Madam, - It is unfortunate that the rather negative sentiments of John O'Conor's letter (May 30th) should appear at a time when the board of the National Youth Orchestra of Ireland is in productive dialogue with the Arts Council on ways of resolving the present controversy in a manner that will advance the purpose and mission of the orchestra and its constituent elements. At the heart of this process will be an externally facilitated review of the entire operation of the orchestra, which will cover the full circumstances which gave rise to the recent controversial decision, the orchestra's administration and funding, and the context of its contribution to the music education of Irish youth at the highest level of achievement and experience.
This will naturally involve discussions with the primary stakeholders which, of course, include the third-level performance colleges, one of which Dr O'Conor directs.
We look forward, therefore, to his and his institution's full collaboration and co-operation with the process.
A new general manager has been appointed, with effect from tomorrow (June 5th), and the board has every confidence in the ability of the appointee to bring fresh dynamism, energy and an enormous wealth of interpersonal skills to what will be, for her and for the youth orchestra movement, a difficult, challenging, but hopefully, a most rewarding period of appointment.
Dr O'Conor's suggestion that the volunteer board should resign en masse is indeed a tempting one, but not for the reasons he implies. It would be easy to walk away from our responsibilities, but that would be a shirking of responsibility, at a time of crisis, which would amount to an act of gross irresponsibility. As a board, we have long been aware of the need for changes in the governance of the organisation, to bring us in line with best practice, and proposals and action in this regard will be at the heart of the review process.
Dr O'Conor's concerns for the future of the NYOI are widely shared. It would, however, have been of immense benefit to the orchestra if these concerns had been channelled into the direct action of encouraging the relevant students in his institution to commit to the NYOI. Need I remind him that it was a lack of such commitment that precipitated the present crisis! - Yours, etc,
JOHN DENNEHY, Chair, Board of the NYOI, Nassau Street, Dublin 2