Issue: March 2016
Prison is one place I never imagined myself visiting voluntarily. It is certainly not a place I would have gone to have a deeply meaningful musical experience. Nevertheless, in May 2015, I and five other members of the Kansas City Symphony did just that. What resulted was an incredible affirmation of the power and value of classical music, and a truly unique learning experience that none of us … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2016
The Columbus Symphony Orchestra’s (CSO’s) community outreach has been on the upswing over the past two years, in more ways than one. Like many orchestras, the CSO has been sending ensembles into the community for decades. But in the aftermath of serious financial troubles, which began in 2008, the orchestra has re-defined itself as more of a community service organization. The CSO board considered … [Read more...]
Issue: Chairperson's Reports
As I reflect upon a decade of travel as ICSOM Chairman, it occurs to me it might be possible that I have visited more backstage orchestra lounges than all but a handful of negotiators. Often the personality of the musicians of the orchestra is represented in these lounges, and the musicians’ history as well. I have seen old program books, posters, promotional buttons, and even materials from … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2016
Last fall, after months of difficult negotiations and playing without a contract for the first two weeks of the season, the musicians of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) came to an agreement with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association (CSOA) on a new three-year contract. These negotiations were our first with Kevin Case (now ICSOM Counsel) representing us. His depth of knowledge and … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2016
After years of asking to include the music librarians of the Washington National Opera and the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra in the musicians’ bargaining units, the D.C. Federation of Musicians, Local 161-710, and the Orchestra Committee have succeeded: in December the librarians voted in self-determination elections to join the orchestra bargaining units and are now represented by the … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2016
With a keen ear for the sounds and slang of Roaring Twenties’ New York City, the Gershwin brothers sparked a revolution in American music that risked aesthetic heresy. Their art crossed boundaries of black and white, popular and classical. They brought the energy and humor of the Yiddish theatre to Broadway. They put slang in poetry and jazz instruments onto the stage of Carnegie Hall. George as … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2016
In my last column I wrote about the AFM’s pursuit of a new federal law to require AM/FM broadcasters to pay royalties to all musicians. The bill—nicknamed Fair Play, Fair Pay—would level the playing field so that AM/FM radio no longer has an unfair advantage over digital music services, and so musicians could finally be compensated for their artistry. Now I’d like to examine some of the AFM’s … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2016
Each orchestra seems to have something uniquely its own, something recognized locally and especially nationally as a defining characteristic. The St. Louis Symphony’s signature, for many decades, has been contemporary music. At different points in its history, St. Louis has run with this reputation, touring and recording to show off its perceived strength. In the days of “Composers-in-Residence”, … [Read more...]
Issue: March 2016
A Century of Sound Baltimore Symphony oboist Michael Lisicky, also nationally known as a department store historian, author, and lecturer, has written a book about the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s first one hundred years, entitled Baltimore Symphony Orchestra: A Century of Sound. Lisicky has done extensive research through BSO archives, as well as information gathered from other sources, … [Read more...]
