Issue: December 2016
The Musicians of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra ratified a four-year agreement on Wednesday, December 7, 2016, thereby ending a strike that began on September 8, 2016. The musicians will return to work on December 26. It is a contract with clear growth and no cuts. This is a major victory, especially considering where negotiations started 18 months ago—in June of 2015, our management had … [Read more...]
Issue: Chairperson's Reports
In Terry Teachout’s Wall Street Journal article “The Money Pit”, dated 10/19/16, he uses the book Tales From The Locker Room: An Anecdotal Portrait of George Szell and his Cleveland Orchestra, by Lawrence Angell and Bernette Jaffe, as a cautionary tale for orchestral musicians. In 1952, just a few generations ago, the base salary for a 30 week season in Cleveland was $3240, that’s $29,231 in … [Read more...]
Issue: Counsel's Columns
“The business model is broken.” “We need a new business model.” “We must totally rethink our business model.” Those words should strike terror in the hearts of symphony orchestra musicians. When managers or board members start using that terminology on a regular basis, musicians should know their next CBA negotiation will be difficult. Cuts will almost certainly be on the table. But what … [Read more...]
Issue: December 2016
Music is a key pillar of cultural expression in Haiti. Though it can seem like a different world, Haiti is less than 700 miles from Miami. Many Americans, if they think of Haiti at all, conjure images of disasters, but there is so much more to our neighbor to the south. Born in revolution, Haiti has a vibrant, multifaceted culture—a lively mix of African, French, and Latin influences—that combines … [Read more...]
Issue: December 2016
Indianapolis Builds Momentum The Musicians of the Indianapolis Symphony have ratified a new three-year contract. The new agreement, reached over a year in advance of the current deal’s expiration, runs through the 2019-2020 season. After suffering through a lock out in 2012 and two recent concessionary contracts, the musicians will see their annual salary increase 9.3% over the three years, … [Read more...]
Issue: December 2016
I read Chairperson Meredith Snow’s excellent first column for Senza Sordino (October 2016) with great interest and appreciation. I do feel the need, however, to provide a different perspective on the infamous ICSOM media wars of the early 2000s. Meredith wrote that, at her first ICSOM Conference as a delegate in 2001, national media agreements were “undergoing wholesale revision,” with … [Read more...]
Issue: December 2016
I don’t think I’m going out on a limb by opining that the result of this year’s presidential election left some Senza Sordino readers devastated, some exultant, but almost all surprised. Similarly, it seems safe to say that the President-elect’s mercurial pronouncements on the campaign trail and the “Thank You Tour” have left us with a great deal of uncertainty about what exactly will happen once … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2016
On September 8, 2016, after 15 months of unproductive negotiations, the musicians of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra left the stage of the Bass Performance Hall, walked outside, and replaced bows and bocals with picket signs. The decision to strike was painful, but we had reached our breaking point. The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra has a relatively short history. Founded in 1925 as a … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2016
The 54th ICSOM Conference was held August 24-27, 2016 at the Loews Madison Hotel in Washington DC. Our hosts were ICSOM’s resident orchestras of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts—the National Symphony Orchestra and the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra—and their local, the Metropolitan Washington DC Federation of Musicians, Local 161-710. Last year in Philadelphia, ICSOM … [Read more...]
Issue: Chairperson's Reports
After ten years of dedicated service to ICSOM, Bruce Ridge has stepped down from the position of Chair. His visionary leadership has raised the profile of ICSOM and changed the public dialogue around classical music and the health of our orchestras. Bruce has touched the lives of countless musicians through our Call To Action advocacy and the utilization of social media. I am honored to have been … [Read more...]
