OK, we all know that George Bush was not the architect of the Bush Doctrine, right? That honor, if you want to call it that, goes to Vader-in-Chief Dick Cheney. He pulled the strings and the Bush administration danced. It was the height of the Neo-Con movement in America. But not in music.
Classical music as an industry has always been just a tad bit behind the times. After all, this is one of only two industries left where it is required for men to own Tails. The orchestra itself is predominantly stuck in the 19th Century, much of our music is from before that, our audiences frequently seem old enough to have been at the premieres of much of our rep, and the fact that the AFM is only stuck in the 1950s could actually be perceived as a beacon of hope. In this business we live behind the times.
With that kind of track record it shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone that the Neo-Cons are on the rise in the one area where they haven’t been completely discredited – your local symphony Board of Directors. Yes, Ladies and Gentlemen, the fine orchestras of Louisville and Colorado are out to prove to you that if you run your orchestra more like a business (read: screw your workers), cut down those business expenses (read: screw your workers), and develop a lean business model focused entirely on the bottom line (read: screw your workers) then you will take over the world.
I yearn for the good old days of Capitalism, where we had major business leaders who nurtured their work staff, and acted as philanthropists because they realized the value of investing time, money, and energy into the broader society. These industrialists understood that there was something more important than just making money, or taking over the world. Yes, they were frequently very odd and tempermental people, but they saw a value in the greater society, and they put there money where their mouths were.
Now we are stuck with Neo-Cons running the Boards of our performing institutions. They will have the same wonderful effect on these orchestras that they did on US foreign relations, or the banking industry, or anything else that they have poisoned with their self-centered short-sighted attitudes. At the rate we’re going we might as well go back to just calling it the “Servants Entrance” since pretty soon no Artists will be allowed.
Hey Bill,
and don’t forget about Philly where the board apparently wants to pull the orchestra out of the AFM pension plan and contribute the same amount to a 403b. The only hitch is that it will incur a $30 million + liability; unless of course that can be negated because they are filing for
bankruptcy.
All because there is a philosophical opposition to the idea of workers having a pension- let’s privatize everything and let the market decide!
Yes, the neocon agenda has finally hit the arts head on- and why at this time, a union, (even if that is defined as the orchestra members sitting on stage) matters!
And what group of people is empowering these neo-cons? Stated another way, almost all ICSOM and ROPA orchestra Board Members are on the mailing list of what group?
Musicians are artists. We all need to help re-shape what this means. Keep beating the drum, Bill.
It’s nice to see a conductor willing to speak out. Our conductors in Louisville have been quite silent, except when they have decided to make things much worse.
Raymond Horton
Bass Trombonist, Louisville Orchestra 1971-2011
Ray, let me put things this way. We just went through negotiations in Edmonton. Every time that my colleagues in Admin brought up the subject of negotiations I would run screaming, with my fingers in my ears, singing “Jesus loves me” at the top of my lungs. Why? Because that’s not my position. I didn’t know, I didn’t want to know, and unless it directly effects artistic decisions it is absolutely not my responsibility to know. As a human being I am curious about how much my friends and colleagues get paid and what their health care is. As a conductor I cannot get involved.
That having been said, I continue to advocate for decent wages for everyone involved in the music business. I think it’s important for society in general to have these artistic expressions of our humanity. However, as a conductor I serve at the pleasure of the Board. I do not have the rights that the musicians do, and my contract can be simply terminated. It happens, quite frequently. My job is to be an advocate for the entire organization. I am not going to call a press conference to argue for musicians, Board, or anyone else. I will yell, rant, rave, and scream in a Board meeting, or in a private meeting w/musicians, or w/the Admin, but I will not do it in public.
Not my pig, not my farm.
Wow, Bill.
Never in a million years would I ever have guessed that there was a way to get you to sing “Jesus loves me”.
Now I know….