Taking Your Orchestra on Tour: Watch the Webinar Recording

Planning a first orchestra tour, or wondering how to make the case for one, is rarely as simple as picking a destination. Directors have to think through readiness, budget, chaperones, and how touring fits into the rest of the program, often without anyone to compare notes with.

That’s exactly what we set out to change with last week’s free webinar for orchestra directors and music educators. Moderated by Barbara Brown, Encore’s Director of Orchestras, the panel brought together Nathan Cohen (Rockport Public Schools), Sara Watkins (Norwalk Youth Symphony), and Michael Coelho (Ipswich Public Schools) to share lessons from their own touring programs, from building a case for travel to managing the budget, the chaperones, and the musical prep that makes a tour successful.

If you missed it live, or just want to revisit the advice, the full recording is below.

What’s in the conversation

Across the hour, Nathan, Sara, and Michael draw on their own touring programs to work through how to know an ensemble is ready to tour and build the case with administrators and families, how to set a realistic budget families can plan around, what it takes to build a chaperone team that can handle the realities of travel with students, and how to prepare students musically and personally for performing away from home. It’s a practical, experience-driven conversation, not a sales pitch, made by directors who have done this work themselves.

A lot of what they describe, from finding the right venue to handling the logistics once you’re on the road, is exactly where Encore comes in.

Getting your orchestra on the road

Encore works with directors to find venues that fit their orchestra’s size, experience, and repertoire, whether that’s a historic concert hall or a stage built for a younger ensemble still finding its footing. We handle the details that make performing away from home possible: instrument insurance, rehearsal time in the performance space, and a tour manager on the ground throughout, so directors can focus on their musicians instead of the logistics. Take a look at what an Encore orchestra tour includes to see what that could look like for your own program.

Keep learning after the webinar

For directors who want to go further, the webinar also serves as the opening hour of an optional graduate-level professional development pathway. Complete the guided independent study afterward and earn a full unit of PD credit; see how the credit pathway works. And when you’re ready to start planning, request a quote and one of our tour consultants will help you build an itinerary around your ensemble’s goals.