Director, Entertainment & Community Programming

Who is the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra?
Known for its artistic excellence for more than 120 years, today the PSO is the region’s national and international cultural ambassador. A two-time 2018 GRAMMY® Award-winning orchestral ensemble credited with a rich history of concerts, performances, and recordings with the world’s finest conductors and musicians, the PSO consistently demonstrates a genuine commitment to Pittsburgh’s citizens, regional communities, and vibrant cultural scene.

Job Purpose:
The Director of Entertainment & Community Programming leads the program planning and contract implementation of entertainment and community concerts presented by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO).  The role of entertainment programming is to generate maximum net income and audience engagement from programs that appeal to non-classical audiences.  It includes Pops subscription series (popular music genres or artist with orchestra), movies with live orchestra, and popular artist with orchestra specials (off-subscription concerts).  The role of community programming is to engage and connect with our region’s communities through (a) appearances at community events (including celebrations and holidays) and/or (b) concerts built with local artists to celebrate community-specific themes, typically featuring non-classical musical genres.  Community programs currently include Lift Every Voice (a celebration of Black musical artistry while improving equity within Pittsburgh’s arts community), Juneteenth (appearance at local Juneteenth festival), and may include other concerts and collaborations involving large or small PSO ensembles.

The Director will manage the contractual and business aspects of the PSO’s entertainment and community (E&C) program activity and act as a primary point of contact with artists and artist managers.  They will work collaboratively: within the Artistic Planning department to help deliver superior artist care; with the Operations department to ensure successful production of programs; and across internal departments to enrich audience experiences.

Key Programming and Artistic Planning Responsibilities:
For all E&C (entertainment and non-classical community) programs:

• Engage artist managers and book artists collaborating with marketing and external advisors to select successful programs/artists for the Pittsburgh market.
• Draft, review, and process guest artist contracts; negotiate fees and build concert budgets for cross-departmental review and approval.
• Ensure contract details and riders are accurately and timely shared with Artist Care and Operations leaders to initiate hospitality and production planning (e.g., program memos).  Support as-needed follow-up with artists and artist managers on behalf of artist care, operations, marketing and PR to address questions and clarify details necessary for successful sales and production.
• Build non-classical community programs to meet PSO goals in collaboration with national- and loc-artist and PSO staff conductors.
• Collaborate with artist care to set artistic duty schedule at concerts for entertainment and community programs, providing artistic duty at concerts as scheduled.

Key Administrative Responsibilities:

• In coordination with the Vice President of Artistic Planning and Director of Artistic Planning and Administration, build and manage the E&C (non-classical) programming budgets. 
• Contract and manage relationship with program note writer, write and proofread E&C content for program books, marketing materials, and press releases.
• Contribute to digital and media initiatives.
• Serve as liaison together with Front of House, Marketing and Guest Experience Team to create unique and revenue-generating experiences for patrons. 

Required Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Music or equivalent, with ability to demonstrate strong knowledge in classical music repertoire, Master’s degree in Music or Arts Administration preferred.
• At least seven years of experience in arts management or administration, preferably in performing arts. 
• Ability to work flexible hours, particularly weekends and evenings.
• Proficiency in MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Teams.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Highly self-motivated and able to prioritize multiple projects with a high level of energy.
• Capacity to work under pressure and as a team player.
• Exercise high degree of discretion with guest artist’s sensitive information and be sympathetic and attentive to their individual needs.

Desirable skills, experience, and qualifications:

• Proficiency in OPAS database 

Physical Requirements:

• Ability to work on a computer.
• Ability to stand for long periods of time.

Compensation and Location:
This is a full-time position with an annual salary range between $65,000 - $70,000 depending upon experience. We also offer a comprehensive benefits package which includes paid holidays, paid time off, employer paid health benefits, as well as retirement savings options with an employer match. Heinz Hall in downtown Pittsburgh is the work location for this position. The PSO supports a flexible, hybrid work environment, including both in-person and remote work. This position does include working on weekends and evenings during PSO concerts or events.

Pittsburgh Symphony, Inc. (PSI) provides equal opportunity to all qualified employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, ancestry, national origin, age, physical or mental disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other class or category protected by local, state, or federal law.

The specific statements shown in each section of the description are not intended to be all-inclusive. They represent typical elements and criteria considered necessary to perform the job successfully. 

The PSI recognizes that an individual with a disability may require a job modification/accommodation to enable them to successfully perform a job function.  Consideration will be given to such requests. Such requests should be directed to Human Resources.