Off and on the critical list
The Charleston (SC) Symphony, one of the most visible casualties of recession-driven cutbacks and impasses between orchestra boards and musicians, will be revived with a smaller full-time core earning lower salaries, Adam Parker reports in The Post and Courier:
http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2010/dec/01/symphony-members-agree-to-new-contract/
Meanwhile . . .
* The latest cancellations of December events brings to 34 the number of concerts called off since September by the Detroit Symphony, whose musicians have refused to accept a contract with lower pay and added non-concert duties, Mark Stryker reports in the Detroit Free Press:
http://www.freep.com/article/20101130/ENT04/101130040/1320/Strikebound-DSO-cancels-2-more-weeks-of-dates
* An anonymous donor has given an undisclosed sum that will enable the Louisville Orchestra to cut paychecks for its musicians, who are being asked to agree to pay cuts, reduction of the players' roster and a shorter season, Gabe Bullard reports for WFPL-FM:
http://www.wfpl.org/2010/11/29/orchestra-musicians-will-be-paid-this-week-through-anonymous-donation/
* Cost controls have yielded a small surplus for the Minnesota Orchestra and a balanced budget for the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Graydon Rice reports in the Minneapolis Star Tribune:
http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/music/111140309.html
http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/music/111085964.html
* The Cleveland Orchestra's deficit increased slightly in the past year, but the orchestra's management anticipates a more financially stable future, The Plain Dealer's Zachary Lewis reports:
http://www.cleveland.com/musicdance/index.ssf/2010/12/cleveland_orchestras_2010_annu.html
* The Honolulu Symphony, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year, is now considering moving to Chapter 7, meaning dissolution of the 110-year-old institution, James R. George of Pacific Business News reports:
http://www.bizjournals.com/pacific/blog/2010/11/honolulu-symphony-considering-ch-7.html
UPDATE 1: The Louisville Orchestra has made a Chapter 11 filing. "In the request, the orchestra asked to break its collective bargaining agreement with its players," who have been asked to accept reductions in salaries and in the size of the full-time roster, Elizabeth Kramer reports in The Courier-Journal:
http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20101203/FEATURES/312030066/Louisville+Orchestra+files+for+bankruptcy+protection
UPDATE 2: The Indiana Symphony Society, parent of the Indianapolis Symphony, reports a deficit of $2.7 million on a $25.8 million operating budget, Kathleen McLaughlin of the Indiana Business Journal reports:
http://www.ibj.com/indianapolis-symphonys-deficit-nears-record/PARAMS/article/23834
