I. MEMBER COMMENTARY
II. FACING THE MUSIC
III. EVENTS
…Absolutely guaranteed anonymity – Former Musician’s Union officer
…The one voice of reason in a sea of insanity – Nashville ‘first call’
scoring musician
…Allows us to speak our minds without fear of reprisal – L.A. Symphonic musician
…Reporting issues the Musicians Union doesn’t dare to mention – National touring musician
Name Withheld
*** NEXT MEMBERSHIP MEETING IS MONDAY, JANUARY 25TH ***
===================================
I. MEMBER COMMENTARY
Did the Local Officials mismanage their fiduciary duties?
With all attention solely placed on the sale of Local 47
property here are some questions to consider that preceded
this historical event.
1. What has the locals elected officials demonstrated to maintain
solvency of the union falling short of selling the property?
2. Did the previous administration mismanage the union, lead
by president Trombetta and Espinosa before him, before
handing over a financial faulty union to the next administration?
3. Why was $15,000 dollars spent on a PR firm rather then
spending the money more wisely to hire a company to
evaluate the union’s financial distressed situation and
consider other alternatives to financial solutions rather
then the quickest short-term solution to liquidate the
local’s property?
4. Was a short-term fix prudent for a long-term current
problem with the potential to inevitable raid and deplete
the excess cash from the sale of the property?
5.What makes more sense continue to pay down $50,000
a year against a loan, according to the local 47 Accountant
“did not have the authority to be made in the first place”,
or pay $100,000.00 a year on real estate taxes for the
unions foreseeable future?
6. Which organized group has been influencing and directing
the local which put the union in despair and into this situation
in the first place?
7. Have the last two elected presidents subscribed to this
groups influence in order to receive their lucrative salary?
The same group that voted titled officers an increase years
ago when work was disappearing and still went and voted
the top officials a raise for “a job well done on their behave”
whose behave? “Heck of a Job, Brownie time”
8. Is it time for the union to stop being guided by a group
whose interest is exclusively in their own benefit at the cost
of the majority of the 7000 membership?
9. Why do you think the same 200 voting members were
persuaded or advised through directed calls from “Dateline
Answering Service” to show up at union meetings over the
last two decades? The same 200 whose decisions were
directed by support from an inside group that lead to
the demise of the local through loss of work they refused to
do.
10. Through a pattern of pandering have past elected titled
officials and elected board mishandle their fiduciary duties?
====================================
II. FACING THE MUSIC
A few quick facts.
-The local has less than a million dollars left in the bank.
-They could have gotten the membership on their side with the sale
if they’d not chosen at every turn to be dishonest, secretive and underhanded.’
For example:
The membership should have been told IN JULY that the building
was going to be listed to get a sense of it’s worth. While they say
they’d talked about it since February, and mentioned it in a few
reports, a mention in a report is not a formal announcement to
the membership of the intent to sell, regardless of the machinations
of the officers and counsel to paint a different picture of reality.
-The board created suspicion by taking down the main listing within
days after a member asked about why it was there.
-The board created major distrust by purposefully pulling a bait
and switch of the meeting on the October 5th, 2015 meeting,
taking what was definitely billed as a Local 47 meeting and changing
it to a “club 47 meeting”, restricting the member input. The only
evidence was the inside cover of the overture which conveniently
was sent out one day before the 5th. Tricky that.
-Then trying the same thing from the opposite direction at
the membership meeting later in the month. Saying a motion
could not be made because it was not a Club meeting. Now
that’s cojones.
-Misdirection again and again and frankly, abhorrent conduct on
the part of the board and their mistreatment of the rights of the
members to know what is being done in their name.
Only the board is responsible for the distain in which they are
currently held by a majority of the membership because of their
underhanded conduct, regardless of whatever supposed legitimacy
of their project exists. Their conduct will lead many to say,
“If it’s what they want I’m against it, because they cannot be
trusted.”
Here’s the Irony,
The recent administrations of Local 47 (Over the past 15-20
years or so) have run the Local into a ditch. Monies are down
because they cow-tow to the most selfish among us, a small
cadre of RMA leadership and hardliners, who, using the IEB as
their puppets, block any progress in contracts to make us
competitive in the world market and bring work back. Those
few, seeing the not-so-slow slow death of the Local’s finances
and work, don’t care as long as their July checks are secure.
Indeed the conduct of past leadership of the RMA along
with their puppets at Local 47 and the AFM are in large
part the authors and finishers of the situation we find
ourselves in.
TECHNOLOGY
Certainly technology has played a role, Like being able
to sit in your studio here and record live with orchestras
all over the world on a BUYOUT basis) and new recording
options in places as far flung as Macedonia, Nashville (Now
doing movies as well), Canada, Mexico, France, London,
Prague, Bratislava, most recently Vienna, etc, etc.
The fact is however, If the RMA’s boy at the AFM and the
RMA Leadership had not alienated entire industries, made
enemies with the obnoxious conduct of AFM officers and
bowed to the RMA’s every whim, we might still have a
major place in the recording market.
When the situation arises where the only people who’ll
work with us are those who are forced to by contracts,
or the lack of recording availability in London, its only a
matter of time until they can break the contract and we’ll
never see them again. Nor do we deserve to.
We my not have a choice but to sell the building, because
the financial situation has become that dire, thanks to
greed, incompetence and neglect, to the benefit of a few…
BACK THE TRUCK UP
But really, why bother? Why not let the slide continue until the
Local is no longer self-sustaining and dies.
Why?
Simple. The ONLY way this Local will survive in the long term is
to take control of our contracts back from the RMA, shut them
out so some real advances can be made. Without major structural
changes to the inner workings of the AFM and the Local and
the expulsion of the RMA from it’s controlling interest, selling
the building and getting a new one will only delay the inevitable
demise. We need new income, from every market possible.
Eventually, those millions will be gone if the sale goes through,
since not enough money is coming in for the Local to prosper.
Not without an increase in work and dues. It will simply take
longer to die. It’s not brain surgery, it’s economics.
The fact is if we cannot make in a building that is paid for
we cannot make it period.
The solution to bring work back is relatively simple.
There are sessions happening everyday, only they’re dark.
Create a buyout contract for: Video Games, Trailers, Libraries,
Samples, low budget films, limited pressings, festivals, etc.
All are now being done elsewhere or non-union.
Every session we bring back on contract is dues money
for the Local, monies that the Local is not seeing now.
Contractor’s who’ve been spoken to say they could get
the work back with buyout contracts, and a new crew
of players who’ve not alienated producers.
WHILE WE’RE AT IT
Why is the Local telling folks who are doing dark dates
to “Just keep it on the down low and it’s fine”, while
trying to destroy folks who are doing it the right way,
paying dues to the local and becoming fi-core so they
can legally do both union and non-union jobs? The Local
is charging fi-core folks almost the same dues per year
as regular members.
Show us folks who’ve never done a non-union event
and I show you an empty room. EVERYONE has done
non-union, non-contract work, at least those who are
fi-core feel strongly enough to take a real stand and
not just get assurances from the Local’s president that,
“You’ve been a good member all these years, just keep
it quiet.”
We need to build the future of this Local, and pry away
those who care only about themselves at the expense
of everyone else.
We NEED to get the middleclass that’s left back to work,…
that’s what Seattle did,… and more recently Nashville.
And thus endeth the rant you probably stopped reading
a few paragraphs ago.
THE COMMITTEE
===================================
III. EVENTS
DEAN AND RICHARD
DEAN AND RICHARD are now playing every third Friday
at Culver City Elks 7:30pm-10;30pm,
11160 Washington Pl.
Culver City, 90232
310-839-8891
————————————-
LA WINDS JAZZ KATS 584
NO COVER, NO MINIMUM.
Every 2nd and 4th Tuesday of the month at Viva Cantina
7:30-10:00.
900 Riverside Drive, Burbank.
Free parking across the street at Pickwick Bowl.
Come hear your favorite charts played the way they
should be.
We are in the back room called the Trailside Room.
Come on down. Guaranteed to swing.
—————————————–
1/23/15
San Fernando Valley Symphony Orchestra
James Domine, Music Director, Presents
In Concert
Saturday Evening, January 23, 2016, 8:00 PM
Tutor Family Center for the Performing Arts
at Chaminade
Program:
Tchaikovsky
Manfred Symphony
Tchaikovsky
Rococo Variations
Ernest Carbajal, Jr., cellist
Fernandez – Los Angeles Premier
The Statue, Movement VI: The Lovers
Tickets are available on our website
http://www.sfvsymphony.com/
At the Theater Box Office
By calling (818) 347- 4807
—————————————–
1/30/2016
SESSIONS AT THE LOFT:
‘IMPROVISATORY MINDS” –
Chamber Concert
1/30/16 – 7:30pm
2465 Ventura Blvd
Camarillo, CA 93010
$25 (reception included)
—————————————–
2/6/16
EVENING WITH DICK WELLS AND FRIENDS
7:30 PM
Sessions at the Loft
2465 Ventura Blvd,
Camarillo, CA 93010
$25 (reception included)
—————————————–
2/19,20,21/16
The EUROPEAN CONCERT TRIO
will present the premiere of Paul GIbson’s
“The Shepherd’s Lot”
in three February concerts.
Harriet Fraser (soprano),
Amanda Walker (clarinet)
Irina Bazik (piano)
Winners of the 2015 Beverly Hills National Auditions
The European Concert Trio was formed in 2015 by
three European-born, Los Angeles-based professional
artists, each having already established successful solo
careers, to fulfill their passion for chamber music and
share it with Southern California audiences.
Fri, FEB 19 – Encinitas – 7:30pm
The City of Encinitas presents
Music by the Sea concert series
Encinitas Library
540 Cornish Drive
Tickets: $13, plus fee. Purchase tickets in advance here.
Sat, FEB 20 – Torrance – 3pm
Classical Crossroads &
FirstServe Community Services present
The Interludes concert series
First Lutheran Church & School
2900 W. Carson Street
Tickets: FREE, donations appreciated. Information here.
Sun, FEB 21 – Beverly Hills – 2pm
Music in the Mansion concert series
Greystone Mansion
905 Loma Vista Dr.
Tickets: $20. Information here.
================================
You can read all previous offerings at:http://www.responsible47.com
UNTIL NEXT TIME,
THE COMMITTEE FOR A MORE RESPONSIBLE LOCAL 47