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.
March 27, 2020
In the interest of public health and in compliance with local health advisories, orchestras across the United States and Canada have canceled, postponed, or curtailed performances, educational offerings, and other public events.
March 16, 2020
By Kevin Case, ICSOM Counsel and Member of Local 10-208 (Chicago, IL) Editor’s note: This article was a memo sent to International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians (ICSOM) delegates and committee chairs, and a version of this is appearing in the ICSOM newsletter Senza Sordino. It is being reprinted with permission. Dear Delegates: As you […]
March 8, 2020
The Boston Landmarks Orchestra voted by an overwhelming majority to ratify a first CBA with the Boston Musicians Association (BMA), Local 9-535 (Boston, MA).
March 1, 2020
Seven months in advance of the expiration of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), musicians and management of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) ratified a new contract in January.
March 1, 2020
Both the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the National Symphony Orchestra announced in early February that they changed course for plans to tour in Asia due to the coronavirus outbreak.
March 1, 2020
The musicians and management of the Allentown Symphony Orchestra have ratified a new four-year collective bargaining agreement.
March 1, 2020
African-American violinist Melissa White, of Local 802 (New York City), was a featured soloist with the National Philharmonic Orchestra in a Black History Month celebration, “Black Classical Music Pioneers.”
March 1, 2020
With Project 19, the New York Philharmonic is commissioning new works by 19 woman composers in celebration of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote 100 years ago.
February 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 […]
January 31, 2020
By Lindsay Bohl, Vice President, and Michael Maier, Officer at Large, of Local 423 (Boise, ID) Last month, in January 2020, the members of Local 423 (Boise, ID)—the AFM’s newest local—ratified our hard-earned first Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the Boise Philharmonic Orchestra (BPO). This success came only 15 months after we first started our […]