Issue: May 2007
As my orchestra prepares for negotiations here in Nashville— the first in our new hall—I have begun to reflect upon our own bargaining history and how it has been impacted by ICSOM's relationship with the AFM. As ICSOM celebrates its 45th year, we once again will send a delegation of representatives to the AFM Convention, this year being held June 18–20 in Las Vegas. With the attendance of … [Read more...]
Issue: May 2007
[Editor’s Note: The following article was submitted at the beginning of the year. Unfortunately, space constraints prevented a more timely publication. As a result, some reporting on the state of U.S. oboe auditions is no longer current.] It looked like a great year for oboe players, with nine fantastic jobs to try out for: principal in San Diego, Los Angeles Opera, Atlanta, Cincinnati, … [Read more...]
Issue: Counsel's Columns
Recently, a representative of an ICSOM orchestra asked me about “off the record” meetings. My definition of such meetings is that they are collective bargaining sessions which are attended by only one or two members of each team, and they are designed to create an atmosphere in which the parties can freely express their positions and exchange ideas for the ultimate resolution of the outstanding … [Read more...]
Issue: May 2007
Newslets are compiled with the help of ICSOM delegates and ICSOM Members at Large from sources that include direct submissions, member orchestra websites, and topical news items. The editor encourages input and submissions. The National Symphony Orchestra’s new Principal Guest Conductor, Ivan Fischer, of the Budapest Festival Orchestra, has led two subscription programs so far this season. One … [Read more...]
Issue: May 2007
ICSOM Resolution #1 Regarding OSP Language WHEREAS, It is AFM policy to provide the best possible representational services to its members; and WHEREAS, One of the programs used to implement that policy for symphonic members is the Orchestra Service Program (OSP); and WHEREAS, The current Orchestra Service Program by-law provides only one method of insuring that Symphonic members receive … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2007
I was recently invited to travel to New Orleans to join the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) in one of their two concerts celebrating living composers. Since my return I have had the hardest time gathering my thoughts to write this article, and it finally struck me that it’s because they are really two stories, though one is intrinsically tied to the success of the first. As I arrived in … [Read more...]
Issue: Chairperson's Reports
Breaking the Fourth Wall I still remember vividly the first time I heard the Boston Symphony in a live concert, a 1978 performance of Schubert’s C Major Symphony with Sir Colin Davis. For many years, I have had a book about that great orchestra called Community of Sound, by Louis Snyder. Twenty-seven years after its publication, it is enjoyable to read about a few of my teachers when they were … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2007
This is my first column since being re-elected as ICSOM President after a year away. I told the delegates, officers, and guests at the 2006 ICSOM Conference that I missed the tremendous energy and vast knowledge of Governing Board members and Distinguished ICSOM Legal Counsel (DILC), as well as the friendships created with officers, delegates, and committee chairs over the past several years. I … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2007
Newslets are compiled with the help of ICSOM delegates and ICSOM Members at Large from sources that include direct submissions, member orchestra websites, and topical news items. The editor encourages input and submissions. Atlanta Symphony delegate Michael Moore reports that the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Board of Directors and Players’ Association jointly announced the ratification of a new … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2006
This year’s ICSOM Conference was held at the Downtown Nashville Hilton in Music City USA (Nashville, Tennessee) from August 16 through 19, just one block away from both the Schermerhorn Symphony Center and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. The Conference was dedicated to Bill Roehl, the visionary trade unionist who formulated the current structure of the AFM, including the Player … [Read more...]
