President's Report

"Intense" doesn't quite do justice to the past few months…

… SFX Strike …

Foremost is the fact that we have reached an agreement with SFX that gets our musicians back in the pit making music. We feel it was an excellent agreement and gives Local 655 and the AFM an opportunity to create an entirely new structure for touring shows. There is much to be done, and it is far from a "slam-dunk", but it is an exciting opportunity for change that has long been needed.

… Small Theaters …

We recently had Local 655 members performing in several area theaters (including Miami Shores, Caldwell, Coconut Grove, and Cuillo) under an AFM contract, including pension benefits, in most cases simply for the asking. All too often, members go into these venues and accept cash payments with no benefits simply because that's the way it was presented, never daring to ask, "what about doing it under a contract?" If you don't ask, do you think the buyer is going to ask you to do it that way? If you want an effective Union, you have to do your part; you can't just sit back and pay an annual fee and expect miracles.

… MPTF / Local 655 Scholarships Awarded …

For the second year, Local 655 has joined with the Recording Industries Music Performance Trust Fund to present $2,000.00 in scholarships to area music students. This year's recipients are from the University of Miami's School of Music and will have their scholarships presented in a brief ceremony at UM by myself, University of Miami School of Music Dean William Hipp, and other Local 655 officers and committee members. A special thank you to committee members Leslie Bahler, Larry Lapin, and Jeff Kaye for volunteering their time and talents. We are attempting to broaden our reach each and every year; please look for the applications each fall if you know of deserving music students.

… Ramblings…

Given the space restrictions, I can't possibly go into detail on all of the day to day dealings I have with many of you. Some of the recent items on my agenda include: the luncheon for the Life Members; the on-going evolution and necessary growing pains of the Palm Beach Opera and its new collective bargaining agreement; the slow healing from within the Florida Philharmonic; the scale committee's work; and reaching out to the remaining orchestras without Union agreements in place. It can be overwhelming at times, the successes sweet, the failures hard to live with, but we press on as best as we can.

I'll stay in touch…you do the same…

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