ICSOM’s long standing request for a department of the American Federation of Musicians devoted to symphony affairs was met for many years by the part-time attention of presidential assistants. Gil Rogers was succeeded briefly by Robert Crothers in 1969 and then by Ted Dreher. Upon Dreher’s retirement in 1982, AFM president Victor Fuentealba appointed Lewis Waldeck, the first full-time administrator of the AFM Symphony Department. In 1994, Lew Waldeck retired as administrator, and Florence Nelson was appointed Director of Symphonic Services by AFM president Mark Massagli. Upon Ms. Nelson’s election to the position of AFM Secretary-Treasurer in 2001, President Lee appointed Janice Galassi Director of the Symphonic Services Division. In March of 2004, Ms. Galassi was appointed Director of Organizing and Education and in July, 2004, President Lee appointed SSD Canada Director Laura Brownell as Director of the entire Symphonic Services Division. Brownell resigned her position in August 2008.
The Symphonic Services Division (SSD) offers assistance to Local Officers, Player Conferences, orchestra committees, and the general membership. The SSD serves as a primary resource to members during negotiations and assists with data collection, strategic planning and contract language. The SSD also provides assistance with contract administration, electronic media language and media projects, union security enforcement, dispute resolution, and audition questions.
The SSD also works alongside the Player Conferences to represent the symphonic membership of the AFM at the industry level. Relationships are developed and maintained with other cultural groups and agencies so that issues of common interest can be addressed in a concerted fashion.
A primary function of the SSD is to provide education to Local officers, committee leaders and rank and file members, to prepare them for the problems they may face during negotiations, union recognition elections, and management challenges to an existing collective bargaining agreement. Written materials are available from SSD, as well as from the AFM website, which clarify the various forms of collective bargaining, strike preparations, strategies for media and press coordination, and the labor laws covering primary and secondary boycotts. In addition, on-site workshops are available to train committees and Local officers and to assist with internal rank and file organization and media.
The SSD administers the Symphony Opera Orchestra Strike Fund and the ROPA Emergency Relief Fund. Currently there are sixty-eight orchestras in the Strike Fund.
In the realm of symphonic electronic media, SSD continues to assist locals, committees, and managers in their media projects by administering national media agreements, working together with negotiating committees and their Locals in advising on contract media language, and determining the appropriate media agreement for proposed projects and assisting through the project’s completion.
In preparation for the publication of the AFM comparative Wage Charts, the SSD collates the information for all 149 orchestras in the Symphonic Players’ Conferences (51 in ICSOM, 78 in ROPA, and 20 in OCSM). In addition, the staff contributes articles to the International Musician and provides research as needed for local officers, the Symphonic Player Conferences, and newspaper editors.
The SSD also makes outside resources available to Locals. Leonard Leibowitz is retained as counsel and provides legal advice, negotiating strategy, and assistance with arbitration preparation. Barbara Haig is retained as a public relations consultant to assist SSD and individual orchestras.
The AFM’s Symphonic Services Division works closely with orchestras, Locals and other AFM departments to best represent and advocate for symphonic musicians throughout the U.S. and Canada.
THE LOCAL OFFICER’S QUICK REFERENCE GUIDE
TO THE SYMPHONIC SERVICES DIVISION
The SSD staff is committed to assisting Locals and symphony orchestras. The staff offers a variety of services for both individuals and groups, including contract administration, assistance by telephone or on-site with negotiations, advice and support with grievances, workshops and training sessions, guidance with symphonic electronic media, as well as numerous informational handbooks.
NEW YORK STAFF
Christopher Durham, Director/Assistant to the President (ext. 1220)
Chris rejoined the AFM-SSD staff in January 1995 and was named Director of SSD in April 2009. He has served as the Secretary-Treasurer of Local 2-197 in St. Louis MO, Vice-President of Local 103 in Columbus OH, and Trustee of Local 11-637 in Louisville, KY. He was a violinist in the Columbus Symphony from 1989-91. Durham served on ROPA’s first Executive Board as a Member-At-Large. Chris was in the first Suzuki class in the United States as a student of Dr. John Kendall.
Deborah Newmark, Director of Symphonic Electronic Media (ext. 1225)
Debbie has been on the staff of the AFM since 1996, serving as a Contract Administrator prior to her current position. She is also the administrator of the AFM Symphony-Opera Strike Fund. As a bass player, she is a long-standing member of the Long Island Philharmonic where she held the position of committee chair and ROPA delegate for many years. In addition to both Bachelor and Masters’ Degrees in performance from the Manhattan School of Music, Debbie has a Master’s Degree in Arts Administration from Columbia University.
Nathan Kahn, Contract Negotiator (ext. 1221)
Nathan has been a member of the SSD staff since 1988. He is founder and President Emeritus of ROPA. He is a bassist who has worked with such orchestras as the Colorado Springs Symphony, Nashville Symphony and the Tulsa Philharmonic. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Local 154. Nathan negotiates numerous contracts each year, advises and assists many locals, orchestra and negotiating committees with a wide variety of contract administration, negotiation, and internal relationship issues, and oversees symphonic auditions nation-wide through the AFM Symphony Audition Complaint Hotline.
Doug Lyons, Contract Administrator (ext.1211)
Doug joined the AFM staff in April 2008. He worked as a principal horn in Europe for four years, and then freelanced around the U.S. and in Los Angeles for 20 years. He has played with the Phoenix Symphony, Grant Park Symphony, Grammy Awards and MTV Awards Orchestras and has played on many Fox TV shows. Since moving to New York two years ago he has freelanced on various Broadway shows and toured with Lorin Maazel and the Symphonica Toscanini. He has played in and chaired the orchestra committees for the California Philharmonic and Pasadena Pops Orchestras.
Barbara Owens, Contract Negotiator (917/364-5267)
Barbara Owens joined the AFM as a freelance violinist in 1976. In addition to an active freelance career in Boston, New York and Providence, she worked as operations manager for the Rhode Island Philharmonic Orchestra, Lake Forest (IL) Symphony, the New World Symphony and the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra. She was elected Vice President of the Boston Musicians' Association, AFM Local 9-535, in 1997, and subsequently was appointed and then elected Local 9-535 President. As President of Local 9-535, Barbara negotiated and maintained collective bargaining agreements with over 25 local performing arts organizations. She was appointed as the AFM International Representative for the Midwest in 2008, and joined the SSD staff in 2009.
Joseph Goldman, Benefits Analyst (248-763-1480)
Joe joined the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1974 where he continues to perform in the first violin section. He has served multiple years as a member of the DSO negotiating, orchestra, and pension committees as well as serving on the Local 5 Executive Board. He recently completed his education in 2005 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Computing and Management from the Rochester Institute of Technology.
Corina Seligman, Administrative Assistant (ext. 1214)
In early 2008 Corina began as a temp in the Electronic Media Department of the AFM. In June, she became a full time administrative assistant in the Symphonic Services Division. In 2005 she earned her bachelors degree in jazz and world music for vocal performance at San Francisco State. In 2007, she moved to New York City to begin her career in music. It was there that she founded Rare, a blues and funk-influenced band, with which she does a majority of the songwriting and arranging of their material.
CANADIAN STAFF
Mark Tetreault, Director, Symphonic Services Division, AFM Canada (416-391-5161)
Mark joined the AFM Canadian Office as SSD Assistant in September 2004 and was appointed Canadian SSD Director in 2005. He has been Principal Tuba of the Toronto Symphony since 1986. Mark served on orchestra committees both in Toronto and Jacksonville, where he was one of the founding ROPA delegates. Mark was Secretary of the Toronto Musicians’ Association, AFM Local 149, from 1997-2003. His responsibilities now include most Canadian Symphonic matters.