Drew McManus on the orchestra business.
After three delays over the summer, I finally found the time to update my consulting and professional overview sites. The latter only required some minor copy tweaks, but the former was a different story as it had not seen any major updates in about three years. In addition to a complete redesign and new logo, there is a great deal of edited copy and new sections highlighting conference and speaking gigs. …
The latest round of negotiations between the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) and their musicians have yet to produce a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Moreover, both sides are firmly entrenched into what have become do-or-die outcomes. The only new development is the employer offered a play and talk agreement under the terms of the now expired agreement with an expiration date of December 31, 2019. The musicians held a vote on …
I’ve been anxious to get the latest installment in my series on better web accessibility through content management published. It’s taken some time becasue it’s one of the more step-filled tasks in the series so there’s a good bit to cover. Having said that, it’s also one of the most important tasks: assigning image alt text. In a nutshell, image alt text is what allows site visitors with visual impairments to …
Over the past year, I’ve noticed a larger than usual increase in the cost of strings every time my wife orders new sets. Price increases certainly aren’t unusual and the rate of increase has been steady over the past decade, but 2019 year-to-date increases are around twice the usual rate. This has an obvious impact on the overall cost of ownership for orchestra string musicians, where anywhere from 11-19 percent of …
Update: 9:10am CT: BSO musicians file unfair labor practice. Wednesday, 9/11/19, is the next threshold in the ongoing Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) work stoppage. Technically, the employer has ended their lockout and is offering musicians work but that seemingly simple term has a gargantuan asterisk attached. The problem is there’s still no new contract nor is there any indication of the terms the employer is offering if the musicians return. Are …