League of American Orchestras Launches New Program to Increase Racial Diversity

The Inclusive Stages program will expand to three years and reach more orchestras, following a successful pilot year

The League of American Orchestras has announced that following a successful pilot year in 2023/24, its Inclusive Stages program will launch into a full three-year cycle. The program aims to increase racial diversity in orchestras through the creation of a national Coalition, the collection of data, and the circulation of actionable insights for orchestras.

The Coalition was one of the highlights of the program's pilot year. 28 orchestras from across the country, with a wide range of budgets, joined the Coalition in 2023.

Over 100 individuals attended each of the two virtual meetings, with 65 participating in person in Detroit in early 2024. Many members also took part in the Inclusive Stages session at the League’s National Conference in Houston.

Over the next three years, the program will establish training schemes for the field, provide data-driven insights into areas for improvement, and publish three new Catalyst Guides. It will also check on the progress of Coalition orchestras, using the measurable goals that each orchestra set during the pilot year.

The Coalition will also expand to include youth orchestras, community orchestras, and partner organizations, and the number of professional orchestras who are involved will also increase. On the recommendation of pilot participants, the League will also establish regional in-person meetings and smaller topic-based working groups.

In addition, an online training program, webinars, and publications will be added, and the program will be enhanced by data from the Orchestra Demographics Survey and Audition Applicant Demographics Survey.

"After just one year of the Inclusive Stages program, we’re already seeing orchestras across the country taking concrete action toward making our stages more diverse," said League of American Orchestras President and CEO Simon Woods. "It’s thrilling to see orchestra managements, musicians, conductors, and unions working collectively to make use of learning they developed through the pilot year of this program and other League resources to improve organizational culture and create more equitable tenure and audition practices."

"We’re deeply grateful to the Sakana Foundation for their vision in supporting this important work and enabling us to expand the scope of the program to serve the orchestra field."