Firings & Budget Deficits: Uncertainty at the Detroit Symphony Orchestra
- 5 hours ago
- 4 min read
DETROIT, MI - Encore Michigan is reporting that multiple sources close to the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) have confirmed the elimination of three key staff positions.
Last week leadership at the DSO informed employees that the positions of Director of Safety & Security, Manager of Volunteer & Patron Experiences, and Director of Culture & Inclusion had all been eliminated and that the responsibilities connected to these positions would now be managed by other members of the current staff.
As of this morning (September 7) these positions are no longer listed on the DSO website.
This news underscores the recently mixed history of the nation’s fourth-oldest symphony orchestra, as the staff cuts land against a backdrop of persistent financial strain at the DSO.
According to the orchestra’s most recently filed federal tax returns, the DSO has posted an operating deficit in three of the last four fiscal years, with expenses outpacing revenue by nearly $8 million in fiscal year 2023 (the year ending August 31, 2024) and by $3.9 million in fiscal year 2024 (ending August 31, 2025). Total revenue has also declined for two straight years, falling from a peak of $44.8 million in fiscal year 2021 to $38.6 million in fiscal year 2024.
The orchestra’s finances have been buoyed, in part, by a shift away from reliance on donations. Contributions and grants made up more than 90% of the DSO’s total revenue in fiscal year 2020 but had fallen to about 61% by fiscal year 2024, as earned revenue from ticket sales and other program services grew from roughly 2% to more than 26% of the total over the same span. Still, the organization has leaned on its balance sheet to absorb the recent deficits: net assets grew from $81.4 million at the start of fiscal year 2020 to $111.6 million by the end of fiscal year 2024, even as year-to-year operating results turned negative, while total liabilities as a share of total assets fell from roughly 12% to about 8% over the same period.
The elimination of the Director of Culture & Inclusion role also raises questions about the future of the DSO’s diversity and community-access efforts. While the DSO has several important programs, such as the African American Orchestra Fellowship, Classical Roots, and Detroit Harmony, one is left to wonder whether support for these programs will continue with the elimination of the Director of Culture & Inclusion. The African American Orchestra Fellowship, launched in 1990, has for decades been one of the longest-running programs of its kind nationally, providing career development, mentoring, and performance opportunities for African American musicians.
The staffing change also puts a spotlight on a gap that exists across the orchestra field nationally. Detroit is one of the Blackest cities in the country, with Black or African American residents making up roughly 77% of the population. Nationally, orchestra musicians in 2025 were about 76% White, 12% Asian, 4% Hispanic or Latino, and just 2% Black or African American, according to the League of American Orchestras’ EDI Data Hub; orchestra boards nationally were about 82% White and 18% people of color. While the composition of the orchestra itself is important, the composition of the DSO administrative staff and artistic leadership is arguably more impactful when considering whether the institution reflects the city whose name it bears.
Symphony orchestras across the country have long struggled to build Black representation among musicians, staff, and boards, and arts leaders have argued that orchestras in cities with large Black populations carry an added responsibility to close that gap. Based in a city where more than three-quarters of residents are Black, the DSO arguably has more at stake than most of its peers in demonstrating that its programs, hiring, and leadership reflect the community it serves — a case made harder by the elimination of a role dedicated to culture and inclusion.
When combined with the elimination of the Manager of Volunteer and Patron Experiences, it is easy to wonder whether a widening gap will form between the people who comprise the DSO audience, and those that reside in the city that surrounds the orchestra. Will an effort be made to encourage new volunteers and patrons of color to participate in DSO programming, or will the institution capitulate to the same recent federal cuts and restrictions regarding DEI programming that have caused other institutions to retract their efforts?
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra is a clear and irrefutable gem of Michigan’s cultural landscape. And while managing an arts organization is always difficult (especially in a country that consistently refuses to see the arts as a necessity), the wholesale elimination of key positions is an act deserving of scrutiny. What does this mean for the future of the institution? We will have to wait and see.
Encore Michigan has requested comment from the DSO. As of this afternoon, the institution has yet to respond. EM will continue to follow this story.
Watch this space.
Want to Know Where We Got Our Information?
1) ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer — Detroit Symphony Orchestra Form 990 filings. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/381385132
2) Detroit Symphony Orchestra — Our History. https://www.dso.org/about-the-dso/our-history
3) Detroit Symphony Orchestra — Detroit Harmony. https://www.dso.org/community-and-learning/detroit-harmony
4) Detroit Symphony Orchestra — Classical Roots History. https://www.dso.org/about-the-dso/classical-roots/history
5) U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts — Detroit city, Michigan. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/detroitcitymichigan/HCN010222
6) League of American Orchestras — EDI Data Hub, Musician Diversity. https://americanorchestras.org/learn/edi-data-hub/musician-diversity/
7) League of American Orchestras — EDI Data Hub, Board Diversity. https://americanorchestras.org/learn/edi-data-hub/board-diversity/
