Tag Archives: afm members

Organizing, Recent News

100th Convention is Open to All Members

Ever wonder what takes place at an AFM Convention? Ever wanted to watch your local delegates in action? This year, from June 20-23, AFM delegates will again gather in Las Vegas, Nevada, to determine the direction of the AFM for the next three years. While all locals send elected delegates, any AFM member may attend. The AFM is pleased to invite members and spouses who wish to do so to attend as guests. The convention headquarters—the Westgate Las Vegas Resort and Casino—has extended its special low room rate to all AFM members during convention week.

If you choose to attend, you will be invited to the gala reception on Sunday evening, June 19, at the Westgate’s Ballroom that will feature the best in live music. There will be bands performing on Sunday afternoon in the convention area while the delegates and guests register for the convention. Visitors will be given badges that allow them access to the convention area, and entitle them to hear the floor debate on crucial issues facing the AFM today. They will also receive a souvenir 100th AFM Convention program and discount coupons for shows.

Visitors will have a chance to meet Federation officers as well as local officers from all around the US and Canada. They will also hear the Federation President’s State of the Union message and listen to the delegates debate the merits of many initiatives that will chart the AFM’s next three years. In addition, there will be plenty of opportunities to see the sights in and around Las Vegas. Day trips to Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon are available, plus the many shows in and around the world-famous Vegas strip. So mark the dates on your calendar and prepare to watch democracy in action at the AFM Convention.

For your convenience, you may now book your hotel reservation online. Please visit the AFM website www.afm.org/convention and follow the link, which will connect you directly to the AFM Convention’s Westgate reservations page. You may also reserve your room by phoning the Westgate using their toll free number, 1-800-635-7711. If reserving by telephone, please provide the Westgate representative with the AFM’s convention code, SAFM6R

Recent News

The AFM Recognizes Signatory Grammy Winners

Taylor_Swift_-_1989There were many AFM members among those honored with nominations and awards at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards. Following is a list of Grammy winners who are AFM members and whose work was recorded on labels signatory to AFM agreements. The AFM celebrates all artists whose works are supported by AFM musicians, under AFM agreements.

Record of the Year:
“Uptown Funk,” Bruno Mars, member of Local 47 (Los Angels, CA).

Album of the Year:
1989, Taylor Swift, member of Local 257 (Nashville, TN).

Best New Artist:
Meghan Trainor of Local 257.

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance:
“Uptown Funk,” Bruno Mars.

Best Pop Vocal Album:
1989, Taylor Swift.

Best Country Solo Performance:
“Traveller,” Chris Stapleton of Local 257.

Best Country Album:
Traveller, Chris Stapleton.

Best Latin Jazz Album:
Made In Brazil, Eliane Elias of Local 802 (New York City).

Best Blues Album:
Born to Play Guitar, Buddy Guy of Local 10-208 (Chicago, IL).

Best Arrangement, Instrument and Vocals:
“Sue (Or in a Season of Crime),”
Maria Schneider of Local 802.

Best Musical Theater Album:
Hamilton, performed by musicians from Local 802.

Best Album Notes:
Love Has Many Faces: A Quartet, A Ballet,
Waiting to Be Danced, Joni Mitchell of Local 47.

Best Historical Album:
The Basement Tapes Complete: The Bootleg Series Vol. 11,
Bob Dylan of Local 47 and The Band.

Producer of the Year, Non-Classical:
Jeff Bhasker, of Local 47.

Best Orchestral Performance:
Shostakovich: Under Stalin’s Shadow – Symphony No. 10,
Boston Symphony Orchestra, members of Local 9-535.

Best Engineered Album, Classical:
Ask Your Mama, San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, members of Local 6.

Producer of the Year, Classical:
Ask Your Mama, San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, members of Local 6.

Best Classical Compendium:
Paulus: Three Places of Enlightenment Veil of Tears and Grand Concerto,
Nashville Symphony, members of Local 257.

donald trump
Recent News

Members Object to Having Their Songs Politicized

When Neil Young of Local 47 (Los Angeles, CA) rejected Donald Trump’s use of his song for political purposes he was in good company. Rollingstone published a list of 34 artists who objected to the use of their tunes in political campaigns, among them were Bruce Springsteen of Local 399 (Asbury Park, NJ) and 47 regarding Ronald Regan’s use of “Born in the USA”; Dave Grohl of Local 47 over John McCain’s use of “My Hero”; Nancy Wilson of Local 76-493 (Seattle, WA) over Sarah Palin’s use of “Barracuda”; Eddie Van Halen over John McCain’s use of “Right Now”; John Mellencamp of Local 11-637 (Louisville, KY) over John McCain, George Bush, and Ronald Regan’s uses of “Our Country,” “Pink Houses,” “ROCK in the USA,” and “Pink Houses”; Joe Walsh of Local 4 (Cleveland, OH) over Congressman Joe Walsh’s use of “Walk Away”; Neil Peart of Local 298 (Niagara Region, ON) over Rand Paul’s use of “The Spirit of Radio” and “Tom Sawyer”; and David Byrne 802 (New York City) over Charlie Crist’s use of “Road to Nowhere.”

Recent News

Governors Ball Lineup Announced

The Governors Ball lineup has been revealed with plenty of great artists performing. We wish everyone good luck with their performance, and want to highlight the AFM members who are participating.

The Black Keys members: Dan Auerbach local 24 and Patrick Carney local 78

Ryan Adams local 257

Weird Al Yankovic – Local 47

Kaytranada – local 406

Get your tickets here before it’s too late!

 

Organizing

Multi-Card Member Rebates

Effective January 1, 2016, members who belonged to three or more Locals throughout 2015 can petition the AFM Secretary-Treasurer for a “rebate equal to the per capita dues received by the Federation” for that member’s membership in each AFM Local in excess of two. (Members pay their Federation per capita dues as a portion of their Local annual dues. The Local forwards the member’s per capita dues to the Federation. Only the Federation’s portion of the annual dues will be rebated).
According to Article 9, Section 16 of the AFM Bylaws, the rebate is only available to members who held simultaneous memberships in three or more Locals for the full calendar year. No rebates are available to members who held membership in fewer than three Locals. The rebate will only be given for membership in the third Local (and each additional Local above three, if any). Members will not be given rebates for dual membership.
Under the rebate program, membership in a base of two Locals must be established in order for a member to qualify for a rebate. The AFM Secretary-Treasurer’s Office has determined that a musician’s membership in his or her “home Local” and the subsequent Local of longest tenure shall be designated as the two base Locals. The Secretary-Treasurer’s Office will then rebate the appropriate per capita dues for membership in the third Local and any other Local(s) beyond three to which a member belonged for the entire 2015 calendar year. The amount rebated will be determined by the amount of per capita dues the member paid for AFM membership in a third Local and any other Locals beyond three.
To petition for a Multi-Card Member Rebate, members should fill out the form below and return it to the AFM Secretary-Treasurer’s Office together with copies of all their paid-up 2015 membership cards, receipts of cancelled checks for annual dues from all Locals, OR a letter from each Local stating that the petitioner was a member in good standing of the Local for all of 2015.
No rebates will be issued until the AFM Secretary-Treasurer’s Office verifies that petitioning members held continuous membership in three or more Locals for the full prior year of 2015. No rebates will be issued until after March 1, 2016.

 

 

(Print and mail)

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Recent News

Retiring AFM Executive Secretary Looks Back Fondly

by Barbara T. Owens, AFM International Representative, Midwest & Northeast and AFM Symphonic Services Division Negotiator

theresa

Theresa Naglieri started working for the AFM in 1958

Theresa Naglieri began working for the AFM June 24, 1958. She was just a few days out of high school when she joined the steno pool. She has served six AFM International Secretary-Treasurers and two AFM International Presidents. Her retirement, in December 2014, marked the end of an era in the AFM’s history where staff adapted to the rapid advancements in technology, yet kept its personal touch.

Barbara T. Owens: How has the AFM changed in the last 50 years?

Theresa Naglieri: Technology has been the biggest change, and it affects everything we do. The AFM was in New Jersey until the 1970s, and we had three departments just to handle claims and charges involving the Federation: Inception, Pending, and Decisions. The AFM processed about 3,000 cases a year, and every week we would send out a large packet of cases to each board member for their review and vote. We also were responsible for collecting fines, and sometimes members made weekly payments, which we recorded on file cards. So there was a lot of paperwork!

BTO: What was the AFM office like?

TN: I’ve worked at three locations—New Jersey, 1500 Broadway, and 1501 Broadway. For a long time, we had a switchboard operator, and everyone worked in one large room. When I started with the AFM I used a manual typewriter, and it was a big change when I got an electric typewriter. I remember typing on 10 “onion skins” at a time; you didn’t want to make any mistakes because erasing took so long!

BTO: At that time there were also yearly AFM Conventions, weren’t there? How did you handle that without a computer?

TN: The conventions were every year until 1981, and the convention was held in a different location every year. We had note-takers who would write down everything that happened on the convention floor, and at the end of the day, a typist would type the complete proceedings. A local printer would be ready to typeset and print that day’s proceedings in time for distribution the following morning. There were no lunch breaks; if the president took a break he transferred the chair to the vice president, so administrative staff stayed on the job until it was completed.

BTO: You joined the AFM when James Caesar Petrillo was still president. Was he “larger than life”?

TN: I’ll tell you a funny story. Mr. Petrillo loved to be surrounded by people. One night he asked me to have dinner, and because the city wasn’t really safe at night, my brother-in-law said, “Call me when you get to dessert and I will come and pick you up.” We gave Mr. Petrillo a ride to Patsy’s, his favorite place. The next morning Mr. Petrillo came into the office with two bottles of “Joy” perfume, a very expensive perfume at the time, and gave one to me and sent one to my sister, even though it was my brother-in-law who gave us the ride!

BTO: I’m curious about your observations on the role of women in the AFM. For so many years the music business was a male-dominated industry …

TN: I liked every one of my bosses; they all treated me very well. The first female officer we had at the Federation was Florence Nelson. And of course, Tammy Kirk and Tina Morrison were elected to the IEB, but in many ways it’s still a “man’s world,” even though we have more women on the AFM staff now.

BTO: Are you a musician, Theresa? What kind of music do you like?

TN: I’m not a musician, but I love to listen to ballads and singers like Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra.

BTO: Do you have a favorite memory or memorable AFM project?

TN: I was the coordinator for the Congress of Strings for over 20 years. Each participating local contributed $400 to sponsor an individual student for the eight-week program, and I was responsible for making up the orchestra based on the audition results. I also booked all the travel, and communicated with the conductors and teachers. Students who went through the program sometimes returned as masterclass teachers, and I liked seeing them return as adults. I attended a couple of concerts, and I enjoyed seeing the result of the work that we put into the program. It was a wonderful program!

BTO:  What are your plans for retirement?

TN: My husband and I will spend part of the year in Florida. He is the cook in the family, but I think I might take some cooking lessons. I will miss everyone at the AFM; this job has been a lot of fun!

BTO:  On behalf of everyone at the AFM, we love you and we wish you all the best on this new journey!