ComentJan05 - Page: 1 of 1

We read with dismay last month the unfortunate turn of events that has become the ongoing dispute between the Opera Company of Brooklyn and the musicians' union, Local 802 over the use of "Sinfonia", or what the union derisively refers to as the "virtual orchestra". As we have stated in two previous editorials ("The Virtual Orchestra" and "Musicians vs. Everyone Else" both available in the "Feedback" Commentary section of this site) new technology should not be viewed as a threat to unions; rather it should be seen as an opportunity to ensure future work by coming to terms with reasonable regulations on its use.

A four day Broadway walkout a couple years ago over the use of Sinfonia cost an estimated $10 million. Who benefitted there? Sure, the companies agreed not to use Sinfonia, but that didn't stop it from being used here or elsewhere. If the unions aren't careful the steady and incremental use of Sinfonia might, like a slowly rising tide, overwhelm them and unregulated, end up costing more in the end because of shortsightedness today.

Neither is it helpful to howl at the moon and claim that the birth of Sinfonia spells the death-knell of live musicians. This kind of empty rhetoric is meant to scare and mislead and serves no useful purpose. Sinfonia is an instrument that can enhance and supplement the musical experience, and in those cases where the score calls for an orchestra that may be larger than a company can afford to pay, the use of Sinfonia to enhance the depth of sound ought to be taken.

Companies, too, need to act responsibly. Although it is hard to imagine any responsible opera company doing away with its orchestra, replacing it with an Oz-like Wizard behind a curtain and smoke screan, it is probably true that this is what unions hear when a company speaks of its "right" to use whatever new technology it pleases. Companies ought to avod this approach. One thing is for certain: allowing to happen what happened last month in New York is inexcusable: Opera Brooklyn found itself without a theater to perform "The Magic Flute" for a period because the theater in which it was going to be performed canceled, rather than face a union protest outside its doors -- so much for loyalty.

If the object of Local 802 is to punsh seamstresses, stagehands, ticket takers, janitors, ushers, singers and a host of other employees who are working when the opera season is in bloom, then it succeeded when Opera Brooklyn had to cancel its fndraiser and show. How appropriate that this would occur during the Christmas Season. We have said it in the past and repeat it here: in the long run it's better to bring something into the area of negotiation than it is to count it out. As a negotiated item the unions can work with responsible companies to integrate Sinfonia into some performances and allow its use under defined circumstances, thus ensuring that it won't become the monster the unions fear, while allowing hard-strapped companies the opportunity to supplement rather than smother live performances -- something we seriously doubt an audience would tolerate.

Right now the audience is ambivalent. It's not their fight. Don't count on this condition remaining static, nor should the musicians' union think that unemployed workers who are normally working when an opera house is busy will look kindly on their unemployed status if intransigence is the only bargaining tool utilized by the union. Progress is not the enemy of the musician's union; if it were, we'd still be listening to theorbos and lutes -- not that there's anything wrong with a theorbo or lute instrument -- it's just that times change and new instruments come into play every now and then and we have to build them into the scheme of things, not shut them out. Take it from someone who was a union negotiator for over a decade: a good deal is better than no deal, anyday. Play short, think long! Opera companies need to act responsibly; unions, too, need to think this thing out. There has never been a better time or opportunity to regulate the use of Sinfonia and limit its application to those situations where everyone benefits. It's called collective bargaining and it works. What doesn't work is crossing your arms akimbo and threatening boycotts, jeopardizing innocent third party paychecks.