OUR PEOPLE

Grant Llewellyn, Music Director Laureate

The Maxine and Benjamin Swalin Chair

Grant Llewellyn is renowned for his exceptional charisma, energy, and easy authority in music of all styles and periods. A native of Tenby, South Wales, Llewellyn won a conducting fellowship to the Tanglewood Music Center in Massachusetts in 1985, where he worked with conducting legends Leonard Bernstein, Seiji Ozawa, Kurt Masur, and André Previn. As Assistant Conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in the early 1990s, he conducted at the Tanglewood Music Festival, and on classical series and Boston Pops concerts.

Llewellyn has conducted many orchestras in North America, most notably the symphonies of Atlanta, Boston, Houston, Milwaukee, Montreal, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Toronto. As Music Director of the Handel and Haydn Society, America’s leading period orchestra, he gained a reputation as a formidable interpreter of music of the Baroque and Classical periods.

Music Director of the Orchestre Symphonique de Bretagne since 2015, Llewellyn has held positions with numerous other European orchestras — including Principal Conductor of the Royal Flanders Philharmonic, Principal Guest Conductor of the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, and Associate Guest Conductor with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. An accomplished opera conductor, Llewellyn has appeared at the English National Opera, Opera North, Spoleto Festival USA, and the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.

Llewellyn has led NCS in four critically acclaimed recordings, most recently Britten’s Cello Symphony and Prokofiev’s Sinfonia Concertante, both with cellist Zuill Bailey. Deeply committed and passionate about engaging young people with music, Llewellyn regularly leads education activities with NCS and around the world.

Wesley Schulz, Associate Conductor

The Lucy Moore Ruffin Chair

Wesley Schulz, appointed North Carolina Symphony Associate Conductor in the 2017/18 season, previously served as Music Director of the Bainbridge Symphony Orchestra and Seattle Festival Orchestra, and as Director of Orchestras at the University of Puget Sound. In the 2014/15 season, he was the Conducting Fellow at the Seattle Symphony. Recent conducting engagements include the Austin Symphony Orchestra, The Venice Symphony, Grand Junction Symphony Orchestra, Auburn Symphony, and the Juneau Symphony.

Schulz made his Seattle Symphony debut in a sold-out performance with singer/songwriter Gregory Alan Isakov, led seven world premieres at the Merriman Family Young Composers Workshop, and assisted with recordings for the symphony’s Grammy-winning label, Seattle Symphony Media.

From 2009 to 2013, Schulz was the Assistant Conductor of the Britt Festival Orchestra, a professional summer orchestra in Jacksonville, Oregon. In addition to teaching at the University of Puget Sound and the Seattle Conservatory of Music, he has served as Music Director for both the Everett Youth Symphony Orchestras and Bainbridge Island Youth Orchestra.

From 2007 to 2011, Schulz directed the Texas Chamber Group, an ensemble he founded in Austin, Texas, dedicated to performing chamber orchestra works in creatively designed performance contexts.

Schulz graduated magna cum laude with bachelor’s degrees in percussion performance and music education from Ball State University and doctoral and master’s degrees in orchestral conducting from the University of Texas at Austin. When not on the podium, he can be seen hitting the pavement in preparation for his next marathon.

North Carolina Symphony Society, Inc.

The Society Board is the governing, policy, and operating board of the Symphony Society. It secures financial resources, approves program goals, engages in strategic planning, and oversees budgets, continuing the Society’s mission to achieve the highest level of artistic quality and performance standards, and embracing the dual legacies of statewide service and music education.

Mr. Don Davis, Chair, Raleigh
Dr. Wm. Charles Helton, Vice Chair, Raleigh
Mr. Joe Bastian, Treasurer, Chapel Hill
Mr. Terry L. Stevens, Assistant Treasurer, Raleigh
Mrs. Ashley Matlock Perkinson, Secretary, Raleigh
Ms. Sandi M. A. Macdonald, President & CEO, Raleigh

Ms. Deborah M. Aiken, Raleigh
Dr. Tim Altman**, Laurinburg
Dr. Trude R. Bate, Cary
Ms. Denise S. Bennett, Raleigh
Mrs. Janie W. Bird, Raleigh
Mr. Jud Bowman, Durham
Ms. Patty Briguglio, Cary
Mr. Steve Burriss, Raleigh
Mr. Tim Clancy, Raleigh
The Honorable Roy Cooper*, Raleigh
Mr. Jeffrey A. Corbett, Raleigh
Mr. Richard L. Daugherty, Raleigh
Mr. Keith Donahue**, Raleigh
Dr. Robert N. Eby, Chapel Hill
Mr. Rick Gardner, Raleigh
Mr. Michael Gering, Raleigh
Mr. Mike Golden, Raleigh
Mr. Donald A. Haile, Raleigh
Mr. David Haines, Cary
Mrs. Elaine Bryant Hayes, Fayetteville
Mr. Richard E. Hinson, Chapel Hill
Mr. Kevin Howell**, Raleigh
Mr. L. Dwain Joyce*, Fayetteville
Mrs. Cecelia Eckert Kennedy, Morrisville
Dr. Robert Lacin, Raleigh
Mr. Robert MacNeill, Jr., Durham
Ms. Jane Marr**, Wilmington
Mr. Branford Marsalis, Durham
Mrs. Louise A. Miller, Cary
Mr. James Morgan, Raleigh
Mr. Graham Mosely (deceased), Wilmington
Mrs. Florence Peacock, Chapel Hill
Dr. Emily Mann Peck, Raleigh
Ms. Margaret Smedes Poyner, Raleigh
Dr. Ramachandra P. Reddy, Cary
Mr. Jason Smith, Raleigh
Mrs. Tracey Fodor Smith, Farmville
Mr. David Sontag, Chapel Hill
Mrs. Linda J. Staunch*, New Bern
Mr. M. Gray Styers, Jr. Raleigh
Ms. Sandy Sully, Cary
The Honorable Catherine Truitt*, Cary
Mrs. Jennie Harris Wallace, Raleigh
Mr. Dereck Whittenburg, Raleigh
Secretary D. Reid Wilson*, Raleigh
Mr. Larry Wilson*, Raleigh
Mr. Tim Yull, Raleigh

*Ex Officio Member
**Governor’s Appointee

Lifetime Trustees

The Society and Foundation Boards gratefully recognize the individuals listed below as Lifetime Trustees for extraordinary involvement and leadership of the Symphony over a significant period of time.

Dr. Assad Meymandi – 2015 Inductee
Mr. Edward O. Woolner (deceased) – 2016 Inductee

North Carolina Symphony Foundation

The Foundation Board holds the permanent endowment of the Symphony, solicits additions to the endowment, safeguards and invests assets, and prudently expends funds for the exclusive use and benefit of the Symphony Society.

Mr. Larry Wilson, President, Raleigh
Mr. D.S. (Steve) Hodges, Vice President, Durham
Col. Matt Segal, Treasurer, Cary
Ms. Dianne C. Sellers, Secretary, Raleigh
Mr. Thomas H. Roberg, Past President, Raleigh

Mr. Chip Anderson, Raleigh
Ms. Catharine Biggs Arrowood, Raleigh
Mr. Richard L. Daugherty, Raleigh
Mr. Don Davis*, Raleigh
Dr. Warner Hall, Raleigh
Dr. Wm. Charles Helton, Raleigh
Mr. Bill Hodges, Raleigh
Dr. Ted Kunstling, Raleigh
Mr. Henry A. Mitchell, Jr., Raleigh
Dr. Shaler Stidham, Jr., Raleigh

*Ex Officio Member

North Carolina Symphony Chapter Boards

Craven County

Linda J. Staunch, President

Nancy Alexander
Susan Braaten
Jim Congleton
Philip Evancho
Catherine Everett
Hannah French
Cille Griffith
John Haroldson
Mary McGee
Bettina Meekins
Champ Mitchell
Luana Palimetakis
Tom Payne
Karen Plaster
Lauren Quinn
Pat Rowlett
Dawn Staats
Cindy Turco
John Ward

Cumberland County

Mr. L. Dwain Joyce, President

Ms. Rachel Dixon
Mrs. Ellie Fleishman
Mrs. Elaine Bryant Hayes
Dr. Jae Won Kim
Ms. Ashley Martin
Ms. Joyce McLeod
Mr. Calvin Mims
Mr. Worth Smith
Dr. Mark Tollefsen
Ms. Cathy Wilson

Edgecombe County

Ann Warren, President
Nettie Williams, Vice President
Catherine Powers-Moseley, Secretary

Erica Bilicki
Joy Chafin
Ronnie Ellis
Elizabeth Burns
Eric Greene
Becky Johnson
Nancy Dreier
Carol Ferri
Johanna Owens
Joe Proto
Jim Vogelman
Nina Rountree
Angie Ruffin
Katie Schultz
Suzanne Sharpe
Janet Spiers
Jessie Thorne

Moore County

Jim Arnold, President
Deb Swanson, Secretary

Luke Arno
Chris Dunn*
Ginger Minichiello
Marie Riedesel
Elaine Sills

Onslow County

Earl Taylor, President
Val Darner, Vice-President
Lyndsay Russell, Secretary

Elaine Bell
Jolie Brooks
Lane Beuerman
Dr. Erin Chaney
Pat Collins
Janae Copeland
Bill Darner
Susan Edwards
Gloria Goodwin
Dr. Robert Kell
Vickie Kell
Korene Marsh
Verne Seaton
Marjorie Tredwell

*Ex Officio Member

TRUSTEE LISTS CURRENT AS OF MARCH 2021

President’s Office

Sandi M.A. Macdonald – President & CEO
Email: smacdonald@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.733.2750

Sue Guenther – Executive Assistant to the President & CEO
Email: sguenther@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5455

Artistic Operations

Donald Tippett – Vice President of Orchestra Operations
Email: dtippett@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5464

Bradford Courage – Director of Orchestra Personnel
Email: bcourage@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5465

Samantha Gallup – Artistic Operations Assistant
Email: sgallup@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5462

Jessica Kunttu – Assistant Librarian
Email: jkunttu@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5469

Erin Lunsford – Artistic Planning Manager
Email: elunsford@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5521

Janice McLaughlin – Senior Assistant Librarian
Email: jmclaughlin@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5470

Bo Osborne – Production Manager

Martin Sher – Artistic Advisor
Email: msher@ncsymphony.org

Jason Spencer – Director of Education
Email: jspencer@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5461

Stephanie Wilson – Principal Orchestra Librarian (The Mary Colvert and Banks C. Talley Chair)
Email: swilson@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5468

Finance & Administration

Robert Schiller – Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration & CFO
Email: rschiller@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5490

Carol Brown – Accounting & Payroll Manager
Email: cbrown@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5493

Tiffany Debnam – Database & Fulfillment Manager
Email: tdebnam@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5496

Tiffany Haddock – Human Resources & Office Systems Manager
Email: thaddock@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5491

Glenda Hughes – Controller
Email: ghughes@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5494

Stan Williams – Public Affairs Contractor
Email: swilliams@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5456

Marketing & Audience Development

Linda Charlton – Vice President for Marketing & Audience Development
Email: lcharlton@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5474

Jennifer Blackman – Graphic Designer
Email: jblackman@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5481

Ashley Blankenship – Group Sales & Promotions Coordinator
Email: ablankenship@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5505

Gavin Brown – Box Office Manager
Email: gbrown@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5502

Maria H. Ewing – Director of Advertising & Promotions
Email: mewing@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5480

Chuck Farmer – Box Office Associate
Email: tickets@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.733.2750

Richard Hess – Communications Project Manager
Email: rhess@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5478

Melissa Holmes – Box Office Associate
Email: tickets@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.733.2750

Meredith Kimball Laing – Director of Communications
Email: mlaing@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5484

Jonathan Naylor – Box Office Associate
Email: jnaylor@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.733.2750

Christopher Short – Box Office Associate
Email: tickets@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.733.2750

Jim Vestal – Box Office Associate
Email: tickets@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.733.2750

Emma Wall – Assistant Vice President of Marketing
Email: ewall@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5507

Philanthropy

Lisa Ransom – Vice President of Philanthropy
Email: eransom@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5487

Christin Danchi – Annual Giving Coordinator
Email: cdanchi@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5479

Rebecca Gunn – Director of Annual Giving
Email: rgunn@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5489

Kayla Gurley – Special Events Coordinator
Email: kgurley@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5492

Courtney Hamm – Corporate & Foundation Giving Manager
Email: chamm@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5483

Rebecca Watkins – Director of Major Gifts & Planned Giving
Email: rwatkins@ncsymphony.org
Phone: 919.789.5497

Auditions

No positions are available at this time.

Administrative positions

Director of Corporate and Foundation Giving

Immediate Opening (January 2021)

THE POSITION
The Director of Corporate & Foundation Giving serves as a senior member of the Philanthropy Department and works collaboratively to develop, implement, and achieve strategic plans to increase philanthropic support for the North Carolina Symphony. The Director provides leadership for, and is directly responsible for, securing and increasing financial support from corporate and foundation sources to support the orchestra’s annual giving program, fundraising events, and special campaigns. This position reports to the Vice President of Philanthropy.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES

• Identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward a portfolio of statewide corporations, foundations, and government agencies to achieve fiscal year revenue goals and strengthen the prospect pipeline
• Develop and implement comprehensive annual giving and fulfillment plans for the Symphony’s corporate, foundation, and some government donors, to support the Symphony’s mission and programs
• Personally cultivate and develop relationships with current and new corporate and foundation accounts greater than $10,000 through in-person meetings, trustee relationships, and networking opportunities
• Plan and achieve monthly and quarterly contributed revenue targets for the Symphony’s corporate and foundation giving program
• Set direction and provide guidance to the Corporate & Foundation Giving Manager on cultivating, maintaining, and increasing corporate and foundation accounts, to achieve revenue goals
• Ensure achievement of successful outcomes, including revenue goals and relationship goals, for the Friends of Note annual fundraising luncheon, galas, and corporate events
• Serve on fundraising and leadership committees
• Work closely with a team of fundraising professionals to not only raise funds but to promote a culture of philanthropy that celebrates the generosity of every donor who invests in the mission of the North Carolina Symphony
• Work closely with artistic, education, and marketing teams to identify and maximize sponsorship relationships
• Collaborate with Symphony leaders to achieve institutional goals for patron loyalty, diversity and inclusion, and other strategic priorities
• Serve as an ambassador for the Symphony in the business and philanthropic communities
• Perform other responsibilities or assignments as required

CANDIDATE REQUIREMENTS

• At least 3 to 5 years of progressively responsible experience in corporate and foundation fundraising with a confirmed record of success, preferably with a performing arts or cultural institution
• Experience successfully managing and closing gifts of $10,000 to $200,000 from corporations, foundations, and government agencies
• A track record of success in personally achieving or exceeding annual fundraising goals of at least $1M
• Understanding of companies’ marketing, branding, and engagement goals; understanding of charitable foundations’ philanthropy; and knowledge of current corporate and foundation giving landscape in North Carolina
• Demonstrated success partnering with trustees and community leaders to achieve fundraising goals
• Experience successfully leading and supervising staff
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
• Strong research, analytical, planning, and organizational skills, and exceptional attention to detail
• Excellent judgment and professionalism in dealing with people, and experience working with trustees
• Team-oriented, flexible, positive, personable attitude with a willingness to learn and continually strive for excellence
• Takes initiative and uses innovation; has passion and perseverance; is self-motivated and goal oriented
• Must be able to support and implement the mission, vision, and values of the North Carolina Symphony; interest and enthusiasm for the core orchestral music product of the Symphony
• Proficiency in Word, Excel, Outlook and PowerPoint; experience with donor databases a plus
• Ability to travel in North Carolina and work outside regular office hours
• Bachelor’s degree required

This is a full-time salaried position. Compensation is competitive. Benefits package includes health insurance through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, long-term disability, life insurance, and an employee assistance program and an optional 403(b) retirement plan and optional dental insurance.

TO APPLY
Email cover letter, resume, three references, and a sample proposal or report to:
Lisa Ransom, Vice President of Philanthropy
humanresources@ncsymphony.org

No phone calls, please

THE ORGANIZATION
When the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020, the North Carolina Symphony swiftly pivoted to provide music education programs virtually and online, keeping our service and music education mission front and center. The Symphony’s re-imagined 2020/21 season includes a subscription series of concerts filmed live in Meymandi Concert Hall and streamed to living rooms across the state and beyond. Concerts this season are each receiving thousands of screen views, and the programs featuring North Carolina Symphony musicians and guest artists are getting rave reviews. The North Carolina Symphony is the recipient of a Catalyst Fund grant from the League of American Orchestras made possible by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, to build internal capacity in advancing our understanding and encouraging practice of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI).

NCS is an equal opportunity employer that maintains a policy of nondiscrimination with respect to all employees and applicants for employment including hiring, promotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay, selection for training, and recruitment. All considerations are administered without regard to race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, gender, age, disability or veteran status. Employment decisions, subject to the legitimate business requirements of NCS, are based solely on the individual’s qualifications, merit, experience and performance. NCS is proud to be a partner orchestra of the National Alliance for Audition Support.

Founded in 1932, the North Carolina Symphony (NCS) is a vital and honored component of North Carolina’s cultural life. Each year, the North Carolina Symphony’s 300 concerts, education programs, and community engagement events are enjoyed by adults and schoolchildren in more than 90 North Carolina counties—in communities large and small, and in concert halls, auditoriums, gymnasiums, restaurants, clubs, and outdoor settings. The Symphony’s full-time professional musicians perform under the artistic leadership of Music Director Laureate Grant Llewellyn.

NCS’s state headquarters venue is the spectacular Meymandi Concert Hall at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Raleigh. The Symphony’s service across the state includes series in Chapel Hill, Fayetteville, New Bern, Southern Pines, and Wilmington, as well as the Summerfest series at its summer home, the outdoor Koka Booth Amphitheatre in Cary. NCS brings some of the world’s greatest talents to North Carolina and embraces home-state artists from classical musicians to bluegrass bands, creating live music experiences distinctive to North Carolina.

Committed to engaging students of all ages across North Carolina, NCS leads the most extensive education program of any symphony orchestra—serving nearly 70,000 students each year. In alignment with the curriculum set by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, the Symphony provides training and resources for teachers, sends small ensembles into classrooms, and presents full-orchestra Education Concerts that bring the fundamentals of music to life. Music Discovery for preschoolers combines music with storytelling, and at the middle and high school levels, students have opportunities to work directly with NCS artists and perform for NCS audiences.

NCS is dedicated to giving voice to new art and has presented more than 50 U.S. or world premieres in its history. In 2017, NCS appeared at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., as one of four orchestras chosen for the inaugural year of SHIFT: A Festival of American Orchestras—an honor that recognized the Symphony’s creative programming and innovative community partnerships.

The first state-supported symphony in the country, NCS performs under the auspices of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. To learn more, visit ncsymphony.org.

THE AREA
The Symphony’s home base of Raleigh is the state’s capital, located in the Piedmont (central) region of North Carolina. Raleigh is the largest city in a 3,500-square mile metropolitan area known as the Triangle (Raleigh / Durham / Chapel Hill) and is among the fastest-growing cities in the US. Raleigh is located approximately 140 miles from the Appalachian highlands and 130 miles from the Atlantic Coast, making the ease of a day trip to the mountains or the beach a unique benefit of living here. Located within the area is Research Triangle Park, home to several corporate and regional headquarters: Fidelity Investments, Duke Health, IBM, Red Hat, SAS, GlaxoSmithKline, and Cisco all have large presences, to name a few.

The home of many creative and well-educated citizens, Raleigh has been lauded as a “Best City for Business and Careers” by Fortune magazine and a “Best Place to Live in America” by Money magazine. It provides its people and businesses with a world-class combination of economic vitality, low unemployment, tremendous educational opportunity, environmental quality, and exceptional quality of life. The park system offers a vast network of recreational greenway trails that connect neighborhoods, and the housing market continues to be strong compared to national averages.

Thirteen institutions of higher education provide affordable and premium educational opportunities for adult and extension classes and a well-educated citizenry of students, graduates, and faculty. The Triangle is also an area of tremendous resources where cultural and performing arts organizations thrive. Other major institutions include the North Carolina Museum of Art, North Carolina Museum of History, Carolina Ballet, North Carolina Opera, American Dance Festival, Ackland Art Museum, Nasher Art Museum, Marbles Kids Museum, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Morehead Planetarium, and Carolina Performing Arts at UNC-Chapel Hill. There are film, music, dance and crafts festivals, local theater groups and touring Broadway shows. Raleigh is also the current home of the IBMA World of Bluegrass Festival.

The Triangle is also a vital sports center. It is host to the NHL’s Stanley Cup-winning Carolina Hurricanes, minor league baseball’s Durham Bulls, and the sports programs of ACC members Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and North Carolina State University.