His passion led to symphonic role in Butler
John Furman was looking for a reason to get back into the music business, and the Butler County Symphony Orchestra provided that opportunity.
A native of Bellevue and former opera singer, Furman took over as executive director of the symphony on an interim basis in late June and his role became permanent last month.
“I was involved in the opera into my 30s,” said Furman, 59, a Butler resident for the past 17 years. “Then, I became a presenter for art institutes, starting in Pittsburgh and then on a national level. It dealt with educating high school kids in the arts and I became very successful with that. I did over 5,000 presentations and that really helped me with public speaking.
“I was on sort of a hiatus. I never expected something like this at this point in my life, but faith played into it. I trusted that God would send me where I was needed.”
A friend let Furman know of the symphony's need for an executive director in the spring. He researched the symphony, which was founded in 1949, and listened to clips of past performances before applying for the job.
“I wanted to know what I was getting into,” he said. “I was impressed and believed it was a place where I could make a difference.”
He recently oversaw his first symphony concert at the Butler Intermediate High School.
“I knew it was going to be good,” Furman said. “A friend of mine attended along with me. He's performed all over the world, is friends with Luciano Pavarotti and worked with him in concerts in Philadelphia. After our show was over, he turned to me and said, 'This is really good!' I said, 'I told you it would be.'
“I believe we can go on par with orchestras in a lot of bigger cities,” Furman added. “Once people go to one of our concerts, they know, and I believe there's a lot of untapped potential here.”
The concert season will include five more performances; one each in November, December, February, March and April.
Furman is now headlong into the daily operations with the symphony. He described himself as “the hub” because he has a hand in so many of the association's activities.
“I work with the board of directors, conductor Mathew Kraemer on the production element of the concerts,” Furman said. “I make sure we're doing everything on the fundraising end, marketing and budgeting.
“On the night of a concert, you can find me at the box office greeting patrons and checking with the musicians to see if they need anything. Other than that, I'm in the audience listening.”
As a youth, Furman was a fan of Elton John and Barry Manilow. It was while in high school that his path to performing began.“I tried out for a play and someone asked me who my voice teacher was. I said I didn't have one, and they told me that I should.”Furman attended the University of Pittsburgh and earned a degree in music. He spent a year on scholarship at the Cincinnati Conservatory and studied under professor of voice William McGraw.“He was an excellent teacher and was very helpful to me,” Furman said. “I used to be afraid of what people thought when I performed. It was while I was in Cincinnati that that began to change. When you're performing, you're creating something and you need to be yourself.”Furman, a bass baritone, knew he had a passion for opera singing, but did not want to spend nine months every year traveling to perform.“I could've moved to New York and got an agent and traveled the world,” he said, “but I didn't want to live out of a suitcase and never see my family and friends.”He performed in Pittsburgh, including at the Benedum Center, for years. In the summer of 1991, he traveled to Italy and performed at several venues in and near Venice.Several years later, he did some “soul searching,” as he put it.“All those years that I performed in Pittsburgh, I had to work other jobs to support myself,” he said. “I was a mailman, a waiter — worked for a health care agency. The Pittsburgh market just isn't big enough to make a living as a performer.“I was living a life I knew I couldn't sustain.”
That's when Furman began working for art institutes. The symphony has allowed him to become closer to his passion for music, albeit behind the scenes.Furman lauded the symphony's education outreach program, which visits local elementary schools and exposes students to music played by the orchestra. Kraemer, the symphony's conductor for 10 years, answers questions and different musical instruments are displayed.Such visits can spark a passion in a child that can last a lifetime and even lead to a career. They can also lead to a simple appreciation for and lifelong support of music.“We are vitally dependent on public support,” Furman said. “To put on a concert, it costs us anywhere from $20,000 to $40,000 and ticket sales cover just 25% of that.“The musicians get paid. The light and sound people get paid. Printing programs costs money and so does advertising.”Furman said the best advice he can give someone hoping to get into the performance arts is simple.“Be yourself. To get somewhere in this business, there's a lot of hard work and training involved, but someone's heart and passion for it is what makes them unique,” he said.Furman spends his free time with loved ones.“I'm very family- and friend-oriented,” he said. “How we treat the people in our lives is what's most important. What legacy do we want to leave behind?”
