Board of Directors
The CMC Board of Directors includes, in alphabetical order:
Olusola “Shala (Esquire)” Akintunde, a multi-media producer and songwriter. He is the Nigerian-American creator of the cult phenomenon, Seven Spoon, a member of the four-man rap super group, Qualo and the CEO of The Movement Worldwide, Inc.
Rachel Barton Pine, has appeared as soloist with many of the world’s most prestigious orchestras, including the Chicago, Atlanta, St. Louis, Dallas, Baltimore, Montreal, Vienna, New Zealand and Iceland Symphonies, and the Philadelphia Orchestra, working with conductors including Charles Dutoit, Zubin Mehta, Erich Leinsdorf, Marin Alsop, Neeme Järvi, and Placido Domingo. Acclaimed collaborations include Daniel Barenboim, Christoph Eschenbach, William Warfield, Christopher O’Riley and Mark O’Connor. Her festival appearances include Ravinia, Marlboro, and Salzburg. She has been featured on St. Paul Sunday, Performance Today, From the Top, CBS Sunday Morning, and NBC’s Today. Her 11 critically acclaimed albums for the Cedille, Dorian, and Cacophony labels include “Brahms and Joachim Violin Concertos” with Carlos Kalmar and the Chicago Symphony, and “Scottish Fantasies” with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. She holds top prizes from the J.S. Bach (gold medal), Queen Elisabeth, Paganini, Kreisler, Szigeti, and Montreal international competitions, and has twice been honored as a Chicagoan of the Year. Her charitable activities include serving as a trustee of the Music Institute of Chicago and president of the Rachel Elizabeth Barton Foundation. She plays the Joseph Guarnerius del Gesu (Cremona 1742), known as the “ex-Soldat,” on generous loan from her patron.
Walter Dale, an entertainment attorney for 20 years specializing in the music industry. He is a professor at Columbia College Chicago teaching courses in the music business program. Walter is also a board member and treasurer of the national organization, Black Entertainment & Sports Lawyers Association (BESLA).
Jim Goodrich is a Chicago based musician with a Masters of Arts in Vocal Pedagogy from Northeastern IL University. He sings Bass with the mixed a cappella group 4-AM and is the producer/host of the show With A Voice Like This. Jim also sits on the Rock For Reading Musicians Board.
Bruce Iglauer, President and founder of Chicago-based Alligator Records, the world’s largest contemporary blues label. He has 35 years experience in the record industry as a label owner, producer, artist manager and music publisher. He is also a founder of the Association For Independent Music (AFIM), the Blues Music Association and the Blues Community Foundation, and a winner of Chicago Magazine’s “Chicagoan Of The Year” award.
Daniel Lurie, an attorney with a wide range of experience in the private and public sectors. He has served as both as a counselor to private clients and as a senior local government official. He is also the President of the Walkabout Theater Company’s Board of Directors and a member of the Illinois Arts Alliance’s Legislative Committee.
Paul Natkin (Executive Director), discovered music photography in 1976. Since then, he has photographed most of the major music stars of the last half of the 20th century, shooting album covers for artists such as Ozzy Osbourne and Johnny Winter and magazine covers for Newsweek (Bruce Springsteen), Ebony (Tina Turner), People (Prince), and many music magazines around the world. Paul’s work is managed by Photo Reserve, Inc.
Mark Roth, one of the original founders of CenterstageChicago.com, the original online Chicago city guide. Mark brings more than nine years of experience managing website engineering projects as well as strategic communications and media production for both private sector and nonprofit community organizations.
Chris Schneider, studio manager of Pressure Point Recording Studios, honored as the top new recording facility in the world by Mix Magazine (04). In his 30 years in the music business he has worked on both sides of the glass, first as a major label recording artist and now as a producer and managing director of Blue Cactus Entertainment