Amy Iwano has been the head of the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra for only a few months, but she’s already taking the lead by collaborating with music director Dane Lam as the orchestra begins its new seasonal concerts.
Iwano has mapped her vision for HSO, which opened its season on Oct. 4 at the Hawai‘i Theatre with a performance starring violinist Ray Chen.
“The orchestra sounds so fantastic,” she said. “They're so virtuosic and so versatile. I had known about the reputation of the orchestra for so many years, so it was great to finally hear them in person.”
HSO’s Board of Directors picked Iwano to lead the orchestra in July after her predecessor, Dave Moss, stepped down earlier this year to join Eugene Symphony in Oregon.
Iwano now oversees finances, artistic programming, fundraising and strategic planning for HSO. She wants the orchestra’s work to stay relevant to younger audiences. So far, they've played scores from movies like "Star Wars," "How The Grinch Stole Christmas" and "Frozen."
HSO currently has a budget of nearly $6 million. In the business, ticket sales and donors play a huge part in its ability to thrive.
However, the orchestra has faced financial challenges over the years. The organization, formally known as the Honolulu Symphony, filed for bankruptcy in 2009 after the Great Recession. It then reorganized as the current HSO but saw revenues decrease during the COVID-19 pandemic.
But income has been on the uptick. The nonprofit saw revenues of more than $3 million in 2021 and $5 million in its most recent report, according to financial records.
Iwano said the symphony orchestra is in good financial standing, but more work needs to be done, as most of HSO’s revenues come from ticket sales.
“We could do better and we are working on that,” she said. “Yet even if we sell out all of our concerts, we still need to rely very heavily on philanthropy and that has become more difficult for all performing arts organizations across the country as we compete with so many other nonprofit organizations and donors' dollars.”
Iwano said her short-term goals are to boost audience attendance and diversify sponsorships.
“I would like to make sure that there's sufficient support for all of these concerts,” she said. "It means so much to the musicians to have sponsors behind them.”
Iwano said her long-term goals include growing the nonprofit's programs and conducting more community outreach. She added that she wants the orchestra to perform across the state again.
She also said she wants to broaden access to the orchestra by partnering with schools that have the facilities to support performances.
“Community outreach is really important,” she said. “We exist for the community and we need the community to fulfill our mission.”
As Iwano oversees the business side of the orchestra, music director Dane Lam said they share the same vision of growing the programs to “embrace our Pacific roots and our Asian roots and bringing world-class performers to our islands.”
“My artistic vision will develop even further working together with Amy. I have such great confidence that she is the right person to be able to prosecute and execute that vision,” Lam said.
Iwano said she and Lam have been talking about how HSO can be the orchestra of the Pacific. So far, they’re discussing possibilities to share the orchestra’s music throughout the Pacific region and Japan, whether it’s virtually or through touring.
“We are supporting an orchestra that is the most isolated orchestra in the world, being here in the middle of the Pacific,” she said. “Eventually it’s a good goal for us to look forward to.”
The symphony orchestra was founded in 1900. The orchestra has 85 musicians and often invites Grammy-nominated musicians as guest artists in its concert series.
Note: Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra is an underwriter of HPR.
