(The Shared Baton) What It Means to Lead an Orchestra in Public
Conversations about orchestral leadership often focus on vision, charisma, or innovation. These qualities matter—but they are secondary to a more consequential question:
Who takes responsibility for risk?
In an orchestra, risk is everywhere. Musical risk. Reputational risk. Financial risk. Human risk. Yet responsibility for that risk is often diffused—softened by process, shared across committees, or quietly shifted onto musicians, educators, or audiences.
Public trust is not built by avoiding risk. It is built by leaders who take responsibility for it.
