Since the Sphinx Organization launched its educational, touring and competition programs 22 years ago, the number of black and Latinx musicians who hold seats in major orchestras around the country has begun to rise.

During the same period, commissions, tours and solo performances by musicians of color have also grown, said Sphinx President and Artistic Director Afa Dworkin.

But diversity in the leadership ranks of classical music has not kept pace.

Beyond societal and systemic challenges, there hasn't been an organized effort to create a pipeline of diverse leaders in classical music, Dworkin said.

To address that, the Detroit-based nonprofit is launching a leadership development program with educational and mentorship components aimed at cultivating black and Latinx candidates for leadership positions in orchestras, conservatories and music schools across the country.

Initially it will work with leadership candidates in the classical music field, but the long-term vision is to expand it to all of the performing arts, Dworkin said.

The initiative has the potential to be transformative but can only have impact if it's embraced by the field, she said.

"For the status quo to change, it will take a sector-wide mindset change that not just recognizes the importance of diversity in leadership, but beyond that seeks out candidates and intentionally prioritizes diversity in leadership."

It's always been important that Sphinx and its work not be about affirmative action but rather about equal opportunity and merit, Dworkin said.

"We are better, richer, more creative, more inclusive, more sustainable if we are relevant. To me, relevance equals inclusivity," she said.

By the numbers
Just 2.7 percent of the musicians in American orchestras were black and Latinx when Sphinx launched 22 years ago, according to statistics it collected. By 2016, when it celebrated its 20th anniversary, that number had risen to 4.3 percent.

The number of nonwhite members in American orchestras increased from 3.4 percent in 1980 to 14.2 percent in 2014, according to the study, "Racial/Ethnic and Gender Diversity in the Orchestra Field."

But the proportion of nonwhite musicians and of black and Latinx musicians remained particularly low, and the wider orchestra field , including conductors, executives, staff, and board members, also remained predominantly white, according to the study.

The proportion of Latinx musicians in American orchestras had increased to just 2.5 percent by 2014 from 1.8 percent by 2002, according to the study, while representation of black musicians continued to hover around 1.8 percent throughout the same period.
"When the data is more closely examined, it is clear that the modest shifts towards diversity that we observe have been largely driven by Asian/Pacific Islander musicians," the study noted.

Nonwhite conductors increased from 15.7 percent in 2006 to 21 percent in 2016, and nonwhite music directors increased from 16.7 percent in 206 to 21.8 percent in 2016, according to the study. It did not break out the black and Latinx representation in those figures but noted top executives in the field are "overwhelmingly white."

The LEAD program
To increase diverse leadership in the industry, Sphinx is collaborating with Stanford Thompson, a Sphinx alum and head of Play on, Philly!, a K-12, classical music education program, and with other national specialists in the filed to develop a two-year leadership academy for classical musicians of color.

Thompson, a recipient of Sphinx's Medal of Excellence, will serve as dean of the new program and take the lead on developing the curriculum, with Sphinx founder Aaron Dworkin, professor of arts, leadership and entrepreneurship at the University of Michigan and the husband of Afa Dworkin, serving as senior adviser.

Sphinx reported $7.8 million in income for 2017 and expenses totaling $5.9 million. It's operating on a budget of just under $6 million this year.

A $1.5 million grant from the Miami-based John S. and James L. Knight Foundation will fund the bulk of the first five years of the Leaders in Excellence, Arts and Diversity program.

It will be focused on professionals in Detroit and 16 other cities where the foundation focuses its grant support, along with other cities like New York and Cleveland, Dworkin said. And it will seek emerging leaders looking to advance their personal and professional growth to produce impact in their communities and in the arts field as a whole. That could be musicians who dream of becoming a CEO, young budding entrepreneurs who want to make a difference in other leadership roles, such as the young founders of small startups, or people in junior roles at orchestras, Dworkin said.

The LEAD program is free to participants and comes with a nominal stipend to cover travel to educational sessions and events, lodging and meals and a $1,000 stipend to help cover other incidentals while they take time off from jobs. Attendance at industry conferences such as those hosted by American Orchestras or Chamber Music America are also covered.

The LEAD curriculum is still in development, Dworkin said. It will be finalized based on who the initial cohort is.