A posthumous $6.5 million donation to the Phoenix Symphony is on hold after trustees alleged the Phoenix Symphony misrepresented the operational and financial status of the organization.
This comes after laid-off musicians called for a halt on donations until the board had a clear plan for reinstatement of the season.
According to court records first acquired by the Arizona Republic, the multimillion-dollar gift comes from the trust of Phoenix couple Glenn and May Tansley, who passed in 2024 and 2025 respectively.
Two days before the board of the Phoenix Symphony unanimously voted to suspend season operations on Oct. 15, CEO Peter Kjome requested the donation slated for distribution to the Symphony’s Association be distributed to a separate, smaller support organization for the symphony instead.
Successor trustees of the fund claim symphony leadership gave no indication of plans to suspend the season during their correspondences in the days before the announcement on Oct. 20.
Created in 1992 after the Tansleys’ retirement, the couple’s trust fund accumulated $13 million, with one-half of the money allocated to the symphony and the other half allotted to the Salvation Army.
The Phoenix Symphony’s final performance before the season’s suspension is Nov. 1.
