Allegro
Currently Browsing: July, 2003
Broadway Epilogue
A Look Back - and the Road Ahead
As far back as the 1970’s, when Gerald Schoenfeld began threatening Local 802 with the Moog synthesizer if the union struck over minimums, producers have been seeking some mechanical device to replace live musicians. In 2003 they believed they had
COBRA Bill May Become Law Soon
A Way for Musicians and Other Artists to Extend Their Health Insurance
A new bill that provides state funds to pay for a portion of entertainers’ COBRA payments has passed the State Legislature and is now awaiting Governor Pataki’s signature. COBRA – the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act – is a federal
President’s Report
Lower Manhattan Could Spark Cultural Renewal
For several months now the New York City Central Labor Council and Local 802 have been discussing the rebuilding of the World Trade Center site and the role that the cultural institutions and entertainment businesses might ultimately play in that
At 15 Million, Unemployment Numbers Look Bleak
Guest Commentary
This commentary first appeared on the Web site of the AFL-CIO. The Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics April jobs report confirmed what millions of U.S. workers know all-too well: The nation’s job crisis is bleak and getting bleaker. Some 8.8
“Why I Like Digital Downloads”
Member to Member
As a member of 802, I have read a number of pieces over the last year in Allegro on the subject of digital downloads. One of the common themes has been that digital downloads of music and other media are
Are Digital Downloads Good or Bad for Musicians?
The Beat on the Street
Downloading music from the Internet is probably here to stay. Yet it is unclear whether this is going to be good or bad for musicians. There is legal downloading, like when musicians sell their own music through their own Web
Discrimination Claims: A Guide for Musicians (Part I)
Local 802 Legal Corner
Click here for Part II and Part III What do you do if you encounter discrimination while working as a musician? The first thing you should ask yourself is, am I performing under an 802 union contract? If you are
Chemical Dependency: When a Colleague Has a Problem
Musicians' Assistance Program
If you think the problem of chemical dependency hasn’t touched your life, stop and look around. According to a conservative estimate by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 20 million Americans are affected by addiction. The music industry
The Women’s Key
Lifestyle Notes
(This article, submitted by a Local 802 member, contains advice and suggestions intended to improve one’s health and well-being. Local 802 and Allegro offer no endorsement or recommendation regarding the efficacy or safety of any of the remedies suggested, and
802 Bookshelf: “How to Succeed in an Ensemble: Reflections on a Life in Chamber Music”
by Abram Loft, Amadeus Press, $24.95, hardcover
Abram Loft was the second violinist with the Fine Arts Quartet, one of America’s foremost concert ensembles, from 1954 to 1979. Then he chaired the string department at the Eastman School of Music for eight years, and now holds the
802 Bookshelf: “Hear The Music – Hearing Loss Prevention For Musicians”
by Marshall Chasin, available at www.westone.com, 88 pages, $9.95, softcover
Have you ever wondered how your hearing has been affected by all those years of music making? When we spend as much time as we do making music, it only makes good sense to educate ourselves about hearing loss and
802 Bookshelf: “Art Blakey: Jazz Messenger”
by Leslie Gourse, Schirmer Trade Books, 209 pages, $25, hardcover
With this book, Ms. Gourse adds another winner to her admirable list of biographies of jazz musicians. She gives an interesting account of Art Blakey’s life and career, from his birth into poverty in 1919 in Pittsburgh, to his death
802 Bookshelf: “Forward Motion, from Bach to Bebop, a Corrective Approach to Jazz Playing”
by Hal Galper, available at www.forwardmotionpdf.com, 139 pages, $16.97, e-book
Aimed at the intermediate to advanced jazz musician, this book assumes that the reader has a basic familiarity with jazz. The author’s goal is to help musicians improve their perception and conception of musical possibilities. In the course of many
Legislative Update
CLOCK STOPS ON OVERTIME ATTACK FCC EXPANDS MEDIA GUIDELINES ANTISMOKING LAWS SHOULDN’T BE WEAKENED PROTECTING CHILD PERFORMERS UNEMPLOYMENT CONTINUES TO RISE CLOCK STOPS ON OVERTIME ATTACK In a victory for the labor movement, the U.S. House withdrew a bill scheduled
Negotiations Roundup
THEATRICAL READING CONTRACTS “Mambo Kings”: After some back and forth with management, Local 802 reached an agreement with the Mambo Kings Company (Allan Williams, general manager) covering four musicians for the developmental production of “Mambo Kings.” The wages for side
Executive Board Minutes
April 29, 2003 -- May 20, 2003
TUESDAY, APRIL 29, 2003 Meeting called to order at 11:25 a.m. Present: President Moriarity, Recording Vice-President Price, Financial Vice-President Hafemeister, Executive Board members Crow, Gale, Giannini, Rohdin, Shankin and Weiss, Controller Bogert, Assistant to the President Dennison, Assistant Director Lennon,
Bill Crow’s Band Room
Art Baron told me about a club date he played at one of Manhattan’s major hotels. He arrived a bit early, while Tony Sotos and Eddie Montiero were playing the preheat. The hors d’oeuvres tables were groaning with food, and