Ciccarello announced in July that he would be leaving the ASO after nearly 10 years in the role. The orchestra is well advanced in its hunt for his replacement.

AGSA said today Ciccarello had been appointed as Head of Philanthropy and Enterprise, with a brief to lead the gallery’s philanthropic, development and membership programs.

Ciccarello told InReview this week that the gallery role was an unexpected but welcome turn for his career.

“For me personally, it was purely serendipitous that this newly-created position became available when I started to think about what the new focus of my career would look like,” he said.

“If I could have created my own next role, this would be it. Outside of music, the visual arts are a huge passion for me.”

AGSA director Rhana Devenport said Ciccarello had earned tremendous respect in the South Australian and broader Australian cultural community for his leadership at the ASO.

“His expertise with governance along with his masterful understanding of the interplay across philanthropic support, community membership and creative achievements will be a tremendous asset,” she said.

The role includes oversight of the AGSA Foundation, individual giving, philanthropic groups, corporate sponsorships, foundation partnerships, grants, fundraising, gallery memberships and other revenue streams.

Ciccarello said the new role’s aims wouldn’t be vastly different from one of his key goals at the ASO, which was to bring more people to understand the place of art in their daily lives. This would include finding ways to provide more people with access to the gallery’s vast collection, much of which can’t always be displayed due to space constraints.

It’s a theme echoed by AGSA board chair Jason Karas.

“Vincent’s appointment is a vital step in our dual strategy to build diverse institutional capability and expand AGSA’s footprint,” Karas said.

As for the ASO, Ciccarello believed he was leaving it in good shape, with a new concertmaster, Kate Suthers, being announced recently, and the search for a new chief conductor moving quickly.

He said the orchestra’s connection with the community was strong, citing last year’s innovative Festival of Orchestra at the showgrounds as a groundbreaking initiative.

“The symbolism of it was not lost on people: we literally removed the walls and barriers.

“I would say we are as relevant as we have ever been.”

One challenge the new ASO leadership will face is the ongoing quest for a concert hall to call home.

The previous State Government funded a scoping study, with the new administration now overseeing a business case.