Dear Local 47 Colleagues,
It’s been a busy week and we’re preparing a number of stories about our Local that you will find very interesting, and many disturbing. Oh the tangled web we weave…..
Please voice your opinions, pro or con, anytime. Keep reading, Stay informed, only then are you in a position to help improve our Local.
THE COMMITTEE
I. REFERRAL SERVICE WEBSITE? Oops! Back to square one…
II. MESSAGE ABOUT SELAS FROM FMALA PRESIDENT
III. BILLY MITCHELL CONCERT THIS WEEK
IV. COMMENTS
I. REFERRAL SERVICE WEBSITE? Oops!! Back to square one…
It seems the website design for the much touted, bragged about and anticipated “Referral Service Website” was so faulty, either through a Web Designer whose “skill set” wasn’t appropriate or bad direction from the Local, that it has had to be scrapped and the process begun all over again.
Combine that with Nancy quitting and we’re back to Square one on-line AND off-line. We now have yet another newbie in the Referral office babysitting phones. Errol Henry was fired for questionable reasons months and months ago and the Referral service is STILL virtually useless, UNLIKE when Errol ran the office. Is that what they intended all along?
The eight to twenty thousand dollars given to the east coast web designers with NO Contract is probably up in smoke, never to be recouped.
The board has gone about the task of choosing yet another designer. Who was the source of the first designers’ names? We don’t know for sure, but we certainly hope they’ll find a NEW source for web designers. Will they bother looking on THIS coast for a designer who can be more easily contacted and kept accountable? Call and write the officers and board to make sure they are being more hands-on and so they know they are being watched this time.
II. Message about SELA’s from Lisa Haley, Pres. Of the FMA (Freelance Musicians Association)
Dear FMA-L.A. Members:
A huge Thank You! to all who emailed Local #47 President Hal Espinosa and AFM President Tom Lee last week, protesting Hal’s sudden suspension of SELA use outside of Local #47 jurisdiction. Your emails made a BIG impact!
I now have every confidence that this issue will be resolved in our favor very shortly.
PLEASE continue to file SELAs both in and out of jurisdiction just as before. Ignore any directives that SELAs can’t be filed outside of #47. More news very shortly!
We ARE making a difference!
Fraternally,
Lisa Haley
FMA
III. BILLY MITCHELL CONCERTS THIS WEEK
Wednesday the 21st
Cavallinos (7:00-10:00 PM)
8052 Adams (at Beach)
Huntington Beach, 92646
714-536-6665
Tomas Gargano-bass Frank Wilsom-drums Billy Mitchell-piano
featuring
Angie Whitney
Thursday the 22nd
Spaghettini Italian Grill
(7:00-10:00 PM)
3005 Old Ranch HWY Seal Beach 90740
562-596-2199
Billy Mitchell-piano Curtis Robertson-bass Kenny Elliott-drums
Jacque Lesure-guitar
NOTE: The Pasadena SummerFest has been canceled for 2007
VI. MORE MEMBER COMMENTS
Dear Colleagues, I just wanted to pass along my sorrow at the news of
Norman Herzberg’s death. As one of his students I owe my career to him.
He was truly great as a teacher and a player, and more caring, certainly
than any teacher I have ever known. As a person he had a huge heart, and
was giving continually. He gave back what he received, and more so, heaped
up, pressed down, and flowing over. Blessings to his wife Leah and all the
bassoonists who knew and loved him.
Keep in touch…Carole McCallum McEdwards
—–
May his memory be for a blessing.
I am sorry for your great loss.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Silverman
—–
God Bless.
Bob Schuster
—–
A note this AM to rave about the rehersal rooms at Local 47 on Vine Street… they are clean, smoke free, comfortable ,have IN TUNE pianos,are reasonable, and are a great NEUTRAL place [as opposed to someone’s living room or garage accompanied by complaining spouse or significant other], and I highly recommend them, AND there is access to the famous Local 47 loos….they are open even when the Union is closed… Thank you Local 47!!
Suezenne Fordham Chamber Jazz Piano Trio,
Condolances to Norman Herzberg’s family …his loss is a huge loss to his family, and our close knit family of musicians….
—–
Thanks for the heads-up about Special Payments monies!
I didn’t have any money waiting, but a friend does. I sent him an email about it.
—–
From “Al Rubalcava” After 29 yrs of serving this union as a live perf. Rep. I have never heard so much negative whining! Can we just try to be positive about how we can make it work better, One WAR is more than enough, musicians are supposed to harmonize on and off the bandstand, besides I have served under previous administrations that did some pretty stupid things but we still keep trying to make it work for the sake of the membership. Anyone can come and see me with complaints, I will try to better each situation if I can, but the people who come and see me are educating themselves on how to take advantage of the system that currently exists and I have to be honest it is working better for a lot of them than ever before. I need to see more of you complainers. Maybe there is light I can shed on your particular situation, why not give it a try. I gave up playing which was my first love to try and help you guys out, sooooo use me, that’s what I get paid by you to do! —– Regarding SELA being tied to the LAOLA contract: Every SELA agreement says right on it “LAOLA scale is only good in #47 jurisdiction.” For the past several years, that obviously has not meant that SELA is not useable – only that we can’t use LAOLA scale. Lisa Haley —– I don’t even get this. I used the SELA in Baltimore this —— Shifty Hal has made the arbitrary decision to re-interpret SELA rules that —— Can you get this to the local’s member’s – it’s fairly staggering at the amount of projects that are going to happen in town with DeCresent or Peter Rotter and the nifty 100 I’d like to show them the jobs that the rest of the able players are not going to get Here is a link to see upcoming scoring sessions slated for movies and the composers scoring them http://www.soundtrack.net/upcoming/index.html NOW – if you DON’T work for the big contractor(s) in town – and won’t be on any of these sessions you are going to be left out in the cold. There are many more valid projects out there that are slated for other cities around the globe – sad but true – job’s that originate here in LA with an LA based composer that is then forced to score elsewhere because of obvious reasons. for PAST scoring sessions – click on the actual news location, then click on the actual date reported on http://www.soundtrack.net/news/article/?id=920 It will in most cases say – THE HOLLYWOOD STUDIO SYMPHONY Now for these future ones – you just have to look at the composers and then go to http://www.gsamusic.com/composers.html if that is not a monopoly and restraint of free trade I dunno what is – —— From Previous Mailing Given this administration’s dismal track record regarding candor and The return comment ….. yes ..i think so!!!!!!!!!! —— I have three issues: (1) You wrote: “The COMMITTEE FOR A MORE So, who are you guys? Do you intend to remain (2) Re: Raising the quorum to 100? How did (3) I have been complaining to the officers for ——— Until Next Time, THE COMMITTEE FOR A MORE RESPONSIBLE LOCAL 47
Using this fact as a new excuse for not allowing SELA to be used outside of #47 is ludicrous.
Nothing has changed in the wording of the SELA.
This sudden prohibition of SELA use outside #47 is a sad and shocking decision by our Local #47 leaders to negatively effect members ability to work.
last Fall with no problem. “LAOLA is only good in #47
jurisdiction.” Well, duh! Pretty obvious. The form
merely accommodates the choice for us. It doesn’t
mandate it. So how is it “tied” to LAOLA?
the Feds had long ago declared legal.
click on below
Gorfaine Swartz agency to find that same list of composers repped by – DeCresent and Rotter
transparency when it comes to financial matters, not to mention the
questionable activities undertaken during the last 24 months by current and
former Local 47 employees that have been well documented in the Committee
emails and elsewhere, a full accounting of every aspect of this situation
is required.
can we hire this guy to do it?
RESPONSIBLE LOCAL 47 is a collection of Local 47
Members dedicated to the rank and file. We exist
to provide information. . .”
anonymous?
this happen? Was it a bylaw change? Was it a
typo? Did an extra zero merely get put accidentally
at the end? How stupid is this? I don’t
remember seeing this issue anywhere. Two years
without a membership meeting? You gotta be
kidding.
years about our sitting still and watching the
musician’s union die on the vine. There is so
much they could do to indoctrinate youngsters in
school and they have let whole generations grow
up ignorant. I guess with the local’s officers,
the old saying is alive and well, you can’t teach
a pig to fly.