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Currently Browsing: May, 2013

President's Report
Tino Gagliardi
As you can see from our cover story, our Justice for Jazz Artists Campaign recently entered new territory. Up until now, we’ve confined our protests to the sites of the various jazz clubs. But due to limited response from the

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Shane Gasteyer
Every year, large numbers of music students leave school with a limited understanding of what resources exist to help them further their careers. Union awareness is not always a part of a music education, and students often make it through

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Financial Vice-President's Report
Tom Olcott
In the printed issue are the audited financial report for the period Jan. 1, 2012 to Dec. 31, 2012. Members will note a modest increase in nearly every asset category. In the revenue category, work dues and basic dues are

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Controller's Report
Cathy Camiolo
For the 12-month period ended Dec. 31, 2012, Local 802 realized a gain of $261,591. The union’s statement of activities (see page 39) is relatively consistent when comparing 2011 to 2012, with only a few notable changes. The most important

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If the owners of the Blue Note won't come to us, we'll go to where they live...
Todd Bryant Weeks
See photos by Walter Karling below. On a recent spring evening, an intrepid group of activists and some of the most respected musicians in the world – including John Pizzarelli, Bob Cranshaw and Dr. Larry Ridley – came together on

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Local 802 musicians reflect on what playing this awesome piece means to them
Ron Wasserman
Part I: The Adoration of the Contractor The Augurs of the Gig Spring 2009: here I am, sitting on stage at Avery Fisher Hall, subbing with the great New York Philharmonic. Indeed a high honor. Without a doubt, one of

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Reflections on "The Rite of Spring" at 100
Tom Olcott
This month is the 100th anniversary of the first performance of Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring,” which took place in 1913 in Paris. The reports of that initial performance are part of music lore and we now ask, with some

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Reflections on "The Rite of Spring" at 100
Joseph Alessi
The Rite of Spring” is a composition that never loses its freshness or its avant-garde edge. I don’t find it dated in the slightest, in spite of the fact that it was written 100 years ago. My point of view

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Reflections on "The Rite of Spring" at 100
Stephen Williamson
My first performance of “The Rite of Spring” was in 2003 with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra under Maestro Valery Gergiev. Programmed along with “Le Rossignol (The Nightingale)” and the opera-oratorio “Oedipus Rex,” this Stravinsky triple-bill program was revived by the

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Reflections on "The Rite of Spring" at 100
Karen Fisher
I wish I could say that I had the kind of musical career that gave me the opportunity to play “The Rite of Spring” numerous times with Great Orchestras under the batons of Great Conductors. Alas, that was not to

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Photo Feature: Musicians at work
The Bronx Arts Ensemble has won the admiration of the music world with its high artistic standards, innovative programming and acclaimed recordings. The group presents 100 concerts annually that reach an audience of over 50,000. Musicians in the Bronx Arts

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This year, we commemorate the 100th anniversary of three major events in labor history. Thanks to the power of art, we will not forget…
John O'Connor
Take a trip with me in 1913 to Calumet, Michigan and the copper country…” are the opening lines of one of the most haunting, powerful and depressing songs in the Woody Guthrie catalogue: “1913 Massacre.” I learned the song from

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Joe Hill was one of the most important troubadours of the labor movement. A new book fills in many details of his rich life…
William M. Adler
Pdf download: “THE PREACHER AND THE SLAVE” sheet music It was a funeral the likes of which Chicago had never seen. As early as dawn they began gathering, a great singing swarm of humanity, tens of thousands of the city’s

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It depends on whether you're an employee or an independent contractor. Luckily, the law's on your side...
Harvey Mars, Esq.
Harvey Mars is counsel to Local 802. Legal questions from members are welcome. E-mail them to HsmLaborLaw@HarveyMarsAttorney.com. Harvey Mars’s previous articles in this series are archived at www.HarveyMarsAttorney.com. (Click on “Publications & Articles” from the top menu.) Nothing here or

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Are you playing a Broadway or Off Broadway show where the smoke and fog effects are making you sick? Or is the music too loud, leaving your ears ringing?
Michael McCann, Ph.D.
In 1999, Local 802 measured sound levels at 14 Broadway shows. The results showed that orchestra pits were louder than levels recommended by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health over 75 percent of the time. Smoke and fog

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George Barrow George Barrow, 91, a saxophonist and a member of Local 802 since 1949, died on March 20. Mr. Barrow picked up music relatively late in life, teaching himself the flute, clarinet and saxophone at the ripe old age

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Reminiscences
Bill Crow
Steve Knight (1935-2013) once gave me a real-life horror story resembling the bad dreams that sometimes plague musicians. He got a call to play the oud, and electric and acoustic guitars, for a three-week run with the Alvin Ailey Dance

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I’ve been making a living in music since I was a teenager as a theatrical pianist and music director. Recently, I played the holiday job at the Gateway Playhouse, a gig I originally got from a cold call while I

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February 26, 2013 - March 26, 2013
Tuesday February 26, 2013 Meeting called to order at 11:11AM. Present: President Gagliardi, Vice President Olcott, Recording Vice President O’Connor, Executive Board members Brandford, Cranshaw, Cutler, Hyde, Kruvand, Schwartz, Sharman. It was moved and seconded to approve the minutes from

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Tom Jacobs
Want to lower your blood pressure? Pick up a musical instrument. That’s the implication of a pilot study from the Netherlands, which suggests playing music is beneficial to one’s cardiovascular system. “Our study suggests that active music making has some

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Bill Crow's Band Room
Bill Crow
When John Glasel and the Members Party ticket took office at Local 802 in January 1983, I became a member of the Executive Board, a post I held for the next 20 years. John asked me if I’d like to

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Reflections of "The Rite of Spring" at 100
On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring,” we solicited anecdotes and reminiscences from Local 802 musicians about what playing this awesome piece means to them. Here are their stories: Bam! What Was That Sound?

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