Link.
Chapter 11, to be specific.
Very sad news. The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the world’s great musical institutions.
Whatever happens next, it is likely that the orchestra’s stature will be diminished.
Yes it is. I used to see them a lot when they were up here in the summer. We brought up our daughter listening to them at the lawn at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Many great concerts and guest artists.
And it happened. No longer “may,” but rather “did.”
http://www.philly.com/philly/entertainment/119991619.html
Which is to say, the board voted for Chapter 11. It is apparently overwhelmingly opposed by the orchestra itself. We’ll see how this goes.
Regardless, a very sad day for a great American musical institution.
Interesting, reading that story it seems as if the orchestra’s assets substantially outweigh its liabilities (by a factor of 3), but the board of directors voted for bankruptcy in order to get the opportunity to dump its obligations with respect to the musicians’ pension plan.
More and more the word “executive” seems to be a synonym for “sociopath”.
Seriously.
What an appalling turn. It’s a business. Was there no “angel” who could step in to avoid this decision? Musicians- who traditionally are paid atrociously for the work they perform- deserve a pension.
It hits a sour note.
Cartooniverse
Very, very sad. They were among the best, and it’s appalling that no one stepped in to prevent this from happening.
Especially since, as far as I can tell, it’s not at all necessary, it the board were halfway competent.
The Syracuse Symphony, here, also just went tits up due to BAD MANAGEMENT and after many many people pitched in and tried to keep them going. It’s fucking disgusting, it seems anything good in this world is going right down the shitter. I know kids who are musically adept, and what does this say for their futures? They might as well ditch the elite instruments and learn how to drive Nascar, monster trucks, or enter a rodeo. That will be ‘culture’ in the future.
Can they do that? IANAL, but I was under the impression that you can’t just declare bankruptcy willy-nilly.
It’s true, they can’t. We’ll have to wait and see how it plays out.
How generous is the musicians’ pension plan, compared with those for other industries/occupations?