In a move which will likely result in the permanent crippling of a once fine orchestra, the management of the Columbus Symphony (Ohio) is proposing massive cuts of both orchestra personnel positions and the length of the season: the former down from 53 to 31 full-time musicians, the latter from 46 to 34 weeks. [Read more →]

In the upcoming Sunday edition of the New York Times, several letters are printed in the Arts section - you can read the complete letters (as printed) here.

Here are some of the best parts of some of them: [Read more →]

The Jacksonville Symphony has locked out their musicians as a result of a negotiating impasse.  You can take a look at the musicians’ website here.  I feel for the musicians - they’re one of the lower paid orchestras in ICSOM, and they’ve been having difficulties for the past several years, at least.  Whatever and whoever is at fault for the negotiations process arriving at this point, something is clearly wrong - work stoppages, whether strikes or lockouts, are always the result of a breakdown in communications.  I hope that a resolution can be reached without undue strain on either the musicians or the organization as a whole.