Industry News

The Carnival Center has new top management. As reported last month, Lawrence Wilker has been hired as interim CEO, replacing Michael Hardy, who was fired.

Wilker is former president of the Kennedy Center, and will lead the Center through April 2008, when a permanent CEO will be named. Wilker and new Executive VP Scott Shiller's salaries of $40,000 will be paid for through private donations. Additionally, programming director Justin MacDonnell has resigned, and his duties will be taken over by Wilker and Shiller.

Local 655 member and University of Miami faculty member Tim Conner was featured in the premiere of David Maslanka's Trombone Concerto, which was dedicated to UM colleague Christine Nield-Capote, who passed away earlier this year. The Frost Wind Ensemble, led by Gary Green, accompanied Conner, and Nield-Capote's husband Manuel Capote performed the prominent cello part.

Oakland Park commissioners are discussing naming a future downtown park after jazz bass legend Jaco Pastorius. Pastorius graduated from Northeast High in Oakland Park in 1969, and went on to play with Blood, Sweat and Tears, Joni Mitchell, and Herbie Hancock before his death in 1987. He was also nominated for three Grammy Awards.

Madonna's $120 million contract with Live Nation may be an indication of the future of the recording industry. In addition to covering her recording and touring work, the contract allows Live Nation to tap into merchandising and other revenue streams. With the turmoil in the recording industry, Live Nation is hoping to drive profit from other sources rather than focusing exclusively on the profit to be earned from recording sales.

After three months of negotiations, Broadway stagehands have called a strike. The sticking point is a demand by producers to loosen work rules that IATSE claims may result in a 38 percent cut in work for stagehands.

Recording

Sirius and XM Satellite Radio shareholders have overwhelmingly voted to approve a merger of the two companies. The merger still requires the approval of the FCC and the U.S. Department of Justice, who may argue that the merger will create a monopoly.

The potential sale price of Univision is dropping. Over concerns of payola at Fonovisa, the uncertainty of re-signing top artists whose contracts are expiring, and access to advertising on Univision's TV network, bidders hoping to purchase Univision's music division are lowering their offers by about $50 million, to around $200 million.

Symphony

The Jacksonville Symphony has locked out its musicians after a year of negotiations. Management is demanding wage freezes for two years, elimination of compensation for doubling, a reduction in pension payments from 7 to 3 percent, and drastic cuts in personal leave. The orchestra has had deficits in 8 of the last 10 years and has an accumulated debt of $3 million. This despite a 36 percent growth in the Jacksonville economy and two previous concessionary contracts agreed to by the musicians, including a 3.5 percent pay cut in 2002.

The Metropolitan Opera has released 100 opera performances, from 1937 to 2006, for download. The tracks are available on the Rhapsody digital music service; individual track prices vary, and are also available through a Rhapsody Unlimited monthly subscription. The Met will also be releasing several of their high-definition simulcasts on DVD.

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