Alecia Lawyer

oboe

Considered daring, inventive, and a trailblazer, oboist Alecia Lawyer is the Founder and Artistic Director of ROCO, a Houston- based 40-piece professional classical music ensemble. She has championed accessibility and inclusion in the field, constantly on the leading edge of the way classical music is created and experienced with endeavors such as Braille programs, QR codes, and the signature ROCOrooters music education and childcare program during and after concerts. Focusing on relationships rather than transactions and referring to her business style as “Wildcatting in the Arts,” Ms. Lawyer has built an orchestra model that leans into “pay what you wish,” supported by a vast portfolio of contributors to achieve 90% revenue from donated dollars.

ROCO presents dozens of concerts in multiple venues throughout Houston, which are nationally broadcast on APM’s Performance Today and have also been livestreamed to the world for free since 2013, with 250,000 concert views during Covid-19. ROCO’s unique industry-changing initiative “ROCO on the Go” has placed QR codes that link to ROCO’s free music streaming throughout Houston’s parks, hospitals, and schools. With 35,000 scans and counting, ROCO weaves music through Houston’s community in this fully-accessible way. ROCO has performed 132 world première commissions in 18 seasons, and ROCO’s debut album producer Blanton Alspaugh was recognized with a Grammy Award for Producer of the Year.

Ms. Lawyer was one of Musical America’s Top 30 Influencers in 2015, named a finalist for Texas Musician of the Year (along with the winner, Willie Nelson), and was listed as one of Houston’s Top 50 Most Influential Women. She regularly presents her innovative and entrepreneurial ideas throughout the U.S., using ROCO as a case study for community-specific orchestra building. To learn more, visit roco.org-Alecia Lawyer.

Sponsor: Karen Schwitters