Tag Archives: orchestra news

International Musician, Orchestra News

Albany Symphony Honors Donor

On November 18, Albany Symphony held a special ceremony to dedicate its top artistic post to long-time patron Dr. Heinrich Medicus. When Medicus passed away in February, leaving a $7 million bequest, plus a portion of his estate’s residuary, it represented the largest financial gift in the symphony’s history.

Medicus was a close friend to Albany Symphony Music Director David Alan Miller. “We will miss him terribly, but his spirit will be with us every time we make music together,” says Miller. Albany Symphony musicians are members of Local 14 (Albany, NY).

International Musician, Orchestra News

Las Vegas Philharmonic Responds to Tragedy

A mid-October concert at the Las Vegas Philharmonic, initially scheduled around an Oktoberfest theme, was altered in the wake of the October 1 mass shooting tragedy in the city. The new program was conceived as a way to bring the community together and share a message of hope.

The Bruckner symphony originally planned was replaced with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and Barber’s famous, elegiac “Adagio for Strings” was added to the program. First responders from the city’s police, fire, and emergency services were invited free of charge; 600 free tickets were distributed.

The program served as a healing moment for the philharmonic’s musicians as well, many of whom know people personally affected. The musicians are members of Local 369 (Las Vegas, NV).

International Musician, Orchestra News

Buffalo Phil Plans Tour Abroad

In March 2018, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra (BPO) will embark on its first overseas tour since 1988, traveling to Poland for four concerts and several master classes by BPO brass and percussion ensembles. The centerpiece of the tour will be a performance at the Ludwig van Beethoven Easter Festival in Warsaw.

BPO Music Director JoAnn Falletta will be the first woman to conduct at that festival. She has programmed works by American composers and by Krzystof Penderecki, in celebration of his 85th birthday.

“The opportunity to tour Poland at the invitation of the Beethoven Easter Festival will be a transformative artistic benchmark in the history of our Buffalo Philharmonic,” says Falletta, a member of Local 125 (Norfolk, VA). “We are very proud to be able to represent Buffalo and Western New York at the festival.”

BPO has announced that attendance increased by 11.5% in the 2016-2017 season, with more than 212,000 adults and children experiencing its concerts. With a budget of $11.6 million,  the orchestra gives 129 performances during its 38-week season. BPO musicians are members of Local 92 (Buffalo, NY).

International Musician, Orchestra News

Kansas City Completes Endowment Campaign

This fall, the Kansas City Symphony completed its Masterpiece Endowment Campaign, having raised $55 million. The symphony raised $52 million in the quiet phase over four-and-a-half years and $3 million in the final six-month public phase. Gifts ranged from $10 to $10 million. The campaign effort was funded entirely from the organization’s annual operating budget. When the campaign pledges are fulfilled, the endowment will reach $100 million and provide a stable base of funding. The symphony plans to draw 4% annually to support operating expenses and there is no plan to slow fundraising. The symphony currently has an annual budget of $17 million.

“The musicians of the Kansas City Symphony are proud to belong to an organization that follows a vision of institutional growth and artistic achievement,” says Musicians’ Committee Chair Richard Ryan of Local 34-627 (Kansas City, MO). “The completion of our endowment campaign is a prime example of our symphony board, administration, and community working together to ensure that Kansas City has a world-class symphony orchestra now and in the future.”

The symphony has seen record attendance and revenue in recent seasons. Kansas City Symphony musicians, members of Local 34-627, are performing under a four-year CBA that runs through June 2021.

International Musician, Orchestra News

DC Opera Musicians Ratify Contract

Musicians of the Washington National Opera (WNO) and Kennedy Center Opera House orchestras, members of Local 161-710 (Washington, DC), have ratified one-year contracts with the two organizations. The agreements will run through August 31, 2018. Initially working toward longer-term contracts, it became clear that one-year agreements would yield more progressive outcomes.

WNO initially proposed a three-year agreement with a 10% reduction in work and no wage increases, while the Kennedy Center initially offered a three-year agreement with a work reduction of one week (14%) in the second and third years. Musicians’ salaries under the combined contracts will be just above $70,000 for the 2017-2018 season—a small increase. The orchestras’ librarians are now covered as bargaining unit members under the two CBAs. The Kennedy Center Opera House season is seven weeks long, while the WNO contract totals 342 hours, within a 21-week period.

“We hope that the additional year will give the opera some breathing room, so that the opera season cuts we conceded in previous agreements will turn out to be only temporary,” says Orchestra Committee Chair Peter de Boor of Local 161-710.

Orchestra News

Nashville Mayor Declares Classical Music Day

 

Mayor Megan Barry announced that September 5, 2017 will be Classical Music Day in Music City. Though the city is known for Appalachian folk tunes, country music, and indie rock, it is also a hub for award-winning classical music. The day will begin with a public proclamation at 1:00 p.m., followed by performances by local musicians on the steps of Schermerhorn Symphony Center. Nashville Symphony musicians are members of Local 257 (Nashville, TN).

Orchestra News

Boston Conservatory Faculty Join Berklee Union

In June, the Berklee College of Music voluntarily recognized the Berklee Faculty Union as the bargaining representative for the 200-plus full-time and part-time faculty of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee. The move follows the 2016 merger of the Berklee College of Music and Boston Conservatory. The conservatory faculty join their 600-plus sisters and brothers on the Berklee faculty, who have been represented by the Berklee Faculty Union since 1986.

Orchestra News

Louisville Orchestra Ratifies Three-Year Contract

A three-year contract agreement for Louisville Orchestra musicians, represented by Local 11-637 (Louisville, KY), was reached in mid-July. The contract is retroactive to June 1 and runs through May 2020. Previously, musicians were preforming under a one-year contract that had provided a 3% raise. That temporary contract allowed management time to complete a new strategic plan.

As part of negotiations, musicians successfully fought for a planned endowment campaign to launch this fall—a necessary step toward financial stability. The musicians’ contract includes a 5% salary increase in the 2017-2018 season, and a 3% raise in each of following seasons. Orchestra size will grow from 55 to 58 by the final year of the contract, with one new position added each year.

Season length remains at 33 weeks, but a paid vacation week has been added and both sick leave and personal leave will increase. The musicians will also have increased input with the Louisville Orchestra Board of Directors.

Orchestra News

LA Philharmonic Reaches Five-Year Agreement

In mid-August, the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s musicians and management announced that an agreement was reached for a new five-year labor contract, which goes into effect September 18. Highlights of the contract include annual increases to the musicians’ minimum weekly scale wages, reaching $3,168 in the final year of the contract; and new health care plan offerings that will help to manage costs.

“One of the core functions of the AFM is to negotiate contracts that deliver improvements in the lives of working musicians,” says Local 47 (Los Angeles, CA) President John Acosta. “We are pleased to announce that our negotiating committee, made up of elected members of the orchestra and working with union staff and legal counsel, has reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Philharmonic that delivers on that promise. This new agreement builds upon the tradition of LA Phil contracts that set the bar for pay, benefits, and respect for musicians in the United States.”

Orchestra News

Philadelphia Orchestra Completes Spring Tour of Asia

In early June, The Philadelphia Orchestra completed a tour of China, Mongolia, and South Korea. With Mongolia in financial crisis, the fate of that leg of the tour was uncertain for some time. In the end, 18 musicians—one-fifth of the group—made the trip to Mongolia. The orchestra’s members are represented by Local 77 (Philadelphia, PA).

Initially, the full orchestra was slated to visit Mongolia’s capital city of Ulaanbaatar, but due in part to China’s economic slowdown, Mongolia soon found itself in a dire financial situation. Still, the Mongolian government and the US State Department came up with enough money to bring in a smaller Philadelphia Orchestra contingent for a series of concerts and master classes.

The anchor of the Asian tour was a televised performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 at Beijing’s National Centre for the Performing Arts. The orchestra is in its second five-year agreement ensuring annual concerts in that city and is also beginning two five-year agreements in Shanghai.