Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Appoints Stanley E. Romanstein, Ph.D As President

Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Board Chair Ben Johnson today announced that Stanley E. Romanstein, Ph.D., has accepted the position of President of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Dr. Romanstein is currently the President and CEO of the Minnesota Humanities Center in St. Paul, MN.

He will begin on May 3, 2010. Stanley E. Romanstein, Ph.D., succeeds Allison Vulgamore, who held the office from 1993 through 2009 - Ms. Vulgamore is currently President and CEO of The Philadelphia Orchestra. Donald F. Fox, the Orchestra's Executive Vice President for Business Operations and Chief Financial Officer, has served as Interim President and CEO since Ms. Vulgamore's departure.

"I'm personally very excited about Stanley's arrival and the leadership he will bring to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra," said Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Board Chair Ben Johnson. "Stanley met with over thirty varied and diverse representatives of the Atlanta Symphony family during our national search, and the consensus was that Stanley is the right person for what the Orchestra needs at this point in its history. He's passionate about our core missions - great music and education - and will be a great advocate for us."

"I'm tremendously excited to help lead this remarkable institution," said Dr. Romanstein. "I have long admired the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, since the days of Robert Shaw, when I was a student and aspiring singer in South Carolina. It is to Atlanta's great credit that the Orchestra has built such animpressive artistic reputation. I'm honored to be chosen, I look forward to joining the team, and I can't wait to get started." Music Director Robert Spano said, "Stanley is an impressive person - articulate, musical, and passionate. I'm excited thinking about the future of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra with his leadership, which promises to be dynamic, insightful, and exhilarating." "On behalf of all of the musicians, I am excited to welcome Stanley to the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra," said Daniel Laufer, Associate Principal Cellist and President of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Players Association. "I believe the Orchestra will be injected with new passionate energy through his appointment. Stanley has a wide range of skills which will be very helpful in steering the Orchestra through these challenging times and towards a stronger future. I also want to thank Ben Johnson for his wonderful leadership on the search committee."

Dr. Romanstein is an accomplished non-profit executive with 22 years of leadership and management experience in education and the arts. In his most recent role as President and CEO of the Minnesota Humanities Center (2001-2010), he focused the Center's mission around clear, measurable objectives, consistent with the agency's history and mandate. He developed a strategic plan to fulfill that mission, and articulated the mission to audiences throughout Minnesota. Prior to that position, Dr. Romanstein was Director of Development at the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis (2000-2001); Executive Director of the Baltimore School for the Arts and Baltimore School for the Arts Foundation (1996-2000); and Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Music at St. Lawrence University (1987-1996).

A singer, and native of South Carolina, Dr. Romanstein grew up in a household of music - both parents are also singers, and his mother is a pianist. After earning his undergraduate degree in music, he went on to the University of Cincinnati's Conservatory of Music to earn his masters degree in conducting, and a Ph.D. in musicology. Dr. Romanstein has also lived in Cincinnati, Jerusalem, New York, Italy, Baltimore, Romania, and spent time as a Fulbright Scholar, first for a year of study at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and later in Japan. The nine-member Search Committee was comprised of members of the Board, Orchestra, and executive administration. The search was facilitated by the firm SpencerStuart.