Above: Buster Williams and Gene Perla explore the state of jazz in the inaugural Jazz Advisory Committee podcast

As you read these words, the Local 802 election is about to take place on Dec. 3. I encourage everyone to check out our election page and vote! (All voting times and locations are listed here.)

I’m truly humbled to continue my role as recording vice president and thrilled to welcome our incoming president Bob Suttmann and continue working with my esteemed colleague Karen Fisher, our financial vice president. All three of us are running unopposed, so we will be elected by acclamation in accordance with our bylaws, and our new term begins on Jan. 1, 2025.

(In addition, Bob, Karen and I will be serving as delegates to the next AFM Convention in 2026, along with Bud Burridge, Diva Goodfriend-Koven and Martha Hyde.)

To say that Bob, Karen and I have our work cut out for us would be an extreme understatement. In addition to monitoring the Local 802 building renovation project, we will be responsible for eventually moving staff and equipment back to the renovated building and ensuring that it will be ready for members again. We also have to ensure Local 802’s fiscal soundness to pay for the project. We need to enhance union membership and put a spotlight on our diversity and inclusion goals, particularly our efforts to attract younger members.

We have begun this process through creation of our DECIBAL diversity initiative as well as our new bylaw amendment that waives the initiation fee for students. However, we need to do more and follow through with these efforts.

And of course, there are our regular responsibilities: negotiating the best contracts we can for our members, handling grievances, and handling daily issues as they arise.

I’m extremely honored and proud to serve the membership for a second term!

JAZZ ADVISORY COMMITTEE

One way new organizing efforts can be cultivated is through various independent committees that Local 802 has established. For instance, I am the officer liaison to the Jazz Advisory Committee. We meet monthly and grapple with issues that concern jazz and freelance club date musicians. At present, the jazz committee is working on three initiatives that I would like to share.

The first is a series of podcasts that the JAC is producing. The inaugural podcast features a conversation between renowned jazz bassists Buster Williams and Gene Perla. Local 802 plans on promoting this podcast, which was produced and mastered exclusively by the jazz committee. Watch our pilot episode — called “Pitch Perfect.“ We are also considering other podcast topics and would look forward to any suggestions. Members can forward ideas to 802JAC@gmail.com. We hope these podcasts will pique interest in Local 802 and revive our efforts to organize New York jazz venues.

Furthermore, the jazz committee is in the process of assisting the Council For Living Music with formulating a new Jazz Mentors program. A budget is being formulated and the CLM has been promised a grant from the New York City Council that can be used to reimburse expenses if the program moves forward. Hopefully it will in short order.

Lastly, the jazz committee is exploring possible Local 802 bylaw amendments that may make it easier for jazz musicians to join the union and participate in union governance. Since a considerable amount of jazz performance is nonunion, jazz musicians often encounter this as a bar to union membership and involvement. The jazz committee is in the process of finding ways to promote a greater level of involvement for jazz musicians in Local 802, while maintaining our vigilance against the performance of nonunion work. More to come of this in future months.

LOCAL 802 AND A.I.

I also serve as the officer liaison to the Local 802 A.I committee, which has created a substantial page on 802’s Web site and published monthly articles in Allegro. During my second term, I hope to help the committee explore some of the following topics, so that Local 802 can aid in preventing erosion of traditional bargaining unit work:

• Who “owns” AI-generated music: Define clear ownership and copyright rules for music partially or fully generated by AI tools, ensuring that human creators retain rights when collaborating with AI.
• Royalties for AI-created works: Establish equitable royalty distribution mechanisms when AI-generated compositions or performances are used, ensuring that human artists, producers, and developers are compensated.
• Transparency in AI usage: Require full disclosure in contracts when AI tools are used in music production, composition, or mastering to protect artists’ creative input and rights.
• Job protection for human musicians: Create safeguards to ensure AI automation in production or performance doesn’t displace live musicians or other professionals in the music industry, including minimum employment quotas for human musicians.
• AI in music licensing: Develop policies that ensure AI-composed music is clearly marked and distinguishable from human-created music when licensed for commercials, film, or other uses.
• Fair use of AI in music sampling: Define the ethical and legal boundaries for using AI to generate music that mimics specific artists or styles to prevent exploitation without proper consent and compensation.
• Data privacy and AI: Set data privacy standards for musicians and music industry professionals when AI tools are used, particularly regarding personal data used to train AI models or recommend music.
• AI in live performances: Create guidelines for the use of AI in live performances, such as virtual performers or enhancements, to ensure fair compensation for human performers involved and transparency for audiences.
• AI-assisted creative credits: Define standards for crediting artists when AI tools assist in the creative process, ensuring that human contributions are acknowledged and valued appropriately in album credits and other recognitions.
• Training and support for musicians on AI tools: Recommend the inclusion of provisions in contracts that ensure musicians receive proper training and resources to use AI tools in their work, promoting adaptability and reducing exploitation risks.

As Allegro went to press, we learned that the AFM is supporting a new bill in Congress to protect musicians from being exploited by A.I. The bill is called the TRAIN Act.

Very shortly, Local 802 will be promoting an A.I. survey to quantify the impact that generative AI has had on industry standards. This survey will be one of the first of its kind and is intended to be a useful tool in musicians’ efforts to contain the use of AI to replace live music. When you receive the survey, please respond to it. Finally, if anyone is interested in joining the AI Committee, please feel free to fill out this form.

In this issue of Allegro, the A.I. Committee is presenting a guest column about copyright infringement litigation involving generative A.I. Click here to read it.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and I wish you a healthy and joyous holiday season and New Year.