{"id":13943,"date":"2024-09-11T18:06:58","date_gmt":"2024-09-11T22:06:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/oc.ca\/?p=13943"},"modified":"2024-09-13T17:14:23","modified_gmt":"2024-09-13T21:14:23","slug":"report-from-the-2024-ocsm-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/oc.ca\/en\/report-from-the-2024-ocsm-conference\/","title":{"rendered":"Report from the 2024 OCSM Conference"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Circular<\/p>\n

By Katherine Carleton<\/a>, Executive Director of Orchestras Canada<\/p>\n

\n

In mid-August, a small group of orchestra management folks and I attended the annual conference of the Organization of Canadian Symphony Musicians (OCSM)<\/a> in Kitchener, Ontario. OCSM describes itself as \u201ca conference of the American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (<\/span>AFM<\/span><\/a>) representing approximately 1100 musicians working under collective agreements in twenty-one Canadian orchestras,\u201d and I\u2019ve attended (and spoken at) their annual conference almost every year since 2005, when I began working with Orchestras Canada.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The open sessions at this year\u2019s conference included several discussions of interest. Your colleagues and I agreed that we\u2019d do well to share what we heard in those discussions.\u00a0 I\u2019ll report on the following:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

1- A panel presentation on the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony<\/span>
\n<\/span>2- An update on the Musicians Pension Fund of Canada<\/span>
\n<\/span>3- A session led by Jaime Martino and Michael Mori of Tapestry New Opera about the Women in Musical Leadership program, and efforts they are making to improve inclusivity and respectful workplaces in classical music<\/span>
\n<\/span>4- A presentation by Michael Wright and Danielle Stampley of the Canadian Federation of Musicians (CFM) law firm Wright Henry LLP on Dismissal for Non-artistic Reasons <\/span>
\n<\/span>5- A presentation by Rochelle Skolnick, Director of AFM Symphonic Services and Special Counsel to the American Federation of Musicians on Changing the Union and Workplace Culture.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Update\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Delegates heard from three speakers about the situation of the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony following the bankruptcy filing in September 2023. Presenters Katherine Robertson (Chair, Musicians of the KWS), Rebecca Diderrich (Member, Musicians of the KWS), William Poole (newly elected board president, Kitchener Waterloo Symphony Association Inc.), and Richard Sandals, associate director, Symphonic Services Division, Canada shared their perspectives \u2013 and it was a gripping tale.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We learned about the players\u2019 impressive work over the course of the year to\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n