HEAR FROM YOUR PEER
With Catherine Heitz New
Featuring Special Guest — Amy Williams
President and CEO, Savannah Philharmonic
This episode features Amy Williams, President and CEO of the Savannah Philharmonic, who has reshaped the Phil's programming to uniquely serve the Savannah community—and in doing so, unlocked new fundraising growth.
Listen today for clear, candid guidance from people who are doing the work every day, and to highlight the strategies, habits, and decisions that are moving arts organizations forward.
Read the full transcript below or click the button to listen.
ABOUT AMY WILLIAMS
Through direct and transparent communication with staff, board, musicians, donors and patrons Dr. Amy Williams builds bridges between an organization’s internal community and that in which it lives. She has been a leader in expanding this reach in every community she has been involved with.
Dr. Williams moved to Savannah to lead the Savannah Philharmonic in building not only upon the organization’s artistic excellence but also its community impact. Alongside Keitaro Harada and the Board of Directors she has worked with a small staff to create meaning programming that engages with not only the City of Savannah but also the region. This work has led to 4 years of sold out concerts causing the recent addition of a matinee series, the development of a youth orchestra, growing donor engagement and meaningful conversations with City Leadership.
Prior to this move Dr. Williams served as Managing Director at Camerata Pacifica where she put in place the building blocks needed to create long term sustainability. Working alongside the Artistic Director, she revitalized and deepened the organization’s capacity through personal connection with the donors, patrons, board and staff to understand why individuals supported the organization. From 2011 to 2018 as the Director of Artistic Administration and Education at the Santa Barbara Symphony she brought together community members, families and donors to build a sustainable music education program and expand the scope of the artistic direction. Working within the already existing local framework, she brought the depth of programming into alignment with the organization, increasing both funding and students served. Dr. Williams began working in arts administration with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra as part of the artistic team to assist the musicians and guest artists while meeting the organization’s budget needs.
Dr. Williams received her Bachelor of Music from Ithaca College, her Master of Music from University of Nevada, Las Vegas and her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from The Ohio State University in June of 2007.