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Symphonic Services

You love classical music. So do we. If you play classical music, you are not alone. The Symphonic Services Division offers advice, assistance and support with all symphony-related questions. 

• On a day-to-day basis, we answer questions from classical music players about contract interpretation, recording projects, auditions, negotiating strategy, arbitration precedents, organizing techniques and suggestions for solutions to individual problems. While you are working hard to play the best classical music, we are working hard to protect your wages and benefits..
• On-site assistance can be provided for negotiations, arbitrations and organizing new orchestras to win union recognition and negotiate collective bargaining agreements. Classical music is fun, but it should provide for a decent living as well.
• Seminars are offered in pre-negotiation preparation, the negotiation process, contract administration, concession bargaining and the relationship between the local, the committee and the rank-and-file.
• Upon request, Local officers are provided with materials on informational picketing, pre-strike preparation, public relations information and up-to-date classical music audition information.
• When basic services, as defined in the AFM Bylaws, cannot be supplied by the local union, the SSD oversees the union responsibilities through the Orchestra Service Program (OSP).
• Upon request from a Local Officer, the SSD will provide an extensive analysis of an orchestra's financial records prior to the beginning of a negotiation.
• Annually, the SSD prepares Wage Charts for the 144 classical music orchestras represented by the Regional Orchestra Players Association, the Organization of Canadian Symphony Musicians and the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians. These can be found in the Members Only area of this site.
• We provide access to the services of legal counsel both in the United States and Canada, who offer advice, legal opinions and negotiating strategy. 
• We maintain a symphonic media department, to monitor classical music media services, assist negotiators to maintain proper contract language and industry standards and develop special letters of agreement to cover unique recording projects.

Click on one of the Symphonic Services Division links below for more information:

• The Symphonic Players' Conferences
• Member Orchestras of the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians (ICSOM)
• Member Orchestras of the Organization of Canadian Symphony Musicians (OCSM)
• Member Orchestras of the Regional Orchestra Players' Assocation (ROPA)
• Staff List