More than Meets the Ear: How Symphony Musicians Made Labor History

by Julie Ayer

More Than Meets the Ear is the story of a grassroots movement that transformed labor relations and the professional lives of U.S. and Canadian symphony musicians. The struggles and accomplishments experienced by many visionary leaders of the '50s, '60s, and '70s offer inspiration to new generations of musicians, students, teachers, music lovers, labor historians, and orchestra administrators. Written from the perspective of a professional orchestra musician who has experience in committee activity and labor negotiations, More Than Meets the Ear is a unprecedented overview of the profound effect the musician's labor movement has had on the profession. Minnesota Orchestra case history documents the growth of a major American orchestra in dramatic detail and anecdotes.

Genres: Music

312 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2005

Reviews

[David Zoschnick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic; very thorough history of how orchestral musicians fought for the right to represent themselves in contract negotiations with orchestra management.