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.
February 17, 2020
Michael J. Miles, of Local 1000 (nongeographic), banjo player and writer, performed his highly acclaimed one-man show “From Senegal to Seeger” in January in Beacon, NY, to benefit the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, Inc., an environmental nonprofit founded in 1966 by the late folk singer Pete Seeger. Through education, green initiatives, and the annual Great Hudson […]
Read MoreFebruary 14, 2020
Vince Gill On his 15th studio album, country singer Vince Gill of Local 257 (Nashville, TN) offers up the most personal collection of songs yet in his 40-plus-year career. The album’s title is taken from the once-derogatory term used to disparage migrants from Oklahoma to the nation’s west coast during the Dust Bowl and Great […]
Read MoreFebruary 10, 2020
Twenty Years After His Death, Violist Rollice Dale’s Residuals Continue to Fund Music Scholarships for College Musicians Since 2001, more than one dozen student musicians at the Thornton School of Music in California have benefited from a $230,000 endowed scholarship—all of which came from the posthumous residuals of one AFM musician. While violist Rollice Dale […]
Read MoreFebruary 7, 2020
The US House of Representatives on February 6 approved the most significant legislative effort to expand the rights of working people to organize since the Great Depression. The Protecting the Right to Organize Act, known as the PRO Act, would amend some of the country’s decades-old labor laws to let workers quickly vote to form […]
Read MoreFebruary 7, 2020
Noah James Hittner Noah James Hittner’s third solo album, willing, was written, performed, recorded, mixed, and produced entirely by Hittner in his tiny basement home-studio on the blue-collar east side of Madison, WI. Using blues, folk, hip-hop, R&B, and electronica, this 12-song multi-genre journey touches on social justice, loss, consciousness, parenthood, and, of course, love, […]
Read MoreFebruary 4, 2020
The Boston Symphony Orchestra’s four-city tour to East Asia (Seoul, Taipei, Shanghai, and Hong Kong) with Andris Nelsons, February 6-16, has been canceled due to increasing concerns over widely documented official news and government agency reports assessing the spread of the new coronavirus. These concerns, along with discussions with the Shanghai Oriental Art Center—whose leadership […]
Read MoreFebruary 4, 2020
The F. Arthur Uebel Superior Mopane 24K Bb clarinet is perfect for players who are looking for a warm “German” sound. It plays evenly throughout the registers without compensation by the player and is most at home in classical, symphonic, or chamber music environments. Made from seasoned Mopane wood, features include 18 keys, six rings, […]
Read MoreFebruary 4, 2020
“I have a dream job,” says Jauvon Gilliam of Local 161-710 (Washington, DC), principal timpanist for the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO). “Rarely am I the superstar or the soloist and I relish that. I like being the main support system, like the load-bearing wall, if you will.” From his riser in the back of the […]
Read MoreFebruary 3, 2020
The Soundbrenner Core gives musicians a set of fundamental music tools in a premium wearable. It serves as an everyday watch plus a vibrating metronome, magnetic twist tuner, and a decibel meter. It also offers Smartphone notifications, days-long battery life, and is water resistant. The Soundbrenner Core allows musicians to always have their tools with […]
Read MoreFebruary 3, 2020
Légère European Scrape oboe reeds respond instantly and are ready to play straight from the box. The design allows for a warm, centered sound with ease of projection. They never need to be moistened and are available in three strengths: medium-soft, medium and medium-hard. They also are unaffected by any weather or humidity. Their ease […]
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