The Sacramento Philharmonic concluded a very successful season on two delightfully high notes in June:

• It hosted a crowd-pleasing program that celebrated the American musical and the genius of George Gershwin.
• It found itself in the black for the fourth consecutive year.

“Found itself” is perhaps a slightly disingenuous statement, implying that we reached this goal quite unexpectedly. In fact, over the past five years, a number of people — elected officials, business and community leaders, a brilliant artistic director (Michael Morgan), members of the board of directors and, for over a year, an always resourceful executive director (Jane Hill) — have labored long and hard to not only promote the Philharmonic’s rebirth, but also to assure its future.

The Philharmonic restructured its staff for maximum efficiency (and cost-effectiveness), improved its financial operations (and brought them in-house, where staff and board members can keep a vigilant eye on the bottom line), and increased its education and outreach activities.

Maybe the most significant and gratifying of all: The organization negotiated a new two-year contract through 2004-2005 with its orchestra.

In addition, with the support of Sacramento County, the Philharmonic developed a five-year strategic plan that targets cautious growth and fiscal prudence.

So: Why am I telling you all of this?

It’s to remind businesspeople that the skills, insights and management systems they bring to their companies daily are also the key ingredients in making sure that the arts continue to thrive in the Sacramento region.

Using the arts of business: Our business plan figured in as many real-world contingencies as a for-profit company would. It made conservative estimates on spending and used good, bad and worst-case scenarios to project revenues. It looked at what other symphonic music groups were doing across the country and then factored in the idiosyncrasies of this market.

In short, we didn’t plan in a vacuum.

Living and working in a government town, we understood the folly of relying exclusively on government dollars. On the other hand, we didn’t hesitate to make the case to elected officials — who were particularly forthcoming and, ultimately, courageous — that our importance to the cultural fabric of Sacramento was in some ways incalculable, and in others quite easy to quantify.

As many businesses do, we also seek alliances and partnerships in both obvious and sometimes unlikely places.

Forging a better relationship with the Sacramento Ballet, Sacramento Opera and Sacramento Choral Society, for example, is an obvious strategy for us, since all of us have classical music in common as our art form.

On the other hand, we also were thrilled to become involved with St. Hope Development Corp. in Oak Park, where we have our offices and where, at the renovated Guild Theater, we hosted a late-spring fund-raiser that made new friends for both the Philharmonic and this resurgent, long-neglected neighborhood.

Think of it as a wonderful accompaniment: In August, the Philharmonic is releasing the seats of subscribers who failed or forgot to renew, making them available for sale to new subscribers. It’s a great chance to pick up premium seats — and subscribers get a 20 percent discount, which means one concert is free. Single tickets go on sale Aug. 1.

If your business hasn’t yet become involved with the Sacramento Philharmonic as contributors, participants or avid consumers, I’d urge you to consider the purchase of season subscriptions or event-specific group sales.

If you’re not quite ready to think of it as involving yourself in the arts, just think of it as a business-to-business connection — one accompanied by some wonderful music and sound accounting practices.