Page 28 - Phil Bacharach program digital book

A Decade of Leadership
Celebrating Executive Director Kim Corben

Since becoming Executive Director in 2014,
Kim Corben has led the organization through a
period of growth and expansion that continues
today. Under her administration, the Phil has grown in size and
stature, adding to its concert offerings, furthering its educational
mission, and reinvesting its resources for future generations.

She has long advocated for the arts and is particularly earnest about
creating collaborations and partnerships within the arts and business
communities.

What is your earliest memory related to music?

Special time with my dad. My dad loved country music. Real country music like
Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash, and Merle Haggard,
and he was always singing. Not that he had a
great voice – he just loved to sing. As a young
girl, he would bounce me on his knee and make
up country songs about me. I have five brothers
and no sisters, so with a big family, times like that
when he focused on me were very special. That
music will always make me think of him.

How did you first get involved in the arts?

I got really involved the day after I turned 16. That’s when I could get a work
permit, as I already had a job lined up as an usher at the Performing Arts
Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I couldn’t wait to start. I saw so many shows
and concerts, from the opera to the symphony to Bob Marley. I still think that
was the best job I ever had. I was so lucky to be exposed to so much music at
an early age, and it really had an impact on my whole life.

What brought you from Wisconsin to Massachusetts?

I was working as ticket director at the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and
at 23 years old, I knew I wanted to see more of the country. I was always
interested in the East Coast and Boston in particular. I was hired by the North
Shore Music Theatre in Beverly, MA, as Box Office Manager. At the time, it

26 Plymouth Philharmonic Orchestra
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