Issue: June 2020
When the Coronavirus Pandemic brought our industry to a sudden halt in March, it became clear that a series of contract-reopening negotiations were soon to follow. The scope of the financial losses experienced by our orchestras meant that many of these negotiations would likely be difficult. This difficulty was only compounded by the incredible uncertainty surrounding when we can begin fulfilling … [Read more...]
Issue: June 2020
The global health emergency caused by the novel coronavirus stopped life as we knew it in mid-March. The effects of COVID-19 have been a shock to all, performers and music lovers alike. Shut out of concert halls and denied the ability to be together physically, ICSOM musicians immediately harnessed their creativity. They have launched diverse initiatives to help fill the gaping hole that the … [Read more...]
Issue: Chairperson's Reports
I am sorry to say that just over two months into this coronavirus pandemic, the crisis for our orchestral industry is only beginning. Most of our summer employment is canceled. When we do return to work, it is unlikely that we will be able to perform as full orchestras, with some semblance of audience in attendance, before January of 2021. And it may well be longer. While some orchestras are … [Read more...]
Issue: June 2020
There is no question that right now is an incredibly challenging time for all of us. This pandemic is causing both a health and economic crisis like none other we have seen. The number one concern that ICSOM has is for the health and well-being of the nearly 4000 musicians of our 52 orchestras, who have not been able to perform their jobs in person now for months due to COVID-19. While we have … [Read more...]
Issue: June 2020
This is the second time in my professional career that I have been forced into an extended work stoppage over which I had no control. The first was four years after I joined the Nashville Symphony, when the board shut the orchestra down in early February 1988, ostensibly because of the effects of the October 1987 market crash. Our return to work took nearly nine months. In those nine months, I saw … [Read more...]
Issue: Counsel's Columns
Symphony orchestra musicians in the United States are increasingly consumed with a single, burning question: When and how can we come back to work? Surprisingly, it appears that in some orchestras, musicians have already been returning and performing to at least some degree—for example, in small ensembles for streaming concerts at the hall—while others seem to be moving ahead with plans to … [Read more...]
