Issue: March 2013
Gino Vivaldo Raffaelli 1925–2013 Gino Raffaelli, a founding member of ICSOM, passed away on January 10. He was a violinist with the Cleveland Orchestra from 1957 to 2001 and served as ICSOM’s first treasurer. He is survived by his daughter, Giovanna M. Shore, and two grandchildren. Gino was widely admired by his friends and colleagues as both a musician and an activist. In 1984, with … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2013
At the recent 55th Annual Grammy Awards there were a number of ICSOM orchestra recordings that won or were nominated for awards. Congratulations to these ICSOM orchestras, listed here along with the award categories in which they were recognized. Producer of the Year, Classical Blanton Alspaugh (winner), credits include: Davis: Río De Sangre (Joseph Rescigno, Vale Rideout, Ava Pine, … [Read more...]
Issue: Editor's Reports
The San Francisco Symphony newslet on pensions in the December 2011 issue of Senza Sordino generated considerable interest. One reader pointed out that the loss due to lower rates of return on investments in defined contribution plans compared to defined benefit plans was actually understated. If the defined contribution plan experiences a return that is 1% lower each year, after 14 years the … [Read more...]
Issue: December 2011
San Francisco Symphony’s negotiating committee recently probed the financial arithmetic behind defined contribution pensions. According to Dave Gaudry, negotiating committee chair, management wanted future pension improvements to come from a 403(b) plan while the musicians wished to increase the SFS defined benefit plan. The negotiating committee challenged the assumption that defined contribution … [Read more...]
Issue: November 2011
When the San Francisco Symphony celebrates its centennial this year, it will be a season to remember. An ambitious eleven months of concerts, programs, and events, as well as expanded education programs and media initiatives, will invite the entire region to join in on the festivities. The season will also accentuate the vibrant role of the American orchestra in our communities, in part by … [Read more...]
Issue: June 2010
The New York City Opera, after a year of being homeless, is very much alive and thriving back home in the newly renovated David H. Koch Theater (formerly the NY State Theater). The orchestra committee reports that, most importantly for the orchestra, the renovations include a wonderful, enlarged pit, which can be raised to various heights—including stage level—enabling the theater to be used for … [Read more...]
Issue: April 2009
Late last spring, as the SFS negotiating committee was gearing up to meet with management, it seemed like it would be a straightforward negotiation. The orchestra’s finances were in excellent shape, as confirmed by a Ron Bauers audit (one of the healthiest arts organizations in the country, he reported) and by our board president, John Goldman (at the December 2007 Annual Meeting—six months before … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2008
The North Carolina Symphony began its season with an outdoor Labor Day concert broadcast on local television. The September schedule included a celebration of Raleigh’s new convention center, with the premier of a composition by Robert Ward titled “City of Oaks”. Delegate Beth Lunsford reports that the orchestra will record Medtner’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with Yevgeny Sudbin as soloist in November. … [Read more...]
Issue: August 2008
The San Francisco Symphony has a longstanding commitment to music education, beginning in 1919 when the orchestra performed its first group of children’s concerts. At the start of the 21st century, the orchestra embarked on a multimedia project with ambitious goals and unprecedented scope: to use media in its most public and accessible forms to instill a lifelong love of music and show that … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2008
Newslets are compiled with the help of ICSOM’s delegates and members at large from sources that include direct submissions, member orchestra websites, and topical news items. The editor encourages input and submissions. In January, months before contract negotiations were to begin, the management and the board of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra publicly issued a 50-page strategic plan … [Read more...]
