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Pasadena Symphony Names Lora Unger New CEO

Published on Friday, October 24, 2014 | 3:17 pm
 

The Pasadena Symphony Association (PSA), which operates the Pasadena Symphony and POPS, has named Lora Unger its new Chief Executive Officer, effective November 1.

Unger, who has been the organization’s General Manager and most recently Chief Operating Officer since 2009, succeeds Paul Jan Zdunek, who has accepted the position of Chief Capital Development Officer with Singpoli Capital Corporation in Pasadena.

Unger was hired by Zdunek following his assumption of the CEO position in December 2008. Since then, the two have brought the PSA into world-class venues (including the acoustically superior Ambassador Auditorium, the Los Angeles County Arboretum and the beautiful All Saints Church) and hired music luminaries such as Michael Feinstein, Marvin Hamlisch, Music Director David Lockington and Principal Guest Conductor Nicholas McGegan, and audiences have responded with historic increases in ticket sales.

“Given the enormous contributions to our success that Lora has made for us, we’re delighted to elevate her to the position of CEO, following thoughtful deliberation by the Board,” said Kay Kochenderfer, President of the PSA Board of Directors. “Over the past five years, we’ve seen a 20% increase in Classics Series ticket sales, an astonishing 200% increase in POPS sales, and an 85% subscription retention rate. Everybody else wants to know how we’ve done it.”

Unger’s focus now is on even greater growth.

“We’re now poised to move to the next phase of this great orchestra’s future,” Unger said, “which is fully realizing our potential in this community, both as an important arts pillar and a force in the community. I cannot imagine a more ideal time to assume this new role with the Pasadena Symphony and POPS. I’m grateful to the PSA Board of Directors for their trust and encouragement, and am ready to even more fully engage with the culturally vibrant community of Pasadena.”

PSA’s GRAMMY-nominated Music Director David Lockington said he is “thrilled for Paul and absolutely delighted that Lora will be assuming the role of CEO of the Pasadena Symphony Association.” Lockington pointed out that he has “worked with Lora for over four years. She is visionary, smart and an astute strategist. Her style is a stimulating blend of seriousness and humor which makes for a creative working environment.”

Unger, who is also a trained violist, holds a BA in Music with a Minor in Business Administration from the University of Louisville, and received her MA in Arts Administration from the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and Cincinnati College of Business Administration. Previously she has worked with the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, as well as the Cincinnati, Modesto, and Jacksonville Symphony Orchestras in public relations, marketing and artistic operations. She was a League of American Orchestras’ Orchestra Management Fellow with residencies at the Aspen Music Festival, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and San Francisco Symphony. She is a member of the Association of California Symphony Orchestras and a presenter at their conferences.

The Board of Directors of the Symphony expresses their great pleasure at Unger’s acceptance of the CEO position and their faith in her ability to lead the Association with vision, imagination and discipline.

The Board wishes to acknowledge the remarkable accomplishments of Zdunek in leading the Symphony onto the path of success and hopes for his continued success in his new opportunity.

About the Pasadena Symphony Association

Recent Acclaim for the Pasadena Symphony and POPS
“The Pasadena Symphony signals a new direction…teeming with vitality…dripping with opulent, sexy emotion.” Los Angeles Times.

“…full of pulsating energy from first note to last… the strings were lushly resonant, the wind principals were at the top of their games, and the brass rang out with gleaming vigor.” –Pasadena Star News.
Formed in 1928, the Pasadena Symphony and POPS is an ensemble of Hollywood’s most talented, sought after musicians. With extensive credits in the film, television, recording and orchestral industry, the artists of Pasadena Symphony and POPS are the most heard in the world.

The Pasadena Symphony and POPS performs in two of the most extraordinary venues in the United States: Ambassador Auditorium, known as the Carnegie Hall of the West, and the luxuriant Los Angeles Arboretum & Botanic Garden. Internationally recognized, Grammy-nominated conductor, David Lockington, serves as the Pasadena Symphony Association’s Music Director, with performance-practice specialist Nicholas McGegan serving as Principal Guest Conductor. The multi-platinum-selling, two-time Emmy and five-time Grammy Award-nominated entertainer dubbed “The Ambassador of the Great American Songbook,” Michael Feinstein, is the Principal Pops Conductor, who succeeded Marvin Hamlisch in the newly created Marvin Hamlisch Chair.

A hallmark of its robust education programs, the Pasadena Symphony Association has served the youth of the region for over five decades through the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestras (PYSO) comprised of five performing ensembles, with over 250 gifted 4th-12th grade students from more than 50 schools all over the Southern California region. The PYSO Symphony often performs on the popular television show GLEE.

The PSA provides people from all walks of life with powerful access points to the world of symphonic music.

 

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