The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, founded in 1912, has a long and distinguished history. Disbanded in 1917 due to the First World War, it was reconstituted in 1925 and only four years later, Lela Rogers (Ginger's mom!) became Executive Director. The orchestra has played at Carnegie Hall (as both the Fort Worth Chamber Orchestra and in 2008 as the FWSO), toured China, Mexico, and Spain. Ann Koonsman served 31 years as Executive Director starting in 1980. It was in the change of leadership that the house began to crumble.
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The FWSO, "with their assured, rich-hued and impassioned account of Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony." NY Times, January 2008 |
A few weeks ago, I wrote of the problems within the organization. As a reminder, the players agreed to a 13.5% pay cut to help pull the orchestra out from the nation's recession. The next time contractual negotiations began--the contract expired in July--management comes forward with an "offer" of an 8.7% cut, eliminating a 3.5% give-back in 2012 and then some.
The orchestra is allegedly running deficits between $200 and $400K. The major sticking point for me is that the former development officer who should have been beating the bushes raising funds to get the orchestra out of the red three years ago (Amy Adkins is her name) was promoted to the Executive Director's position in 2011.
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| Amy Adkins I'm trying to figure out the pose... |
"Clearly, establishing financial stability will be our No. 1 short-term goal," Adkins says. "We've got to increase our earned income by selling more tickets." Um, time and time again, it's been proven that there is little income potential from ticket revenues.
Adkins, who is also mom to sons Jacob, 14, and Benjamin, 10, says she feels like she is in fighting trim to take on the gargantuan role of orchestra president, thanks to a relatively recent obsessive pursuit of exercise.
"I've become a bit of a nut about it," she admits.
Her regimen involves going to the Larry North gym four times a week, often working with a personal trainer. And what's on the iPod of the president of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra? Sting, Coldplay, U2, Black Eyed Peas, Adele and an Irish band called the Script.
Of her exercise regimen, she says, "Cardio is never my favorite, but I've been introduced to kickboxing, and that's quite an experience. I never really thought of exercise as being so empowering, but it does give me so much more energy."
That energy -- and sense of empowerment -- may serve Adkins well as she navigates the job. Obviously it hasn't helped very much as the orchestra (despite a $28 million increase in its endowment at the end of Koonsman's tenure) may be going from bad to worse. But look on the bright side. The current concessions are only half what management took away in 2010!
But I digress--a lot.
Only a week ago KERA News reported, Five years ago, Fort Worth Symphony players agreed to slash their salaries in tough financial times. Now, with new contract talks, they want those cuts restored. Bill Clay is the principal bass player with the Fort Worth Symphony and speaks for the players. “Our proposal has come down by over $1.25 million and management on the other hand hasn’t moved from their financial proposal since October,” Clay says. Two days ago, that same station offered this: The Fort Worth Symphony says it has issued its final offer and musicians will vote on it this week, but it’s not clear if they’ll accept it.
So it's yet another example of management taking the hard line and expecting the players (um...they're the ones making the music and racking up glorious reviews) to acquiesce. Just like the lockouts in Atlanta and Minnesota. Oh wait, neither of those turned out the way management intended. Chief executives were fired and the community won. But, but, but....it worked in Hartford after all!
The musicians of the FWSO are taking the issue into their own hands. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram noted that Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra musicians voted on Tuesday to authorize a strike after the symphony’s management said it planned to implement a “concessionary contract” this month. “The musicians of the Fort Worth Symphony met [Tuesday] afternoon for a strike authorization vote, and the vote was passed virtually unanimously,” said Scott Jessup, spokesman for the musicians union.
The vote does not call a strike but authorizes the union’s negotiating committee to do so.
This was brought about by the symphony's decision to implement a new contract on Monday with financial concessions including an 8.4 percent cut in total wages. “The difference with this latest offer is that the Symphony has stated that they will not bargain with us anymore by calling this their ‘last, best, and final,’ offer,” the union said in a statement. “Management says they will implement this offer on January 25, forcing us to work under the conditions they impose.”
Management has shot back with an immediate response, again blaming the economy. Adkins maintains that the symphony has comprehensive fundraising plans that are ongoing and targeted. And just because the city’s economy is growing, she said, that doesn’t necessarily mean more symphony supporters. Really? “We often had to beg and plead for money at the end of every year to balance the budget, and many of those year-end ‘angels’ are either gone or not able to do what they once did,” Adkins said.
American Federation of Musicians Local 72-147 Secretary-Treasurer Stewart Williams argues that symphony management does not have a sustainable financial plan and that cuts should not be necessary when the economy in Fort Worth is doing well. “The cuts didn’t fix the problem five years ago, and they’re not going to fix it now." Management should have put a plan into place five years ago to stabilize its operations, he said.
"I've become a bit of a nut about it," she admits.
Her regimen involves going to the Larry North gym four times a week, often working with a personal trainer. And what's on the iPod of the president of the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra? Sting, Coldplay, U2, Black Eyed Peas, Adele and an Irish band called the Script.
Of her exercise regimen, she says, "Cardio is never my favorite, but I've been introduced to kickboxing, and that's quite an experience. I never really thought of exercise as being so empowering, but it does give me so much more energy."
That energy -- and sense of empowerment -- may serve Adkins well as she navigates the job. Obviously it hasn't helped very much as the orchestra (despite a $28 million increase in its endowment at the end of Koonsman's tenure) may be going from bad to worse. But look on the bright side. The current concessions are only half what management took away in 2010!
But I digress--a lot.
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| Bill Clay, Principal Bass |
So it's yet another example of management taking the hard line and expecting the players (um...they're the ones making the music and racking up glorious reviews) to acquiesce. Just like the lockouts in Atlanta and Minnesota. Oh wait, neither of those turned out the way management intended. Chief executives were fired and the community won. But, but, but....it worked in Hartford after all!
The musicians of the FWSO are taking the issue into their own hands. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram noted that Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra musicians voted on Tuesday to authorize a strike after the symphony’s management said it planned to implement a “concessionary contract” this month. “The musicians of the Fort Worth Symphony met [Tuesday] afternoon for a strike authorization vote, and the vote was passed virtually unanimously,” said Scott Jessup, spokesman for the musicians union.
The vote does not call a strike but authorizes the union’s negotiating committee to do so.
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| FWSO pickets outside Bass Hall |
Management has shot back with an immediate response, again blaming the economy. Adkins maintains that the symphony has comprehensive fundraising plans that are ongoing and targeted. And just because the city’s economy is growing, she said, that doesn’t necessarily mean more symphony supporters. Really? “We often had to beg and plead for money at the end of every year to balance the budget, and many of those year-end ‘angels’ are either gone or not able to do what they once did,” Adkins said.
American Federation of Musicians Local 72-147 Secretary-Treasurer Stewart Williams argues that symphony management does not have a sustainable financial plan and that cuts should not be necessary when the economy in Fort Worth is doing well. “The cuts didn’t fix the problem five years ago, and they’re not going to fix it now." Management should have put a plan into place five years ago to stabilize its operations, he said.
And Music Director Miguel Harth-Bedoya? As usual, mum's the word...
Only a couple of things can occur once one side or the other decides that it's no longer willing to sit at the table, and they don't amount to moving forward. Either management imposes a lockout (and again I have to note how well that hasn't worked) or, in fewer cases, the players strike. Such actions have threatened organizations such as the Chicago Symphony (very briefly) and the venerable Metropolitan Opera. In the latter, matters did get precariously close to the breaking point but federal mediation and the efforts of Peter Gelb (I can't believe I'm praising the guy) saved the day.
While the music hasn't died in the FWSO, it is only a matter of time. Again, there are no winners, only losers: the musicians and the community. Then there is any community pride and goodwill that might have been engendered since 1912.
It's the "vision thing" or, in this case, the lack of it.
Only a couple of things can occur once one side or the other decides that it's no longer willing to sit at the table, and they don't amount to moving forward. Either management imposes a lockout (and again I have to note how well that hasn't worked) or, in fewer cases, the players strike. Such actions have threatened organizations such as the Chicago Symphony (very briefly) and the venerable Metropolitan Opera. In the latter, matters did get precariously close to the breaking point but federal mediation and the efforts of Peter Gelb (I can't believe I'm praising the guy) saved the day.
While the music hasn't died in the FWSO, it is only a matter of time. Again, there are no winners, only losers: the musicians and the community. Then there is any community pride and goodwill that might have been engendered since 1912.
It's the "vision thing" or, in this case, the lack of it.
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