“For months, the musicians of the San Antonio Symphony had eagerly awaited the chance to play before full audiences after the disruption of the pandemic,” writes Javier C. Hernández in Tuesday’s (12/21) New York Times. “Saying the pandemic could exacerbate longstanding financial woes, the orchestra’s leaders in September proposed slashing the size of the full-time ensemble … and reducing pay by almost a third. The orchestra’s musicians [went] on strike in late September…. A compromise remains elusive…. After more than a year without live performances before full audiences, many American orchestras have returned with much fanfare to their concert halls this fall to play for grateful audiences, eager to bounce back from the turmoil of the pandemic. But for some ensembles, the economic disruption wrought by the pandemic has compounded long-term problems … In Massachusetts, the Springfield Symphony Orchestra has been in labor negotiations with its players for more than a year…. The fall season was canceled… Ensembles including the New York Philharmonic and the Boston Symphony Orchestra have agreed to deep pay cuts to help their institutions weather the crisis…. But there have been … protracted labor disputes … at … the Colorado Springs Philharmonic and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic in Indiana.”
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