Directing a Departmental Ensemble

(https://music.virginia.edu/ensembles)

Departmental ensembles are for-credit classes in the MUEN course category. The ensembles meet one to two times per week for one to two hours, and are worth 1 or 2 credits, depending on the amount of rehearsal time. This category includes the chamber music sections collectively listed under MUEN 3630.

List of Current Ensembles

• African Music and Dance Ensemble
• Baroque Orchestra
• Bluegrass Band
• Cavalier Marching Band (includes Basketball Band and Olympic Sports Band)
• Chamber Ensembles organized under MUEN 3630
• Chamber Singers
• Concert Band
• Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia
• Jazz Chamber Ensembles
• Jazz Ensemble
• Klezmer Ensemble
• New Music Ensemble
• Percussion Ensemble
• University Singers (USingers)
• Voice for Stage
• Wind Ensemble

Budgets

Most departmental ensembles (and some series such as the UVACMS) have annual budgets that cover such items as production costs, publicity, accompanists’ and guest artists’ fees, cost of printing programs, music rental, equipment and instrument rental, etc. These budgets are determined in late summer by the Chair and the Department Finance and Administrative Manager in consultation with the various ensemble directors.

Auditions

Auditions are held at the discretion of the ensemble director. They can be formal or informal. Each director holding auditions submits requirements and dates for the auditions web site (http://music.virginia.edu/auditions) to the Director of Promotions. The Director of Promotions sends out a call for changes to the auditions pages in late spring semester or during the summer.

Auditions are typically held during the first week of each academic year. Some ensembles may elect to hold auditions at the beginning of spring semester as well. The auditions for large ensembles such as Symphony, Cavalier Marching Band, and USingers may take place over the course of an entire week.

Organizing a Concert for Your Ensemble

Many of our departmental student ensembles perform one to three times per year. These concerts require a great deal of organization, which is carried out according to the following procedures.

Sometime in early spring semester, after the UVA football schedule has been published, the Director of Music Production sends out a call for concert date requests (since home football games take all UVA parking near Old Cabell Hall, we cannot schedule events against them). Each ensemble director submits a written form, which includes their top three preferred concert dates and times. These requests are taken into consideration, but cannot be guaranteed due to high demand for the Auditorium. Our concerts normally start at 8:00 pm. In addition, weekend concerts are sometimes in the afternoon, starting at 3:30 pm.

The Music Department sometimes uses off-grounds concert venues in Charlottesville. Please consult with the Director of Music Performance and Music Department staff before arranging a departmental event on or off grounds.

The concert schedule is vetted by the Director of Music Performance, the Director of Music Production, the Department Chair, and the Director of Promotions to ensure that concert dates and times are assigned fairly and that conflicts are not created. The general policy of the Music Department is that we do not have two department-sponsored events running concurrently. There are occasional exceptions to this, especially during the busiest concert months (November and April).

Organizing a Tour for Your Ensemble

Occasionally our departmental ensembles (e.g., Marching Band, USingers) take tours. These are generally expected to be self-financing. If you are expecting departmental financial support for the tour, this needs to be discussed with the Chair at least one year in advance. Tour plans should always be discussed with the Chair, the Director of Music Performance, the Director of Music Production and the Director of Promotions. Music Department staff do not make travel arrangements; the ensemble directors do this themselves. Because of liability issues, if you take a student ensemble out of town each student member must sign a copy of the Student Data Form – Off-Grounds Ensemble Tour.

Scheduling and Room Use

Rehearsal Schedule and Scheduling Extra Rehearsals

Room scheduling is managed by the Administrative Assistant. Old Cabell Auditorium is scheduled by the Director of Music Production.

Regular ensemble rehearsals are a part of the Music Department course schedule, which is put together each semester by the Chair and the Chair’s Assistant and Academic Programs Coordinator and is posted on the Music Department’s web page (http://music.virginia.edu/courses). An additional page that is of use is the UVA Class Schedule (“Unofficial,” Lou’s List) maintained by Lou Bloomfield of the Physics Department (http://rabi.phys.virginia.edu/mySIS/CS2/index.php). Here you can update your own course description and provide a link to the class web site and syllabus. Note that very general course descriptions are also listed on SIS at: https://sisuva.admin.virginia.edu/psc/ihprd/UVSS/SA/s/WEBLIB_HCX_GN.H_SPRINGBOARD.FieldFormula.IScript_Main.

Extra rehearsals and any other events that are not regularly scheduled in SIS must be arranged with the Administrative Assistant. Room availability in Old Cabell Hall is extremely limited and extra rehearsal time is not guaranteed. Rooms must be reserved in advance: do not use a room if it appears to be empty without checking with the Administrative Assistant first. If it is after hours, check with the Desk Supervisor.

If you decide not to utilize your reservation, please notify the Administrative Assistant so your reservation can be cancelled, releasing the space to be used by someone else if needed.

Extra rehearsals in the Auditorium must be arranged with the Director of Music Production. If you decide not to utilize your reservation, please notify the Director of Music Production so your reservation can be cancelled, releasing the space to be used by someone else if needed.

Room Use

Room use is monitored by the Administrative Assistant.

Guidelines are as follows:

• Please remember that our rooms are classrooms, and no professor should have to waste the first 5-10 minutes of class resetting the room.
• Each time you use a classroom you are expected to reset the room completely (i.e. make sure it looks like the picture) before you leave – including setting up chairs in the proper order and putting the piano and stands away in the correct place. This applies even if you think the group after you will be using your same setup. If the room you are teaching in is out of order when you arrive, please report this to the Administrative Assistant. Have your students help rearrange the room.
• The windows in Old Cabell Hall should never be opened. Please control the temperature using the radiators and air conditioning units. We monitor the temperature and humidity of the rooms for the instruments we keep in the building, so opening windows becomes both an equipment and a security issue.
• If you move stands, chairs, or any other equipment from one room to another, please return everything to its original location when you are finished.

If you move equipment from one room to another, you must notify our equipment listserv where you are moving the equipment to and when you will be returning it. If it is a recurring move, such as for a regular class, one email for the whole semester will suffice. The email address of the listserv is: music-equipment@virginia.edu.

Like the furniture, audio-visual equipment is used by all faculty and students in the classrooms. Do not reconfigure classroom A/V equipment (e.g., by re-routing cables or plugging/unplugging components). If you need assistance with the A/V equipment, contact the Administrative Assistant.

Media Release Forms

We need to obtain signed individual performer releases from guest artists or soloists if we are going to photograph, record or video them and distribute the work, whether commercially or non-commercially (this includes simply depositing a recording of the concert in the UVA library for archiving); see documents Guests Artists/Soloists Media Consent and Release Form – Non-Commercial Projects and Guests Artists/Soloists Media Consent and Release Form – Commercial/Sales Projects. We need a signed form from each individual guest performer. The signature of a bandleader alone is not sufficient. All faculty who arrange a guest artist must ensure that forms are complete.

CD and Other Merchandise Sales

CD and Other Merchandise Sales by Departmental Ensembles and UVA Faculty

University policy is that CDs, DVDs, and other merchandise may only be marketed on grounds at the UVA Bookstore above the Central Grounds Garage. CDs may not be sold by departmental ensembles in the lobby of Old Cabell Hall or anywhere else on grounds. University facilities may not be used for personal gain, so there can also be no sales of personal CDs or other merchandise by faculty members at any University-sponsored event.

In addition, if you plan to produce a recording of a University ensemble for commercial use or public distribution, you must secure the proper publishing and performer permissions protected under US and international law.

CD and Other Merchandise Sales by Outside Guest Artists and Affiliated Student Groups

o    CD and other merchandise sales by outside guest artists and student CIOs are allowed if a Merchandise Sales Agreement is fully executed and submitted to the Director of Music Production no later than two weeks prior to the event. Only agreements with original signatures will be accepted, no faxes or scanned documents.

We are not allowed to sell merchandise for visiting artists. They must provide their own petty cash and sales personnel. We can set up a sales table for them in the lobby of Old Cabell Hall Auditorium.

Performing in the faculty Chamber Music Series (UVACMS) (http://music.virginia.edu/concert-series)

UVACMS is an annual series featuring resident faculty ensembles and solo recitals. One faculty member appointed by the chair directs the series. Currently the series consists of one concert by the Rivanna String Quartet and one concert by the Albemarle Ensemble, as well as several solo, joint or special recitals subject to budgetary constraints and programming and scheduling needs.

The Chair and the CMS director meet in spring semester to determine soloists for the following year. The selected soloists choose the repertoire for their own programs with input from CMS director, if needed, as do the Rivanna String Quartet and Albemarle Ensemble. Performing artists may choose to present mixed ensemble pieces with guest artists, subject to budgetary constraints. Programming is set by the start of fall semester.

The UVACMS program and budget are determined by the Director in consultation with the Chair and Department Finance and Administrative Manager.

All services must be pre-approved by the Chair. This applies to all performers, including Symphony principals whose participation in UVACMS exceeds their standing two-concert obligation to the Department. In addition, non-UVA performers have to be registered as vendors in the UVA system.

[Note: the rules for requesting services and receiving payment are complex; please consult Payment / Reimbursement / Purchasing and the documents Payment Guidelines and Purchasing Guidelines]

Proposing and Organizing a Guest Artist or Related Event

Events that fall outside the regular activities of ensembles or classes require special approval and funding.  The most common examples would include concerts, master classes, or residencies by visiting artists.

Planning Cycle

Sometime between mid-November and the end of fall semester, the Director of Music Performance sends out a call for proposals for the following academic year. Proposals are usually due by mid-January, so that the Performance Committee can meet and vet them at the beginning of spring semester (third or fourth week of January). Proposals should be submitted online using the form at: http://www.virginia.edu/music/forms/proposal/

To ensure that your proposal is complete and that – if approved – your event runs smoothly, you will need to consult with the following people:

• Director of Music Performance – for general advice & coordination;
• Director of Music Production– for date and time scheduling, OCH Auditorium Contract, Merchandise Sales Agreement for outside guests that want to sell merchandise, as well as sound reinforcement, recording, instrument and equipment needs. This is true even if the event will be taking place outside of Old Cabell Hall or off grounds;
• Department Finance and Administrative Manager – regarding any budgetary matters, especially for expenses not directly related to Old Cabell Hall Auditorium, which are handled by the Director of Music Production, such as the payment of honoraria for outside guest artists, contracts, visas for foreign artists, etc;
• Director of Promotions – for all publicity. This is true even if you are designing your own publicity;
• Administrative Assistant – for room reservations other than OCH Auditorium; for guest hotel reservations; for concert programs and for equipment check-out for events outside of Old Cabell Hall.

Proposal

A proposal should include a description of the project, including the name and a short bio of the artist(s) who will be involved, what their importance is for the Music Department and for UVA as a whole, planned or preferred dates (if known), planned venue (if known), intended audience and expected audience size, technical requirements and a detailed budget. When preparing a budget, you should include the following items:

• Artist(s)’ fee, Accompanist fee
• Travel costs (including cab fare or car rental to and from airport, etc.)
  • Artists should make and pay for own travel and will be reimbursed. It is preferable to lump the travel costs in the artist fee, if possible.
• Lodging
• Reception and other meals (if planned)
• Sound reinforcement (if needed). We contract before the beginning of each academic year with local sound crews.
• Video recording (if needed)
• Audio/Visual needs
• Piano or other special instrument or equipment needs
• Tuning fees
• Publicity and concert programs needs
• Venue cost(s), if known (include rental fee, house manager fee, cleaning fee, etc.)
• If you plan to use OCH Auditorium, things you need to watch out for include: ​
  • Extra time needed in the hall beyond the allotted seven hours will cost extra.
  • If you are rehearsing at odd hours (like in the middle of the night), the university police have to be notified and a house manager must be present.
• Recording (audio or video). Note that audio recording costs are extra (that includes recording rehearsals/run-throughs) and are calculated as part of the OCH Auditorium Contract. Concerts are recorded by student workers unless you arrange to use an outside vendor. Note also that we are now required to secure written permission from guest artists in order to photograph, or make an audio or video recording of their performance.
• Box office fees (if planning to sell tickets)
• Anticipated revenues:
  • co-sponsorships from other departments/programs/grants, etc;
  • a reasonable estimate of ticket sales (keep in mind that it only makes sense to sell tickets if the anticipated paying audience will be well over 30).
• “Free” events:
  • As we have discovered the hard way, even events guaranteed by outside groups as “free,” “no cost to the department,” etc. by outside parties (“we have a grant to tour,” etc.), often turn out to have significant financial costs to the Department, especially regarding OCH Auditorium fees and publicity. Please be thorough and try to account for any and all potential costs!

Approval

You will be notified early in spring semester whether or not your project has been approved, or if there need to be further discussions, modifications, etc. This will be a preliminary approval only, given the vagaries of our schedule and funding. At that point, we will begin to work with each of you to make whatever arrangements might be necessary.

Your Responsibilities in Organizing a Guest Artist or Related Event

If you propose an event and if it is approved, you are the primary contact person for that event. That means you must fill out and sign the contract if it is to take place in Old Cabell Hall Auditorium, or Brooks Hall Commons, and you must oversee and coordinate the event from start to finish.

This includes, but is not limited to:

• contacting the artist
• coordinating travel arrangements with the artist including arranging for local ground transportation, giving driving directions, etc.
• working with the Administrative Assistant for lodging arrangements
• negotiating fees and other details (do not sign any contracts! contracts are handled separately by University Procurement Services after being vetted by the Director of Performance, the Director of Music Production, and the Department Finance and Administrative Manager)
• staying in contact with the artist about their publicity materials and other details
• making sure that venue/room reservations are made
• making sure that special equipment needs are met (piano tunings, instrument purchases or rentals, a/v needs including projection systems)
• making sure that the Media Release forms are completed
• making sure the Merchandise Sales Agreement is signed and submitted (if applicable)
• arranging for an accompanist or other guest performers
• arranging for special meals and receptions
• making sure that there is water backstage
• working with a house manager (if one is assigned)
• working with Department staff to ensure all policies and procedures are being followed

Accompanists

The Music Department provides accompanists for Distinguished Major recitals and vocal juries. In all other cases, students must make their own arrangements. The Director of Performance maintains a list of outside accompanists approved to perform on DMP recitals and juries who can be paid with departmental funds. Students cannot be required to pay fees beyond tuition and lesson fees, and cannot be required to hire accompanists for events such as studio or Tea-Time recitals. Never ask for or accept money from students.