Musicians of Columbus Symphony

Columbus Symphony musicians stay in spotlight

by Dwayne Steward
Entertainment Coordinator
The Advoacte
July 31, 2008

Despite the dramatic cancellation of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra’s well-known summer season, Picnic with the Pops, because of budget shortfalls and negotiation failures with the band’s union, the musicians are performing a series of concerts to keep the orchestra in the spotlight.

The Musicians of the Columbus Symphony plan to present the fourth and final show Saturday in their Light Classics Concert Series, conducted by Junichi Hirokami, with special guest The Ohio State University Marching Band.

The symphony’s board of trustees indefinitely suspended the 57-year-old institution June 1. With the recent cancellation of 10 shows from the fall schedule, it doesn’t look like there’s much light on the horizon. The conflict has received national attention with coverage by The New York Times and the Associated Press.

“The main goal was to keep the orchestra in the public eye,” Douglas Fisher, the group’s president and second bassoonist. “When we don’t play together for long periods of time, we lose our edge.”

Formed shortly after the Columbus Symphony Orchestra’s demise from efforts of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra Committee, the concert series also was an effort to keep the musicians employed, since all of the orchestra’s 53 members lost their health insurance when union negotiations fell through.

“We’re in the process of filing charges against the board for unfair labor practices,” said Fisher, who has been with the orchestra since 1984. “We’re still quite far from making a deal, and no talks have been planned for further negotiations.”

According to the CSOC’s Web site, the Central Ohio Federation of Musicians filed a lawsuit against the symphony’s board of trustees through the National Labor Relations Board on July 23 for “failure to bargain in good faith.”

“The board claims they canceled the summer season because there wasn't enough in the budget to sustain the orchestra, which is completely false,” Fisher said. “We’ve always broke even during the summer. … It’s the one part of our season that always makes money.”

Despite obvious conflict between the musicians and the board, they’ve invited each of the trustees to the final concert as an “act of good faith,” Fisher said.

Doors will open at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $20 and can be bought at the door or online. For more information, call (614) 799-0711 or visit www.mcsconcerts.org.