Et tu, Hartford?

Hartford's Bushnell Center for the Arts

In what have initial seemed an innocuous event, in March 2014, a "major partnership" between the Hartford (CT) Symphony and the Bushnell Center for the Performing Arts was reported on WNPR, Connecticut's Public Radio. The report noted that this arrangement "ushers in a new era for the HSO." In a nutshell, Bushnell would assume administrative leadership for both organizations. This resulted in the resignation of HSO President and CEO as well as (at that time) a number of additional job losses on the orchestra side.

Apparently, the HSO had been in serious financial constraints for a number of years. The report goes on to state, Greig Shearer, principal flute for the HSO, said this move could save the HSO, which has struggled financially in recent years. "It's frustrating," he said. "Ever since I've been in the orchestra, it's been touch and go financially. Going it alone didn't look like it would be stable for us in the future. I think it is a good move."

But might there be more than meets the eye (and the pocketbook)? A similar arrangement took place in Atlanta when the Symphony merged its services with the Woodruff. While the ASO did maintain its own CEO, it didn't take long for funding delays and cuts from the "parent" organization to affect the "child." And eventually, the disastrous and protracted lockout happened.

Well, in a case of "deja vu all over again," the same WNPR (July 30, 2015) reported picket lines forming outside the Bushnell as the HSO was proposing a 40% reduction in salary (yep, that's 40%). But HSO President and CEO David Fay believes the musicians' bargaining unit is distorting the details of the contract. In a written statement, Fay said: "We are preparing to respond factually to the accusations being made by the American Federation of Musicians in regard to the ongoing negotiations."

Why couldn't he have responded right then and there?

Mortensen Hall at the Bushnell
Capacity: 2800

Forward to September 9 when the NLRB filed a complaint against the HSO organization in violation of its contractual agreement that musicians would receive their next season's schedule in May. The Hartford Courant noted that the HSO was planning on reducing services (rehearsals and performances), thus necessitating the draconian reduction in salaries. The article goes on to state, That reduced schedule has not been written into individual contracts with musicians, because the two sides are still grappling with how much work will be guaranteed. Because those schedules had historically been set by May 1, and the union did not agree to a delay, the NLRB on Aug. 28 accused the symphony of "failing and refusing to bargain collectively and in good faith."

A little more than a week later (September 17) an op-ed article in the Courant urged that
Symphony Contract Deal Requires Realism. Author Ronald Compton, who had negotiated a musician agreement in the 1990s but had no skin in the current game, wrote, "Successfully solving a problem requires that the real problem be identified. If that requirement is not met, no viable solution can result. So, what is the problem?"

"This is going to take serious money to solve", says Compton, and courting potential donors can be a time-consuming and tedious process. He went on to note that, "Significant donors look for two things: quality and stability. The symphony certainly has the former, but especially given the many harmful public statements about the present situation, many of us believe that funding is most likely to decrease just when it needs to increase the most. The words "strike" and "lockout" are anathema to donors. Beyond that, some pretty knowledgeable people fear that in the event of either of those disastrous events, the symphony, at least as we know it, might not survive."

Fast forward to December and the AP reports a pending lockout, all because of years of poor fiscal management. The orchestra, which is in its 72nd season, is undercapitalized and struggling with annual deficits of more than $1.3 million, officials say. A $2 million line of credit also is fully drawn. The symphony says it has cut operating expenses by 26 percent over the past seven years, to $4.8 million from $6.5 million. But money problems remain. “If we don’t solve our financial crisis with a long-term solution by the end of January, we’ll have to make difficult decisions, all of which are unpalatable, including shutting down immediately,” said Stephen Collins, director of artistic operations and administration at the symphony.

It's too much like Atlanta, Minnesota, or (regarding their shutdown at the close of the 100th anniversary season) Green Bay.

(For the record, there's money--lots of it--in Hartford, which bears the nickname "Insurance Capital of the World." Long a very wealthy city, its metropolitan area ranks 7th out of 280 metropolitan statistical areas in per capita income. There is a great deal of income disparity, whereas 83% of Hartford's jobs are filled by commuters from neighboring towns who earn over $80,000, while 75% of Hartford residents who commute to work in other towns earn just $40,000. After many years of population losses, those numbers have rebounded since the 2000 census.