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.
RNs Meeting Covers Staffing
More than a thousand RN’s, members of National Nurses United, gathered in Los Angeles for a conference covering nursing issues. Among their most critical concerns is staffing. California passed a law in 2004 governing nurse-patient staffing ratio. Currently there are two bills in Congress to establish a safe nurse-patient ratios nationwide.
The NAMM Foundation has announced that record producer, music industry executive, and Local 47 (Los Angeles, CA) member Don Was will receive the 2016 Les Paul Award at the 31st annual NAMM Technical Excellence & Creativity Awards and TECnology Hall of Fame January 23 at the 2016 NAMM Show. The Les Paul Award recognizes those who embody the creative spirit and legacy of one of the most revered musical geniuses who ever lived. The NAMM TEC Awards will be hosted by comedian Sinbad.
Was is one of music’s most significant artists, producers and executives. He co-founded former Detroit-based band Was (Not Was) with childhood friend David Was (Weiss) before going on to produce decades of commercially successful and critically-acclaimed recordings for top artists. He has earned multiple Grammy Awards for his production work over the past three decades including Local 47 member Bonnie Raitt’s Nick Of Time (’89), Producer of the Year for work with artists ranging from The Rolling Stones to Local 433 (Austin, TX) member Willie Nelson and Roy Orbison (‘94) and Ziggy Marley’s Best Musical Album for Children, Family Time (‘09).
Was joins a prestigious group of Les Paul honorees including Local 5 (Detroit, MI) member Stevie Wonder, Sting, Pete Townshend and more, who have “set the highest standards of excellence in the creative application of audio and music technology,” according to the Les Paul Foundation.
Online teachers in California recently won a victory in the effort to organize the state’s charter schools. The state Public Employee Relations Board ruled that 750 teachers working for the state’s largest online charter school, California Virtual Academies (CAVA), could be represented by California Virtual Educators United, part of the California Teachers Association. CAVA is run by a for-profit corporation, which makes organizing even more important in terms of accountability and transparency. “I think that having for-profit company so involved in a public school creates a conflict that’s bad for our students,” says CAVA teacher Sarah Vigrass.
Among growing frustrations of the virtual teachers are the fact that, due to cost saving measures, they end up doing a lot of administrative work that should be delegated to support staff; they earn about half of what traditional teachers make; and they have no due process, which makes it difficult to advocate for students.
For more than 20 years, the Union Plus Scholarship program has been providing annual college scholarship awards to union family members. They have provided funding to more than 2,500 union members, spouses, and dependent children, totaling $3.7 million-plus.
Union families looking for help financing education should check out the Union Plus Scholarship. Awards are granted to students attending two-year colleges, four-year colleges, graduate schools, as well as recognized technical or trade schools.
There’s still time to submit a 2016 Union Plus Scholarship application. The deadline is Sunday, January 31, 2016 at 12pm (noon) ET. The application requires a letter of reference and two brief essays. You can save your entries and return as many times as you need until the deadline. Visit: https://www.unionplus.org/college-education-financing/union-plus-scholarship to begin your application.
The 14,500 US-based passenger service employees of the new American Airlines have approved a new five-year contract that includes immediate and significant pay raises. Represented by the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (CWA-IBT), the vote was 6,993 in favor to 2,522 against. Kerry Philipovitch, American Airlines Senior Vice President Customer Experience commented that passenger service employees have played a critical role in the integration of the airline. “This agreement is a huge step in making us truly one combined team, and we thank the CWA-IBT for their professionalism in advocating for their members,” she said.
The weekend of March 5-6, 2016 will see musicians around the world gathering to take part in the 2016 Worldwide Chamber Music Play-In, a tradition begun in the 1960s by the nonprofit Association of Amateur Chamber Music Players (ACMP). Small groups of chamber music enthusiasts—professional and amateur, beginner and experienced players of all ages—will gather almost anywhere (venues, living rooms, libraries, and parks, and more) for a simultaneous expression of the joy of music.
These Play-In celebrations began as an organized homage to ACMP’s founding secretary, Helen Rice. For decades ACMP members hosted their own play-ins. Then, in 2013, the organization revived the tradition as a worldwide, coordinated event that included at least 50 play-ins held around the globe. Last year’s celebration comprised more than 100 events, including those held at a mall in Boston; a hotel lobby in Shizouka, Japan; a Tel Aviv hospital; and many other locations.
Sound like fun? It’s easy to join in this year’s Worldwide Chamber Music Play-In. Visit the ACMP Worldwide Play-In Weekend Facebook Page to see if there is an event near you that you can participate in. Otherwise, follow these four simple steps to start your own:
There is no official sign-up, but you can let ACMP know what you’re up to by posting photos, videos, and highlights to Facebook and Twitter (@ACMPmusic) or e-mailing them to ACMP. For more resources and tips for organizing an event visit the ACMP Worldwide Play-In Weekend website. You can e-mail ACMP for additional help at play-in@acmp.net.
The goal of ACMP is to facilitate and expand opportunities to play chamber music for pleasure among musicians of all playing levels, worldwide. Since 1950, the organization has brought together thousands of musicians, fostering lifelong friendships and connecting a global community. ACMP’s affiliated Foundation has provided grants and awards totaling more than $4 million to support educational activities for amateur adult and student chamber music players.
November 28-December 6 saw the launch for the Dallas Opera’s first week-long Institute for Women Conductors. Working to address a long-standing career issue in the opera world, Dallas Opera launched the unique, new residential program designed to provide training and career support for distinctively talented women conductors. Dallas Opera CEO Keith Cerny noticed for years a lack of women conductors or managers and launched the institute to deepen the pool.
The initial offering led to 103 applicants from 26 countries submitting resumes and videos for consideration. From that pool, Cerny, Dallas Opera Music Director Emmanuel Villaume, and Dallas Opera Principal Guest Conductor Nicole Paiement chose the six fellows and four observers from around the world, all of whom are professional musicians. Among them were Stephanie Rhodes, a member of Local 161-710 (Washington, DC) and Jessica Gethin from Australia.
“I was so thrilled to see The Dallas Opera offer such an innovative initiative for female conductors to further develop their opera skills on the podium,” says Gethin. “As a young, female, Australian conductor based in Perth, the opportunity to be a part of the inaugural Institute for Women Conductors is invaluable at this stage of my conducting career.
The ASCAP EXPO is a premier conference for songwriters, composers, and producers in all genres of music. Held at Loews Hollywood Hotel in Los Angeles, April 28-30, 2016, it will feature creative and business-focused panels, workshops, master classes, keynotes, one-on-one sessions, song critiquing, networking events, product displays, state-of-the-art technology demonstrations, performances and more.
All music creators, publishers, and executives can benefit from attending this unique creative event, which is designed around personal interaction, education, and networking. ASCAP EXPO is open to anyone, not just ASCAP members. Among the events that have been announced so far are: master sessions with Greg Kurstin (“Hello”) of Local 47 (Los Angeles, CA) and Ashley Gorley (“Crash My Party”); fun. frontman Nate Ruess in conversation with ASCAP President/Hall of Fame songwriter Paul Williams; and a special interview with rap pioneers Salt-N-Pepa.
As an AFM member, you can take advantage of deep discount pricing for the 11th annual ASCAP “I Create Music” EXPO. The deep discount registration price is just $365 for AFM members or $340 for AFM members who are also members of ASCAP. To take advantage of this special rate, select your organization name from the Partner menu. For more about that, visit: discount.aspx .
Senator Mazie Hirono of Hawaii (center) recently met with noted Hawaiian musician Henry Kaleialoha Allen and his wife, Sherron Allen (right). Hirono congratulated Allen on his 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hawaii Academy of Recording Arts (HARA). Allen has been a member of Local 677 (Honolulu, HI) for his entire career, first joining in 1952 at age 15. He has spent his life performing, promoting, and teaching Hawaiian music and culture.
Due to an exemption to the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act, fines for OSHA workplace-safety violations had not increased since 1990. Under the new budget signed into law November 2, an amendment strikes the initial exemption and raises OSHA fines for the first time in 15 years. Accounting for current inflation levels, fines could be increased by about 80%. For example, the fine for a willful violation would increase from $70,000 to $127,000. The new fines, which will be instituted by August 2016, are still tiny compared to those issued by other agencies.
