yes, I am a ballet outsider. I don’t have all the ballet steps at my fingertips but I have a list of ballet steps and I go through them like a laundry list and experiment. … It’s hard to separate the two systems now. I have my own ideas no matter what.” – The Times (UK)
- Together Again: Back for More Stupid<a href="https://www.artsjournal.com/herman/2026/10/together-again-back-for-more-stupid.html" title="Together Again: Back for More Stupid” rel=”nofollow”>Musk and
- After 40 Years, Segerstrom Center Is Thriving, Bringing L.A.-Level Performing Arts To Orange County
Building a Lincoln Center-style multi-venue arts center in a county that was a byword for conservative suburbia seemed improbable in 1986, but philanthropist Henry Segerstrom pulled it off. Now, after getting hit hard by the pandemic, the complex is back on track, with a $14.6 million surplus last year. – Los Angeles Times (Yahoo!)
- Judge Throws Out Alec Baldwin’s Lawsuit Against Prosecutor Who Tried “Rust” Shooting Case
“A federal judge on Wednesday threw out much of Baldwin‘s civil rights lawsuit against prosecutors in the Rust case, finding they are entitled to prosecutorial immunity. Baldwin sued last year, alleging he was the victim of an out-of-control prosecution that wrongly sought to convict him for the accidental shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in 2021.” – Variety
- It Was Challenge After Challenge To Get Calder’s Clouds Back In Place At The Senate Office Building
They came down in the first place because they were too heavy, so they were remade. Restorers had to find a motor to move them the way Calder intended. Installing them in a Congressional building meant extra bureaucratic hurdles. And the particular black paint Calder used had been discontinued. – The New York Times
- Moribund San Antonio Philharmonic Sues Brand-New Orchestra Harmonium Of Texas
“The Philharmonic alleges (Harmonium founder) Jeffrey Kahane misled the (Philharmonic) when he resigned (as its music director) in January … (and) that Kahane used ‘trade secrets’ to which he had access — including donor lists and an email marketing list — to assist him in starting the competing orchestra.” – San Antonio Express-News (Yahoo!)
- Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger Clears Final Hurdle As Judge Approves Lawsuit Settlement
“On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín, who is overseeing the antitrust case aimed at blocking the Paramount-Warner Bros. deal approved Paramount’s settlement with the 12 Democratic state attorneys general who brought the case to resolve the litigation.” – Variety
- Blind Man Sues British Museum Over Lack Of Bayeux Tapestry Audio Guide
“Dr. Yusuf Ali Osman alleges that the museum is breaching equality laws by failing to provide audio-described tours of the exhibition for blind visitors.” – The Independent (UK)
- If I Could But See It A Dazzling Graphic Biography of William Morris<a href="https://www.artsjournal.com/herman/2026/09/if-i-could-but-see-it-a-dazzling-graphic-biography-of-william-morris.html" title="If I Could But See It
A Dazzling - How Does Broadway’s Current Longest-Running Musical Keep Going? Celebrity Stunt Casting, Of Course
The lead producers of Chicago, Fran and Barry Weissler, now make a point of having someone in the cast with a following from outside Broadway — from film, scripted television, or, most recently, reality TV such as The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, Vanderpump Rules, and America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. – Billboard
- It’s Getting More And More Difficult To Tell What’s Real
Life on the internet has become, among other things, a test of patience and an experience of gruelling duration; the ad somehow continued for more than three minutes. A captive audience, it turns out, gets crude digital puppetry as its just deserts. – The New Yorker
- It Seems Queen Elizabeth I Did Not Write All Her Letters — Particularly The Furious Ones
A researcher has analyzed more than 500 of her “scribal letters” — correspondence from the queen but in the handwriting of her secretaries, notably principal royal secretary Francis Walsingham — and found that they sometimes altered the queen’s own language for strategic reasons, including to make her appear even angrier than she was. – Smithsonian Magazine
- Humanists Versus AI
The vibes, less pollable but perhaps no less palpable, are noxious. Students boo speakers who extol A.I. in commencement addresses, and consumers deride celebrities and brands that embrace the technology. – The New Yorker
- Lawsuit Over AI Music Pits Canadian Arts Against American AI Companies
AI music is becoming a battleground over the future of tech, culture and community. – The Conversation
- Fresno Considering Privatizing Its Libraries
“Our public libraries are public and should stay public. We don’t need private corporations coming in and laying people off and censoring material.” – ABC Fresno
- Kyle Abraham Renames His Dance Company (Again)
“Kyle Abraham’s company is now officially the Kyle Abraham Dance Vanguard. It’s not the first time the contemporary troupe has changed names: Abraham launched it in 2005 as Abraham.In.Motion, later revising it to A.I.M by Kyle Abraham in 2019.” – Dance Magazine
- Why Does Contemporary Australian Theatre Ignore Class?
“Why are our playwrights so ill at ease with middle-class educated characters? … In our contemporary affluent society, with its energetic social mobility, it is the middle class, not the working class, which gives Australia its character and flavour. – The Saturday Paper
- Can Trump Really Demolish The Kennedy Center?
The legal fight over Mr. Trump’s takeover of the center has revolved largely around one important statute, first passed by Congress in 1958. It established a National Cultural Center and then was amended in 1964 to dedicate the institution to President Kennedy after his assassination. – The New York Times
- How The Architecture Of Sound Is Changing Cities
The sounds of the city weren’t just decorative, musical — they could define the physical contours of a space as dramatically as a concrete wall or an open door to the street. – Reasons to be Cheerful