"The crucial element is that of speed"

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'I always wanted to run as much of the business as I could via computer, but in the early days I wasn't too skilled and the equipment wasn't all that sophisticated. I remember being at the Queen Elizabeth Hall one evening and talking to a friend who said, 'You know, some day there'll be a computer programme available which will allow you to provide all the information your clients need at the touch of a button'. That comment stayed with me as my interest in and ability with computers developed over the years.'

Morgenstern is that type of technophile who reads computer manuals in bed, refusing to be discouraged by the so-called user-friendly jargon which infuriates the rest of us. The precise conundrum in his case was how to devise a programme swiftly able, whenever an orchestra rings, to collate details of everyone on Morgenstern's list who may be available for specific concerts or session work, whatever the configuration of rehearsals and schedules. If an orchestra wants to know who is free for rehearsals on the first Monday in April, the second Tuesday in May and the fourth Friday in July for a concert in December, then the challenge is on. And the key word in a competitive market is speed. Surprise, surprise.

In some ways it sounds just like the sort of thing that computers have been doing for an age, but Morgenstern reckons that is not the case in this precise field. 'The custom-built programmes that are available aren't designed to cope with the numbers of musicians we have on our books, the hundreds and hundreds who use the service. There are plenty of agents who use computers to hold diaries, but the quantity of artists involved will, as a general rule, be nothing like so many as in our situation. The crucial element is that of speed - the sheer volume of enquiries we have to handle at peak times demands enormous flexibility.'

Until now, the computerisation of the Morgenstern operation has essentially extended to the administrative side of the business, whether in accountancy, sales, marketing or other areas. The information on musicians' availability was held in dozens of separate diary volumes. not a floppy in sight. Enquiries from orchestras for availability's - or requests from them to alter rehearsal times - meant a laborious search through the bookwork (yes, turning pages) before collated information could be passed on.

'Each Monday we'd spend hours drawing up lists of availabilities from the books for the following weekend in readiness for possible last-minute enquiries. Now the computer can do everything at the press of a few keys!'

And that means the programme taking into consideration not simply the bare-bones information on who is free for a given date, but such other elements as a musician's CV details and whether or not he or she has an existing relationship with a given orchestra.

'The system had to be designed in a way that allowed our staff to enter information quickly and accurately into the overall calendar. I had to answer questions such as how the system would deal with date clashes, how much information could be put into the computer about individual bookings, how that information should be presented so that it would be easy for staff to interpret it, and so on. I then had to devise a database that could produce the reports that we needed. The final job was transferring all the diary information - for 350 musicians - from the books on to the computer. I worked through the night for a week!

'For security reasons, the new availability lists will not be circulated - they remain an office tool. And the individual musician retains the right to accept of refuse work offered. A number of them have asked in the past when the diaries were going to be computerised, but the key factor has been the availability of more powerful, flexible computers. I've already bought in new equipment to use with the new software, and just round the corner is a new generation of processors that will be even more capable - when the new processors come on the market things will just shoot along.

'The new software is also the result of my thinking about how the recession has affected orchestras. Many of them have slimmed down, one result being that they have less time available to search for freelance players when they need them. I have the impression that fixers are under great pressure these days as a result. I'm also aware that the celebrations for the millennium are going to generate a lot of extra work for orchestras. I just couldn't go into that scenario running a business which was dependent of looking up dates in books. The interesting thing is the shift in focus of what we do. At the outset, Morgenstern's offered a service to musicians, essentially. Over time the interests of the orchestras themselves have become an equally important part of what we do.'

Guildhall School of Music trained himself, Morgenstern reckons the number of computer literate musicians around the place bears testimony to the kind of thought process common to both fields. 'Something to do with the detail and structure of the respective languages, perhaps. I'm no Mozart in computer terms - I guess Bill Gates is your man there - but I've always had a fascination with this technology.' Unlike Bill Gates, Morgenstern is not looking to put his new management tool into the market-place, although the idea might yet evolve. In fact, the development costs of the new software will not even be passed on as an added cost to Morgenstern's clients. 'I'm hoping of course that it simply leads to more business.' Of course.

Andrew Green

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