Musicians in the American Ballet Theatre are now the first resident orchestra at Lincoln Center to have a ban on the virtual orchesta machine in their contract. Pictured are bassoonists Bernadette Zirkuli and Cy Segal. See below for more pictures

If you’ve ever grumbled about paying union dues, consider this. Part of 802’s job is to assist and represent members when they feel they were mistreated. Most recently, percussionist Ed Uribe won a $23,000 grievance because an employer failed to

In an important decision for New York musicians, the state’s unemployment insurance review board has upheld musicians’ status as employees, thus maintaining their eligibility for unemployment insurance benefits. The lengthy ruling by the board reversed an earlier decision denying unemployment

In late May, the Goldman Memorial Band decided to cancel the 2005 summer season and cease operations entirely. Management chose to shut down operations after band members voted to reject an extremely concessionary offer. The offer included cutting the band

Let’s say you own a restaurant and you want to have recorded music playing in the background. Can you? If you wrote the music yourself, then you own the copyright. Otherwise, you generally need to get permission, otherwise known as

802 members Hank Jones (top) and Jimmy Owens performed with Slide Hampton in Albany. My father was a dress designer who taught himself how to play the piano by ear and would play for his own amusement. Because of his

Barry White (1944-2003) during a live concert performance at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in 1975. Check out the live orchestra! (Photo by David Redfern/Redferns/Getty Images) When producers of “Priscilla” say that disco plus live strings doesn’t work, they are

Bill Potts with granddaughter Meg (left) and daughter Christi. Potts, 75, passed away on Feb. 15. My dear friend Bill Potts, 75, passed away on Feb. 15. Outrageous, bigger than life, self-destructive, but with an I.Q. through the roof, Bill

802 member Larry Ham swings in Bryant Park. Local 802 and the MPF are funding live music in Bryant Park all summer. See www.BryantPark.org. Photo by Mikael Elsila.  

We’ve all become accustomed to checking out the sale racks when we’re shopping for clothes or trying to talk down the price of that great chair at the local flea market. When it comes to medical bills however, we often

Whereas: Benefits under the Members Legal Services Fund should more closely reflect the actual cost for contract negotiations and, Whereas: Recent revisions have increased the cap on benefits for eligible bargaining units and Whereas: the per member formula should be

Local 802 has joined forces with Air America and Worker Independent News (WIN) to launch radio spots to promote live music and advocate for the rights of musicians in New York. WIN is an independent radio service that was created

This summer, an amendment will be introduced on the floor of the Senate that will increase funding for the National Endowment for the Arts’ 2006 budget by $5 million. Many professional musicians and music organizations around the country depend on

New York Collegium. For an April 15 concert, the employer canceled a number of rehearsals with less than seven days’ notice, a violation of Collegium’s CBA with the union. Concert Rep Jacob Heyman-Kantor contacted the employer and filed a grievance.

Lyricist Jack Segal, who died in California last February, was one of my first New York friends. Dave Lambert introduced us. Jack’s most well-known songs are “Scarlet Ribbons,” When Sunny Gets Blue,” “When Joanna Loved Me,” and “Here’s to the