Friday, September 14, 2012

Are we important to the ASO?


Hi folks,

I know we’re all concerned about the stalemate in the negotiations between the musicians’ union and the ASO/WAC boards. Only those who have actually been involved in the negotiations know what exactly has been going on behind the scenes. However, from all reports the players have offered substantial concessions on salaries and benefits, but the WAC board has drawn a line in the sand and is demanding that the players give them every last penny that they’ve asked for.

It’s clear that the ASO has serious financial problems that must be addressed. But I believe that slashing the budget for the musicians or for other areas that are central to the artistic mission of the organization and its outreach to the community is not going to promote long-term financial health. And playing hardball with the musicians in the negotiations does not create an atmosphere conducive to making great music.

If salaries and positions are cut to the extent that the WAC board is demanding, won’t the best players go elsewhere? Even if the salary issues are resolved, a reduced season and (probably) less adventurous programming will make it difficult for the ASO to attract and maintain the best talent. Maybe the situation is so dire that the cuts that are being demanded are indeed necessary and inevitable -- both the players’ association and the management cite different numbers to back up their respective positions, so we don’t know for sure. But I can’t help feeling that the people at the top are handling things badly.

Where does the ASOC fit in here? Many members of our chorus are professional musicians, too, or are professionally trained musicians who do something else to earn our living. We donate our talents and a huge amount of our time to this organization. We also donate money to the ASO, buy concert tickets, and promote concerts to our friends, families, and co-workers. We love the ASO and the enrichment it brings to our lives. We have a lot at stake in this fight: if the quality of the orchestra and the programming suffer, then the quality of the ASOC will suffer, too.

The ASO is asking a lot of us right now: we are supposed to continue rehearsing, in the hopes that the season or some part of it can be salvaged, but with no guarantee that this will happen. The management is always telling us how important the chorus is to the ASO, so now is the time to see if this is true. We should make our voices heard to the board members and to the executive staff. If you haven’t already written letters to these people, I would encourage you to do so. It may not make a difference, but I hope it will.

As mentioned in the open letter to the chorus, the players’ association and some members of the chorus have been discussing other ways that we can show our support, should the lockout continue. Thanks to Sally and Cyn for getting the ball rolling and for setting up this private website where we can share our ideas or just vent. We don’t want to do anything that could negatively impact negotiations, staff members, etc., and this will keep the discussions “in the family” and not out in public on Facebook.

Best,

Keith Langston

7 comments:

  1. Thanks for speaking so clearly and concisely!

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  2. I assume that we all want to continue rehearsing so we are prepared if there is an agreement in time for our performances. I'm curious; does anyone have qualms about continuing to rehearse in Rehearsal Hall at the WAC? Please weigh in!

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  3. Well said, Keith!
    Cyn, I also have qualms about continuing to rehearse, but have spoken to many orchestra members who totally support our continuing to do so. They understand that, if we can get this mess cleaned up in time, we need to be ready for our Oct performances.

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    1. Joe, I completely agree that we continue to rehearse since we must be ready for those concerts; there is no other way for us to prepare. Have you heard any strong dissent to continuing to rehearse in the WAC, or is this a non issue? Anyone?
      Cyn

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  4. Well, said, dear man. And for anyone else reading, here is the letter that I wrote to Virginia Hepner and Larry Gellerstedt, CC'ing Romanstein and Abrahamson, as suggested by the players association. I wrote them separately with a personal salutation.

    =======

    I always think of The Woodruff Arts Center as a conservatory -- a place to escape and celebrate a life that I wish existed on the outside. I'm sure you see it similarly, but I think you'll agree that when such a space is cluttered with anger, turmoil, and contention, art can neither be created nor appreciated there.

    Still, my partner goes to the Woodruff every week. He's not a staff member accused of being over-paid; he is a volunteer who considers himself lucky to have sung during Robert Shaw's final season and every year since. There are 200 others, just like him, who remain committed to continuing that legacy, even during this touch-and-go period. But for the first time ever, he is expressing fear that some singers may leave -- leave a space that once broke-open their hearts with unbridled joy because now it simply stands to break them.

    As you know, Mr. Shaw was a force to be reckoned with. He was reasonable, but highly intolerant of any action or person that stepped in the way of making great art. He acknowledged the fact that deficit-fundraising is not easy, but argued that sometimes it just had to be done. Please consider what he said in 1995. It seems to me an eerie omen from the grave, no less relevant today:

    "With new musical leadership and new volunteer administrations, other promises were made and other obligations undertaken. And one of the results is that our symphony orchestra has or will shortly have an accumulated deficit of some 2.5 to 3 million dollars. But does institutional virtue dress always and only in black? May it occasionally -- for a short time -- deal in futures? ... I ask you, from my heart: for an orchestra of this quality, is it possible that such a deficit -- spread over seven to eight years -- could be considered a "very good buy" for Atlanta?"

    It's hard to say what words he would choose regarding the current situation, but I imagine they would go something like this: "The players have done their part. So may we -- for a short time -- deal in futures? Can we campaign to eradicate this debt by other means, avoiding a mistake that could haunt Atlanta forever?"

    Mr. Shaw, wherever you are, I hope that we can.

    Sincerely,

    Kevin Robison
    Artistic Director
    Atlanta Gay Men's Chorus

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  5. Your quotation from Mr. Shaw is eerily prescient, Kevin. Thank you for writing.

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