I Know What It's Like to Lead in the Arts Right Now
I'm Erin Guinup—a composer, music educator, and arts consultant with 20+ years experience building and leading performing arts organizations.
During my eight years as Executive & Artistic Director of Tacoma Refugee Choir, we transformed from a small community group into a nationally recognized organization, performing for over 50,000 people and receiving awards from Chorus America and the American Academy of Teachers of Singing.
I’ve lived through just about every challenge you're facing— rejected grants, slow ticket sales, board tensions, negative feedback, and the crushing pressure to prove our work matters. I also know the joy that makes all the struggle worthwhile—seeing lives transformed by great art.
My Background
As an artist: I've performed in twenty languages across multiple continents, from the title character in Mary Poppins to La Bohème, and major works like Handel's Messiah and Orff's Carmina Burana. I've conducted children's, church, and college choirs, community orchestras, and directed musicals and plays. My original choral compositions have been featured at national ACDA conferences and performed by the US Air Force Band. Currently, I sing lead vocals for a rock band.
As an arts leader: During my eight years as Executive & Artistic Director of Tacoma Refugee Choir, I managed everything from payroll and board relations to strategic planning and crisis management, while growing the organization to national recognition and awards from Chorus America and the American Academy of Teachers of Singing.
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As a consultant: I now help organizations ranging from community choirs to symphonies find their own path to sustainable impact. My approach combines 20+ years of hands-on arts leadership experience with strategic frameworks from my MBA in Arts Innovation—plus specialized training in board development and retreat facilitation.
Why I Do This Work
I work with arts leaders because I understand the unique pressures you face—from worrying about payroll to managing difficult board dynamics to proving your impact to skeptical funders.
Your community needs what you offer. The arts are essential for healing, connection, and resilience—especially now. But we need to help people understand that value clearly.
You shouldn't have to choose between artistic excellence and community relevance, or between personal sustainability and organizational success.
What I Learned From Experience
After eight successful years, I eventually burned out—and that taught me: The struggle isn't inevitable. I now help other leaders work smarter, avoid unnecessary pain, and build organizations their communities can't imagine living without.
The key insight: Trying to convince people to appreciate great art was exhausting and ineffective. Everything changed when we shifted our question from "How do we get people to appreciate our music?" to "How can meaningful music serve the needs our community is actually facing?"
This wasn't just good strategy—it turned out to be essential legal compliance that most arts organizations don't even know they need to think about. That strategic shift transformed everything—audience engagement, funder support, board relationships, and organizational sustainability.