CAROLYN NISHON'S WONDERFUL POPS LIFE

Listen to one of Carolyn's favorite Pops classics while you read about her Pops Life!

A CONVERSATION WITH CAROLYN

KELLY COMPTON, our Pops Life correspondent, talks with Carolyn Nishon about how she joined the orchestra, her transformative experiences with the group, and her life today because of the Pops...

KC: So Carolyn, tell us about your musical background before coming to Michigan

CN: My mom was a piano and music education teacher, so I always grew up with music in the house. When I was six, I started taking piano lessons. When I was 10, I joined strings and started playing violin - after that I just loved it.

Going into college, I wanted to make sure that music stayed in my life somehow, even though I knew I didn’t want to major in it. I found out about the Michigan Pops Orchestra in my very first class freshman year. I was in a French class that was made up of basically all Juniors and Seniors, so I was pretty freaked out. I sat in the corner next to Katharina Obser who ended up being one of my best friends – she played flute in Michigan Pops.

It just so happened that the conductor for the Michigan Pops Orchestra, Christopher Lees, was also the student teacher of my high school orchestra the year after I had graduated. My sister was still in high school, and after hearing her talk about him, I decided to finally audition. I joined the second semester of my freshman year. The rest was history!

KC: Tell us about your experience with the Pops, and share some favorite memories!

CN: At Michigan I always felt like I had been searching for “my place,” since U of M is so big. During the first semester of my sophomore year in Pops, I remember thinking to myself, “Oh my gosh, I think I’ve found my people!” I felt so at home.

As far as memories go… there are so many! Everyone around me in Pops was smart, funny, engaging, and they wanted to keep music in their lives in some way. It felt like we were all working towards something together. As a student, you’re often just trying to make it as an individual – study, get good grades, etc. But then there was this thing that you could go to every Sunday night where you could create something beautiful with a group of people. This, along with the relationships that I developed, really changed my life.

There was one rehearsal that we did every semester called “Scrambled Pops.” I remember sitting next to my friend Mike Dobbs who was a tuba player and playing my part next to him. It was such a memorable rehearsal! And I will NEVER forget during my senior year seeing the hall filled with so many audience members. I also loved when we all dressed up for Halloween during rehearsal!

KC: Where are you now? How do you think Pops influenced where you are today?

CN: The Michigan Pops Orchestra is directly responsible for my current job. In my junior year I was the Publicity Director, and my senior year I was the Executive Director. When I was the Publicity Director, I started wondering if that type of role was something that people do as a career. I reached out to the Ann Arbor Symphony to see if they needed an intern, and they said yes. I started interning there a bit during the school year and a lot during the summer.

At the beginning of my senior year, my friend sent me a posting for the “Orchestral Management Fellowship Program” through the League of American Orchestras. The idea behind the fellowship was that five people would be chosen to work with four different arts organizations or orchestras throughout the course of the year. I went through an extensive interview process and was flown out to New York for a final interview. Each of us started at the Aspen Music Festival and School, where we each managed an orchestra. We then went to three different orchestras of various sizes; my assignments were the North Carolina Symphony, then the Spokane Symphony in Washington, and finally the Baltimore Symphony. I spent 2-4 months at each of those places. It was wonderful because I was able to work with the Executive Directors of each orchestra and get to know the senior leadership and musicians. I tried to dive in and learn as much as I could.

In between each assignment, all five of us reconvened in New York to hear from leaders in the field. That’s when I met the then-Executive Director of the Portland Symphony. I was an English and Psychology Major at Michigan, and I did the New England Literature Program (NELP) in Maine after my junior year. When my fellowship was nearly complete, a job popped up working with the Portland Symphony, and I realized it was 35 minutes from where the NELP had taken place! I moved out to Portland and took a “behind the scenes”-type job, which eventually grew into a General Manger role. When the Executive Director of the PSO eventually announced that she was leaving, I decided to put my hat into the ring and apply. I’ve been in this role for about two years now.

KC: What is the hardest thing about managing an orchestra that most people wouldn’t know?

CN: There’s always so much going on at once! There are so many things that can take your attention, and you need to be able to focus. At the top of that focus for me is always the question, “Am I making people’s lives better through music?” If I keep that at the center of my focus, it gives my job more of a direction every day.

Also, it’s so important that all of the different departments, trustees, musicians, volunteers, and staff are receiving solid communication and that they’re able to get to know each other. That human connection and that ownership is something that I learned in the Michigan Pops Orchestra. I remember what it felt like when each member of the orchestra played their part in talking about what was happening on stage, and when everyone participated in social events. All of those things made the orchestra strong, and that applies to my job now too.

KC: How do you feel that your career, relationships, and general mindset have been shaped by your experience with the Pops?

CN: I have the Bo Schembechler quote “The Team, The Team, The Team” currently hanging on the wall in my office. The Michigan Pops Orchestra was my team – it allowed me to see what happens when people believe in what they’re doing. It makes such a difference when musicians feel connected to the people that they’re creating something with. I think anyone can apply that idea to his or her daily life, and I try to apply that to my work in a professional setting. If people feel proud of the work they’re doing and they’re excited to work with their team, then the organization is going to be all the better.

KC: What advice would you give to students interested in a similar career path?

CN: Call people in the field. Get coffee with someone who works where you want to work. People love giving advice, and they love talking about themselves. If you ask people why they do what they do, more often than not they’ll talk to you. You can make those calls all over the country, and that’s how you make connections. Just picking up the phone, being bold, and asking can make a huge difference.

Now, looking back, I would probably give myself a list of people to call. What was so nice about the orchestral fellowship was that there were people in the field reaching out to me to conduct informational interviews. If anyone in the Michigan Pops Orchestra is interested in doing this, they can call me or talk to me about this ANY time.

KC: Finally, what does the Pops mean to you personally?

CN: It is a part of my heart. It has given me some of the closest friends I’ve ever had (I still get together with them!); it’s impacted trips that I’ve taken and how I think about how orchestras can work together; it’s given me some of the most meaningful performance experiences of my life. When I think about my actual major, I know that it was Pops that led me down this career path over my degrees in English and Psychology. The work with Pops has become part of me. 

CAROLYN'S FAVORITES

• TV SHOWS: Parks and Recreation, Arrested Development, The Office, Cosmos, Planet Earth
• BOOKS: East of Eden and A Prayer for Owen Meany
• SNACK: If I say eating Nutella straight out of the jar, is that terrible?
• RESTAURANTS IN A2 AND PORTLAND: Ann Arbor - Zingerman's, no question. Portland - Eventide (get the brown butter lobster roll!)
• PLACES IN THE WORLD TO VISIT: My parents’ house in Okemos Michigan, and Reykjavik, Iceland!
• POPS PIECES: "Seasons of Love" from Rent, The Opening from "Songs for a New World," "Circle of Life" from Lion King, and "Come What May" from Moulin Rouge
• STAR WARS CHARACTER: Luke Skywalker. Such a great character arc from whiny brat to calm, collected leader. 

8/6/17

INTERESTED IN PURSUING A CAREER IN ORCHESTRA MANAGEMENT OR CONNECTING WITH A FELLOW NUTELLA ENTHUSIAST? OR PERHAPS YOU WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW CAROLYN REALLY FEELS ABOUT THE LAST JEDI?  START A CONVERSATION WITH HER AT ncarolyn@gmail.com