Life in the Pit

Pit orchestras like mine face a unique challenge by virtue of their limited seasons. Even in the early years when we were working together 8 weeks a year, there would be periods of several weeks or months between series. Ensemble issues can arise simply because we don’t play together often enough to develop that sixth sense that musicians who work together regularly can develop.

People feel passionate about their membership in the ballet orchestra. We all want to see it continue and thrive. It’s hard to keep up momentum when we work so infrequently. We get together for brainstorming sessions, and then all go our separate ways for months at a time.

It’s also difficult to keep up the enthusiasm and dedication necessary to make the orchestra a vital part of the organization. The majority of us are holding other full time jobs, or work far more with other orchestras.

Some people are devoted to increasing our visibility with the board, management, and audience but it seems to fall on the same people. I think the idea of Pit Pals is terrific and I plan on sharing it with our orchestra committee. There has also been talk of featuring the musicians in our programs, but the director with whom this was discussed has recently departed the organization.

We find the frequent turnover of management another challenge. Although we have been limited to one or two year contracts recently, our past history was to have a 3 year contract. We negotiated with a different management team nearly every contract. It was a matter of continual reeducation. Only 1 manager that I can remember had had prior experience with an orchestra.

The fact that we have negotiated either a full contract or had a wage reopener annually over the past few years is also problematic. Many of the same faces recycled through the committee at various times. Last season we had contentious negotiations and ended up in federal mediation. When we settled, the raise netted us approximately $56 per musician for the entire season. This year we have a negotiating committee with some new members on it. We’re hoping that they can infuse some new energy into our relationship with the company.