Broadway musicians unite! AFM Organizing Director Gabe Kristal inspired Broadway musicians at recent strategy sessions

As warmer weather approaches, it’s tempting to look forward to the summer festival season and summer vacations. But we have our eyes even farther ahead — on the next negotiation of the Broadway contract, which will start heating up in the fall. To get there, we’re building a strong community among our Broadway musicians, learning new tools and getting ready to take action as needed. So in April, we convened two in-person meetings of Broadway musicians and gathered our forces with AFM Organizing Director Gabe Kristal and your Broadway organizing team. Together, we explored how to:

• Assess and analyze the Broadway workplace
• Motivate our colleagues to show up at actions
• Talk about negotiations with our colleagues
• Unify around a common goal to win the strongest contract possible

These were very productive sessions and I’m looking forward to more to come. Here were some of the comments we received from Broadway musicians who attended the meetings:

• “It was very useful to learn how to talk to my colleagues about our contract and also learn how our actions can help the negotiating team have more leverage at the bargaining table.”
• “I felt energized by the idea of showing a united front on the next contract negotiations.”
• What was most useful, fun or encouraging about the meeting? “Highlighting the importance of communication between members of the union. Keeping everyone up to date makes us stronger.”
• “It got me thinking about how to be a more proactive delegate with the suggestions that were given.”
• “The exchange between professional labor organizers and working professional musicians who may not consider themselves as laborers was useful. The one-on-one conversation role play was fun.”
• “The gentleman running the meeting [AFM Organizing Director Gabe Kristal] was affable, positive, and it’s always a good reminder to recognize and pass on the importance of our union.”

Broadway musicians should stay tuned for messages from their delegates, from the Theatre Committee and from Local 802. Together, we can achieve a great contract!

A BROADWAY SUB’S SURVIVAL GUIDE

Thinking more about Broadway, I’d like to share something I put together in my last years as a Broadway sub. They are observations and habits I’ve noticed from the trenches. Some are obvious. Others, perhaps not. I hope you enjoy the read and I hope these tales are helpful.

GETTING THE CALL: See the chairholder at a “chance” meeting on the street? A social event? Ask about their family, not about work. Everyone wants more work. Don’t beg. If they happen to need someone when you cross paths they will more likely get the idea to use you if you are a mensch rather than a beggar. If you do get the call, make every effort to be available every time they call. You don’t know how long their sub list is. It may be a long time before they get back to your name.

PHONE OFF IN THE PIT! Don’t ever allow it to ring. A friend once suggested plugging a headphone jack into the phone to ensure silence.

REAL ESTATE IN THE PIT IS OFTEN TIGHT: Be conscientious of others especially if you or your instruments are close to a walkway. Your instruments and the regulars will appreciate it.

“SHOW UP AND SHUT UP”: Don’t tap your foot loudly, it’s annoying to those around you. Don’t show up five minutes before the downbeat. Folks (like contractors) will get nervous. Not good for your reputation. Our reputation is all we have in this business.

PLAY IT STRAIGHT: Be professional. Don’t do anything that will cost you your job.

BE CLEAN: Leave the worksite EXACTLY as you found it. Including music (book closed? first page set?) stand heights, chair position, etc. If you move something, mark the original position. Take your trash with you when you leave the area!! If you forget, go back and get it. Don’t use the tiny trash cans by the regular’s seat.

EYE CONTACT WITH THE CONDUCTOR: ALWAYS. I knew a conductor who deliberately held the beat back if he noticed you weren’t watching. He wanted you to step in the hole. I memorized phrase by phrase to keep looking at him. It made him happy. If I got the notes wrong they were at least in his tempo.

LEARN THE SHOW: If you can’t hear the part in your head when you look at a page, you didn’t learn it well enough… including tempo, style, length of short notes, etc. Also pay attention to the nuance in between the notes. Vibrato, when, how much, how fast. When does it bloom? Look for rushed or dragged notes. Look for notes incorrectly marked or not updated parts. Memorize these. Shows morph over time, tempos change, songs develop. Be aware of these. Don’t fight the changes just because they are not written into the part. Tunes and vamps often come out of word cues. Learn these. Also give yourself a “wake up word cue” if you’re coming out of a long break.

PREPARE YOURSELF: Prepare page turns, mute/instrument changes. I once got a note I was turning my pages too loudly. Truth! Hot mics…

EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED: I remember in one show, the stand lights went dark for about eight measures while we played. Took a photo and read it from my phone in the dark. Every night.

MUTE ETIQUETTE: Don’t clank mutes when inserting/removing. Hold the mute in your bell if it’s too loose or to control how tight the sound of the mutation is. Holding it is insurance.

HAVING FUN: Everyone has their favorite stories about having fun in the pit. Everyone wants to have fun on the job, but know that as a sub you don’t have the same protection as a chair. True story: I knew a player who could flatulate on cue. Like during the stop time moment in the CHORUS LINE tune “One Singular Sensation.” It was a show stopper. Broke the whole band up. But was it worth his job?

PLAY THE PARTS: Play the original show parts, not your practice part. Changes may have happened since you got your practice part. No guarantees they will remember to tell you. Keys may have changed, measures may have been cut or added, etc.

NOTE FROM THE MD: If an MD gives you a note, there is only one answer, no matter what you think: “Great, thank you!”

TUNING: identify who in the ensemble has a solid pitch center. Line up with them by default. Identify the tendencies of various players. Adjust accordingly if you have phrases with those tendencies. Do this and the regulars will LOVE seeing you walk into the pit. Very good for your reputation.

SUBS SHOULDN’T PLAY BETTER THAN THE CHAIRHOLDER? Now here’s advice I discontinued over the years: “Don’t play the show better than the regular.” It came from wanting to stay invisible. I certainly didn’t want information like that getting back to the regular. Why would they hire someone who plays the show better than them? Anyway, after a while, I decided to take no prisoners. My new philosophy was I was auditioning for the conductor’s next show. If I played it better than the regular, maybe the MD would remember that down the road.

BONUS ADVICE FOR TROMBONISTS: find your slide target area. You may have to navigate mic stands or other rigging. And it will likely be too dark to tell in the heat of battle. One time I hooked a mic clamp with my slide on the way back from fourth position. Imagine my surprise when the entire music stand came along for the ride. The regulars thought it was hilarious. Where’s your slide target zone?

MICS AND HEADPHONES: check to make sure you have a signal in the cans. Once, on a first performance, I had no signal, and the stick gave rits and accels with the talk back mic. After the overture the trumpet, sensing my stress, remembered and said “Oh yeah, that’s been cutting out on the regular a bunch.” Oy!

RESET THE MONITOR MIX: Reset the monitor mix at the end of show. No one else wants to hear your mix.

CLIP ON MIC WIRES: Keep them clear of stand/headphone wires, etc. make it part of your mute choreography. You’ll avoid a disaster in the heat of battle.

MANAGING PEOPLE: I learned how to navigate two regulars who despised each other. I subbed for both. They both always complained about the other. Threading that social needle was the hardest part of the gig by far.

OTHER RULES OF THUMB:

• Never walk on the stage unless you must.
• Never ask to leave your stuff at the theatre. If they offer, that’s different.
• The more often you play a show well, the more currency you put in the bank. The more mistakes you make, the more currency you spend.
• I can’t even believe I have to say this. Articulations are NOT optional!
• Be conscientious of warming up too loudly.
• Never wear perfume in the pit.
• No emblems on your blacks.
• Wear black, not dark blue. That goes for shoes and socks, too.
• Make sure your clothes or body don’t give odorous offense. I know someone who lost work because he walked to a show quickly from the train station in summer.
• Never write in the part. EVER. If the MD makes a change while you’re there, ask the regular if you can mark it in. Send a pic of the edit.
• Make efforts to keep the other regulars in the ensemble happy (or at least asleep).
• Be an asset, not a liability.
• Don’t attract attention to yourself. Let your musicianship speak for you.
• Be invisible. The highest compliment a sub can get: “Aah, I didn’t realize you were playing. I thought the regular was here.”
• Keep a bright disposition. No one wants to work with a grouch. (Even if you’re just keeping to yourself concentrating on nailing the show). Extra credit: keep a joke on hand in case the occasion warrants it.
• Playing together in the sandbox is at least as important as playing the music together.

Everything you do or don’t do will affect how often your phone rings. Remember, you are building lifelong working relationships. It will take a lifetime to complete. Not a day, week, or year. Best of luck!

As Allegro went to press, we learned that former Local 802 President Bill Moriarity had died at the age of 87. See our tribute to him here.