Now is the right time to become an American Federation of Musicians member. From ragtime to rap, from the early phonograph to today's digital recordings, the AFM has been there for its members. And now there are more benefits available to AFM members than ever before, including a multi-million dollar pension fund, excellent contract protection, instrument and travelers insurance, work referral programs and access to licensed booking agents to keep you working.
As an AFM member, you are part of a membership of more than 80,000 musicians. Experience has proven that collective activity on behalf of individuals with similar interests is the most effective way to achieve a goal. The AFM can negotiate agreements and administer contracts, procure valuable benefits and achieve legislative goals. A single musician has no such power.
The AFM has a proud history of managing change rather than being victimized by it. We find strength in adversity, and when the going gets tough, we get creative - all on your behalf.
Like the industry, the AFM is also changing and evolving, and its policies and programs will move in new directions dictated by its members. As a member, you will determine these directions through your interest and involvement. Your membership card will be your key to participation in governing your union, keeping it responsive to your needs and enabling it to serve you better. To become a member now, visit www.afm.org/join.
August 6, 2014Read More
August 6, 2014
For the past 36 years, labor-minded musicians and other artists have gathered at the Great Labor Arts Exchange to celebrate creativity and solidarity. It is a weekend of workshops, films, discussion, poetry, jam sessions, and open mikes, sponsored by the Labor Heritage Foundation. At this year’s gathering, Local 1000 (nongeographic) members Pat Wynne of San […]
Read MoreAugust 4, 2014
by Alfonso M. Pollard, AFM Legislative-Political Director and Diversity Director Instrument Carry-on Talks The AFM recently participated in historic instrument carry-on talks at the Department of Transportation (DOT). Meanwhile, the ivory debate shows some progress.
Read MoreAugust 2, 2014Read More
August 1, 2014
May was International Drum Month and an apt time to launch a collaboration between the Local 4 (Cleveland, OH) Music Fund and the Percussion Marketing Council (PMC). The Rainey Institute in downtown Cleveland provided the connection and venue for hosting the first two performances of four special presentations funded in-part through the PMC’s Percussion in […]
Read MoreAugust 1, 2014
Routine and thorough cleaning of your wind instrument isn’t just a matter of aesthetics, it could be a matter of life or death. According to an article published in the journal General Dentistry many woodwind and brass instruments are heavily contaminated with bacteria and fungi. Every time an infected instrument is played, contaminants enter the […]
Read MoreAugust 1, 2014
by Robert Baird, President Baird Artists Management (BAM!) Many musicians have been surprised at the border and unprepared when border officials asked them for information about their musical instruments. Musicians usually take it for granted that the instruments are the least of their problems in crossing borders.
Read MoreAugust 1, 2014
Read part one of the Symphonic Workplace Safety Issues here. Backstage Lighting Conditions: Colorado Springs Philharmonic by Nathan Kahn, AFM Symphonic Services Division Negotiator: The orchestra’s CBA states in part: “… The Employer shall ensure that adequate lighting is maintained at all services, backstage and on stage. Maintaining adequate lighting shall mean having either full stage lighting […]
Read MoreAugust 1, 2014
by Nathan Kahn, AFM Symphonic Services Division Negotiator The symphonic workplace, be it on stage or in the pit, presents a variety of hazards to musicians. High decibel sound levels are an ongoing issue for symphonic musicians, but certain concerts have evolved into a much more dangerous situation as Nashville Symphony and Local 257 (Nashville, […]
Read MoreAugust 1, 2014
by Michael Manley, AFM Touring/Theatre/Booking Division Director and Assistant to the President Throughout his career and long after, composer Richard Wagner’s works have courted controversy—for their outsized scale, their uncomfortable politics, and for the Herculean demands they place on singers and musicians. His crowning achievement: a four-opera cycle, nearly 17 hours all told, telling one […]
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