Issue: June 2016
AFM Convention in Las Vegas The AFM will hold its 100th convention June 20–23, at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino. Among more than 250 delegates will be many who are active and emeritus members of ICSOM orchestras; included in roughly 160 AFM Locals sending delegates will be the 42 Locals that have one or more ICSOM orchestras. The triennial convention will see the election of … [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: December 2015
The Kansas City Symphony Enjoys a Taste of New York As Major League Baseball finalized its World Series matchup, on October 23rd during a Kansas City Symphony concert, KCS Music Director Michael Stern proposed a friendly wager to New York Philharmonic Music Director Alan Gilbert: if the New York Mets won the World Series the KCS would send Kansas City’s best BBQ, and when the Kansas City Royals … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
The recent successor master agreement reached between the Cincinnati Musicians Association, Local 1, American Federation of Musicians, and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra represents another step forward in an ever-increasing process of collaboration between the parties. There has been a considerable history of cordial relations among the musicians, union, Cincinnati Symphony Board of Trustees, … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
In 2007, the Utah Symphony had just signed a newly negotiated CBA, the symphony was embarking on an exciting search for a new Music Director, and things were on a positive trajectory. In the late fall things began to change. I recall when our CEO, Melia Tourangeau, announced to the orchestra that as a result of the financial crisis, the situation was so dire that they might not be able to make … [Read more...]
Issue: July 2015
In May 2015, the musicians of the Minnesota Orchestra reached a new 3 ½-year contract agreement 21 months in advance of our current agreement’s expiration. Clearly, this negotiation was unlike any in our orchestra’s memory. Our process couldn’t have been more different from that of the 2012-14 lockout. At his suggestion, Kevin Smith, the orchestra’s new President and CEO, and General Manager Beth … [Read more...]
Issue: December 2014
On November 13, 2014, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra returned to Symphony Hall stage to a reception that more closely resembled that of fans at a highly anticipated sports event. Music Director Robert Spano conducted, Concertmaster David Coucheron played a Mozart concerto, and the ASO Chorus joined the orchestra for a rendition of the Ninth Symphony of Beethoven. This concert also marked the end … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2014
I have a confession. One year ago, I had no idea what Twitter was supposed to be used for. Back then, as Vice Chair of the MET Orchestra Committee, I had taken it upon myself to create a better online presence for the MET Orchestra in preparation for our upcoming negotiations. Unfortunately, I soon realized that I had no idea how to do so. Luckily, a tech-savvy percussionist came to my rescue. He … [Read more...]
Issue: October 2014
Atlanta Locked Out At midnight, September 6, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra musicians found themselves locked out for the second time in two years. Management of the ASO/WAC (Woodruff Art Center, the parent corporation) issued a Last, Best and Final proposal to the negotiating committee by email on September 5, and a subsequent counterproposal was dismissed as “inadequate.” Health insurance is … [Read more...]
Issue: May 2014
By now you are aware that the musicians of the Minnesota Orchestra, still shell-shocked and wary, but strengthened in countless ways by our unity and resolve, returned to the stage of Orchestra Hall in early February. At the musicians’ request, Maestro Stanislaw Skrowaczewski, conductor emeritus and music director from 1960 to 1979, was invited to conduct the first pair of “homecoming” concerts. … [Read more...]
