Orchestral Strikes

[richardfinegold]

Do Orchestra strikes happen in the U.K. or the rest of Europe (I believe that at this moment, you guys still are part of Europe....)?
The Chicago SO is into the fourth week of a strike, with no end in sight. We’ve missed two concerts, and I think that I am going to donate the rest of the tickets and hopefully get a tax write off. Detroit and Philly recently lost entire seasons to walkouts and in Minnesota was locked out by management for two years. Fwiw, my sympathies are with the musicians, but I was wondering if this happens elsewhere, as I never seem to hear about it, and there is more Public Supports for the Arts than we manage here in The Land of the Free. Of course, since our wonderful news media tends to concentrate it’s attention within our shores and neglects reporting on the other 7 billion people we share the planet with I may have missed it.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

There was a long strike some years ago by the BBC orchestras, when closures were threatened.

[ardcarp]

There was a strike many moons ago when Britten was to conduct a live broadcast of the Christmas Oratorio from [I think] Norwich Cathedral. The orchestra [BBCSO?] went on strike because Philip Ledger (harpsichord) wasn't a MU member. The broadcast went ahead with just harpsichord and organ, played bravely by Brian Runnett.

[Cockney Sparrow]

The last edition of Private Eye, (unless one has been issued in the last few days) mentions that the BBC Concert Orchestra is seen as vulnerable in what will be a hard round of cuts (or even harder when they bottle out of cutting the over 70's free ride on the licence). Or, failing that (at the risk of setting off an incendiary conversation) the BBC Singers......

(For foreign readers - the Eye, fortnightly - no website, on newsprint - is where we can read what the Newspapers and other media don't find it necessary for the rest of us to know (with truly disgusting back scratching by the media themselves and their relations/pals/paymasters). Alongside a fair quantity of speculation, satire (of course - not that its needed just at the moment) and inaccuracy).

[Once Was 4]

The last edition of Private Eye, (unless one has been issued in the last few days) mentions that the BBC Concert Orchestra is seen as vulnerable in what will be a hard round of cuts (or even harder when they bottle out of cutting the over 70's free ride on the licence). Or, failing that (at the risk of setting off an incendiary conversation) the BBC Singers......

(For foreign readers - the Eye, fortnightly - no website, on newsprint - is where we can read what the Newspapers and other media don't find it necessary for the rest of us to know (with truly disgusting back scratching by the media themselves and their relations/pals/paymasters). Alongside a fair quantity of speculation, satire (of course - not that its needed just at the moment) and inaccuracy).

The BBC strike in the early 80s was the result of cuts proposed; and involved the BBC Scottish Symphony and Radio Orchestras, the BBC Midland Radio Orchestra (which was a re-organisation of the BBC Midland Light Orchestra - with which I depped in its latter days and itself was a re-organisation of a small symphony orchestra which the BBC had at its then Carpenter Road studios) and BBC Northern Radio Orchestra (with which I depped many times and had a permananent job with for a short time - this was a re-organisation of the the much-loved 'NDO' - the Northern Dance Orchestra). In the end the BBCSSO survived but the rest were lost. The other non-BBC professional orchestras were involved to some extent as the Musicians Union instituted a ban on broadcasting. At Opera North we were due to do a live relay of Weber's 'Der Freischutz' the day before the ban was due to commence. At the time we had a highly intelligent, thoughtful and inventive MU steward (something not to be taken for granted) who realised that we had to do something - but it must not harm our own organisation. So, on his initiative, we "robbed Peter to pay Peter"; we did the broadcast but with our fees paid into the BBC strike fund.
Later the BBCSSO faced the threat of amalgamation with the Scottish Opera Orchestra; they would have each retained their own managements and Chief Conductors though! Only the jobs of players would have been lost. I remember an MU meeting in London which I was chairing where the spectacle of two conductors swinging handbags at each other when one was trying to sack the other's pet player was invoked. This ludicrous idea never actually reached strike stage.
I have got to say though that certain items in the Private Eye 'Lunchtime O'Boulez' column are, at best, half truths and false assumptions; at worst fabrications by malcontents. I am an avid reader of 'The Eye' but this leads me to take a lot of its revalations with a big pinch of salt.

[Bryn]

The last edition of Private Eye, (unless one has been issued in the last few days) mentions that the BBC Concert Orchestra is seen as vulnerable in what will be a hard round of cuts (or even harder when they bottle out of cutting the over 70's free ride on the licence). Or, failing that (at the risk of setting off an incendiary conversation) the BBC Singers......

(For foreign readers - the Eye, fortnightly - no website, on newsprint - is where we can read what the Newspapers and other media don't find it necessary for the rest of us to know (with truly disgusting back scratching by the media themselves and their relations/pals/paymasters). Alongside a fair quantity of speculation, satire (of course - not that its needed just at the moment) and inaccuracy).

Here's the non-existant web-site: http://www.private-eye.co.uk/

[richardfinegold]

I get the impression from reading the comments above that Orchestra strikes are much less common than here...some of the events described sound fairly remote, and not involving the first tier Orchestras...I wonder what the difference is vs the seemingly more turbulent situation here.

[Once Was 4]

I am not sure what you mean by 'first tier orchestras'; all the ones which I mentioned were fully contracted professional ensembles - none of them regarded as 'duff'.. The 'big four' London orchestras are different, self governing, animals although they all have their internal problems. One, very famous not to say legendary, horn player moved into a contracted job because he objected to back desk string players on boards of directors counting split notes. There are at least two books about the London Symphony Orchestra which recount internal struggles.

The Royal Opera House Orchestra is surely 'first tier' and they have been out on strike before now.

[Zucchini]

The Royal Opera House Orchestra is surely 'first tier' and they have been out on strike before now.

I have seen them dress down (casual clothes) in protest about something or other ...

[Once Was 4]

This tactic has been used by more than one orchestra and has the advantage in particular where there is no contractual dress code. This results from the fact that such a dress code would mean the payment of a clothing allowance (in the old days symphony orchestras used to be paid 'white tie money'). Unfortunately it can be counter-productive as some audience members take it as an insult.

It is part of the job that the public do not appreciate; I myself kept two DJs, a tail suit, both black and white shirts and, latterly, a white tuxedo plus the usual bits and bats - white and black bow ties etc. I still have most although the tails have not been out for some years and the tuxedo rarely. As a Musicians Union Assistant General Secretary once put it: "how many businesses would expect their employees to provide and maintain over a million pounds worth of equipment?" - he was talking about the collective cost of the players' instruments, performance dress etc.

[richardfinegold]

I am not sure what you mean by 'first tier orchestras'; all the ones which I mentioned were fully contracted professional ensembles - none of them regarded as 'duff'.. The 'big four' London orchestras are different, self governing, animals although they all have their internal problems. One, very famous not to say legendary, horn player moved into a contracted job because he objected to back desk string players on boards of directors counting split notes. There are at least two books about the London Symphony Orchestra which recount internal struggles.

The Royal Opera House Orchestra is surely 'first tier' and they have been out on strike before now.

In America we had the Big Five (Chicago, New York, Boston, Philly, NBC) for years and other Orchestras would be considered second tier or less. That kind of thinking dies hard and todays Kansas City SO May indeed play better than the N.Y. Phil of the 1940s, but a lost season in Philadelphia or Chicago still means more to me than the Florida Philharmonic, for example. In the examples cited, I didn’t see mention of the LSO, the the LPO, the Philharmonia, the Orchestras that from this side of the Pond have the star appeal. Of course the BBC, Liverpool, Halle, Bournemouth etc all have fantastic traditions, but just wondering why our Orchestras seem to have more strikes than the crime de la creme on your end...

[Conchis]

Artists' strikes seem to be an American phenomenon. I've never known them to happen over here. Although most British orchestral musicians are miserably paid, they seem to accept that going on strike will only worsen the situation. I suppose many feel fortunate to be making a living as musicians, even if it's not much of a living.

My understanding is that the American arts are heavily unionised and that the unions concerned are POWERFUL - hence, actors' strikes, writers' strikes, musicians strikes.

[pastoralguy]

There's a whole generation of musicians in the 'Big 5' orchestras whose work was lost to posterity because recording these ensembles was so expensive to capture on tape. The all powerful unions negotiated fees that record companies found prohibitively expensive so they passed on the opportunity.

[MrGongGong]

Artists' strikes seem to be an American phenomenon. I've never known them to happen over here. Although most British orchestral musicians are miserably paid, they seem to accept that going on strike will only worsen the situation. I suppose many feel fortunate to be making a living as musicians, even if it's not much of a living.

My understanding is that the American arts are heavily unionised and that the unions concerned are POWERFUL - hence, actors' strikes, writers' strikes, musicians strikes.

Most UK orchestral musicians are (technically) freelance so it's not really an option anyway

[Once Was 4]

That is not totally correct: all the BBC, opera and well-known regional symphony orchestras are fully contracted although some, mainly Section Principal, players may have their own personal contracts which make them not totally tied down to the orchestra. Most will have 'rota days' giving them paid time off; this is very important as people in 'proper' jobs can take part of their holiday entitlement for weddings etc. This is not possible in a situation where the whole organisation takes its holidays at the same time. I know of one orchestra whose contract allowed time off for 'weddings and funerals in the player's close family'. One player was refused this as his Grandfather was not classed by the manager as 'close family' Mind you, he did go to the funeral but that is another story which may be told one day - not yet.