Vince Ford has 20 years of expertise driving arts institutions’ modernization, efficiency, and social impact through audience engagement, content creation, innovative platforms, and high-performing teams.
Current
Vince is the Senior Vice President of Strategy and Innovation at Curtis Institute of Music. He is responsible for external engagement, strategic projects, innovation, branding, marketing, media, and technology.
Since he joined Curtis in 2021, the school has increased its digital reach to more than 1M people per year through more than 50 live streams per year, acclaimed commercial recordings, and growth in social media engagement that is significantly above industry trends.
Vince also successfully led a multi-year rebrand project that included comprehensive research across the school varied stakeholder groups to develop new positioning, messaging, and visual design (launching spring 2024).
Vince works with Curtis’ trustees on fundraising initiatives and multi-year strategic planning as head of the Marketing and Technology board committee.
As the McFadden Field-McFadden Chair in Digital Studies, Vince teaches a course to prepare conservatory artists to lead and develop their digital profile.
Vince serves as Executive Director of the Innovation Lab, which focuses on strategic uses of media and technology. Projects to date include the launch of Immersive Scheherazade, Curtis Studio, and a reimagined Gould Hall that includes projection, lighting, and technology to present cutting edge presentation formats.
Previous
Vince joined the Philharmonic in 2007 and has held increasingly senior roles during his tenure. He was hired as Director of New Media with a mandate to develop digital capabilities and capacity for the organization. In 2012, he was promoted to Director, Digital Media to expand the organization’s digital content: concert webcasts, digital recordings, radio, and partnerships. In 2017, Vince was promoted to Vice President, Strategic Initiatives to lead cross-functional projects.
In 2018, Vince was named Vice President, Audiences & Innovation, where he successfully led Marketing and brand functions of the organization during the inaugural season of music director, Jaap van Zweden. The season was one of the highest grossing in the organization’s history though that point in time, exceeding revenue goals and expanding the subscriber base.
In 2020, Vince was promoted to Vice President, Digital Strategy and Customer Experience where he led the organization’s lauded digital pivot at the start of the pandemic – NY Phil Plays On, which required a comprehensive integration of content production, archival material, licensing, marketing, and platforms.
Immediately prior to the Philharmonic, Vince worked at the Atlanta Symphony. There he led the modernization and redevelopment of the organization’s websites and digital marketing functions. He also worked on various models to improve pricing and programming decisions. During his time at the ASO, Vince completed his MBA at Emory’s Goizueta Business School.
Vince held several digital, marketing, and technology roles prior to his time in arts management. He was also a freelance Horn player in the Atlanta area for 10 years.
Teaching and Consulting
In 2019, Vince completed his Doctorate in Business at Temple University’s Fox Business School. His research explores the relationship between digital engagement and transformation in arts and cultural organizations.
He teaches or has taught integrated digital engagement, marketing, and technology courses at Columbia University, Cleveland Institute of Music, Curtis Institute Music, Roosevelt University, and Eastman School of Music.
Vince has consulted with several arts organizations to develop successful digital strategies, including Detroit Symphony Orchestra (developed webcast series), Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and Philadelphia Orchestra.
Vince is regularly engaged to speak at conferences on digital topics relevant to the arts.
Selection of Recent Conferences & Presentations
2023 – League of American Orchestras Webinar on Branding
2020 – Hawaii International Conference of System Sciences (HICSS)
2019 – Communicating the Arts (CTA)
2019 – International Conference on Arts and Cultural Management (AIMAC)
2019 – League of American Orchestras Essentials Course
2018 – Tessitura Leadership Summit
2018 – Engaged Management Scholarship Conference
2007 – 2017 Multiple Tessitura, Arts Marketing, League of American Orchestras
Education
2019 – DBA, Fox Business School, Temple University
2007 – MBA, Goizueta Business School, Emory University
1998 – BMUS, Hugh Hodgson Music School, University of Georgia