It’s April and that means it is officially Take A Friend To Orchestra month! Take A Friend To Orchestra, or TAFTO, features more than a dozen critics, bloggers, musicians, classical music enthusiasts, and administrators writing about how patrons throughout the country can invite friends who don’t regularly participate in live music events to a performance in their area. Essentially, TAFTO is an opportunity for the people who care the most about classical music to proactively participate and no, you won’t have to suffer through any fundraising pitches. This is much more fun…
Year: 2009
“Thank You, Next!” Wait, Where Is Everyone?
Hot on the heels of the personnel drama at the Phoenix Symphony Orchestra (PSO), the organization has cancelled auditions scheduled for May, 2009 for three vacant positions. Earlier this week AFM Local 586, which represents the Musicians Phoenix Symphony, distributed a memo to orchestra musicians notifying them that due to concerns from fellow musicians, they have been in contact with the PSO to urge the organization to “either cancel May auditions or to notify each candidate of the possibility auditions may either be cancelled or no one hired, given the current fiscal situation.”…
Some Encouraging Words
Bruce Ridge, North Carolina Symphony Bassist and Chairman of the International Conference of Symphony (ICSOM), testified before the House Committee on Education and Labor in Washington D.C. on a hearing about the economic and employment impact of the arts and music industry on March 26, 2009. In a positive sign of our tax dollars at work, the committee has made available a video of Ridge’s address…
Recording Compensation Poll Results
On 3/19/2009, readers were asked to answer the question “Should an orchestra administration be expected to provide special compensation to musicians for recording marketing/education/outreach material?” At just over 200 responses the results don’t provide a clear majority opinion but they do provide additional insight into this topic…
Point-Counterpoint In Madison
The musicians of the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra (WCO) issued a press release on 3/26/2009 announcing plans to picket WCO offices at 3:00p.m. CT and then move to the state Capitol to protest WCO Board tactics throughout their prolonged contract negotiations. Details of recent events in those negotiations and reasoning behind the latest round of offers have finally been made available…