MPG svinger dirigentstokken

Klassisk musik og strategi-lære på MPG er nok to forskellige verdener. Dog findes der så mange ligheder mellem det at lede et orkester og lægge en strategi, at Professor Martin Kornberger bringer musikken i spil sammen med Uffe Savery, også bedre kendt som den ene halvdel af Safri duo og musikchef i Copenhagen Phil.

I dette interview med underviser Martin Kornberger kan du blive klogere på, hvad vi kan lære af den måde som musikere arbejder på og hvordan et møde tilbage i 2012 blev til et samarbejde på MPG.

How did you come up with the idea to bring Uffe in to your courses?

We have done a case on Uffe in 2012 and since then we have been co-teaching in a variety of different courses. He is an interesting person, coming from two (or more) worlds – that of pop music (Safri Duo) and that of classical music (Copenhagen Phil). I think this makes him see the specificity of each domain, as well as opportunities for change. What I like is the complexity of leading an orchestra: it is such an institutionalized environment that has seen very little change over the past centuries. Introducing new ideas is challenging – perhaps more so than in the public sector.

What is it that Uffe and his musicians bring to your course?

Uffe is a great storyteller and what he brings to the course is his story, but also the story of the orchestra, of changing it, of difficulties experienced on the way, and of unanticipated outcomes. With his musicians he can acoustically “illustrate” his experiences and ideas. For instance, "change as emerging from interactions” sounds abstract, but the musicians can bring this to life through improvising together. Music touches people, their eyes and hearts light up,which makes coursework much more engaging. Perhaps we should think more generally about how we can “embody” ideas and conversations. More often than not, at university we seem to forget that we learn with all our senses.

What is it that music and strategy have in common?

Making music and making strategy share some important features: both are collective enterprises, they work towards high performance, they build on experts that are steered by a conductor, they have to relate to external audience’s expectations yet they should be innovative, creative and surprising. There are many similarities that are inspiring, but it is important to keep in mind that they are not the same. 

What can we learn from the way musicians work?

One of the most interesting issues is creativity and innovation: in music, and perhaps art generally, innovation comes from using conventions in new, surprising ways. In management we often think of innovation as departure from the past. The art world helps us to reflect on this simplified, simplifying notion of change.