Drew McManus on the orchestra business.
It is difficult to imagine a clearer sign that the dysfunction within the Minnesota Orchestra Association’s (MOA) board is far from over and the reported divisiveness, not to mention resulting inaction, over whether or not to retain President and CEO Michael Henson is about as dire of an omen one could imagine at this point. Simply put, if the MOA were a publicly traded company, we would see finance talking heads …
Throughout the series of posts about the substitute musician pay disparity at the Minnesota Orchestra Association there were a number of reader comments asserting anecdotal evidence over how common the practice was among professional orchestras. Since then, I’ve taken the time to evaluate the data and have uncovered some fascinating information. Before diving into the figures, it is important to understand how they were processed. For instance, most orchestras pay substitute …
The Minnesota Orchestra Association (MOA) may be back to the business of presenting concerts, but that doesn’t mean the drama has abated. At the first concerts since the work stoppage, shouts from the audience to “bring back Osmo” and “Fire Henson” reportedly punctuated remarks from musician and board representatives. Unlike the traditional chicken or egg quandary, the issue of whether or not Vanska returns has at least one firm prerequisite: president …
Although specific details have yet to be released, media reports have confirmed the new master agreement ratified by the Minnesota Orchestra Association (MOA) and its musicians contains a provision to pay substitute musicians 90 percent of the contracted musicians’ base scale rate, thereby requiring subs to shoulder a disproportionately larger share of salary concessions than their contracted colleagues. There has been a great deal of conversation here and throughout social media …
According to Gwen Pappas, Minnesota Orchestra Association’s (MOA) Director of Public Relations, it may take “several weeks” for the organization’s new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) to be released. Pappas was the first to respond to requests for a copy of the CBA and at the time this post was written, a musician representative has yet to reply. At the same time, follow-up questions to the MOA about whether or not the …