The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Announces Additional Schedule Changes Due to Unresolved Strathmore Labor Negotiations

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Announces Additional Schedule Changes Due to Unresolved Strathmore Labor Negotiations

BALTIMORE (September 24, 2021) – The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) announced today a series of scheduling changes for its 2021-22 Season of Discovery. In addition to the previously announced relocations during the first two weeks of subscription concerts, performances through October 17 originally scheduled at The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda are either being relocated to the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore or canceled.

The performance previously scheduled for The Music Center at Strathmore on Sunday, October 10 at 3 pm (Imani Winds with the BSO) will take place at the Meyerhoff at its originally scheduled date and time. The performances scheduled for Friday, October 8 at 8 pm (Off The Cuff: Phenomenal Women) and Thursday, October 14 at 8 pm (Celebrating John Williams) have been canceled (performances of both programs previously scheduled for the Meyerhoff will proceed as advertised). These new changes are in addition to the previously announced change in venue for performances on Saturday, September 25 at 8 pm (Bruch and Sibelius) and Saturday, October 2 at 8 pm (Recovered Voices), which will now take place at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall.

For all performances of impacted programs held at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, BSO at Strathmore ticket holders will be offered comparable seating, and either complimentary parking in Baltimore or complimentary motorcoach transportation from Montgomery County. BSO at Strathmore ticket holders will also be offered the opportunity to enjoy the concerts virtually at-home through complimentary livestream access to their impacted program at BSOmusic.org/OffStage. The BSO’s responsible return policies, including proof of vaccination and masking requirements, apply for all relocated concerts. All relocated concerts at the Meyerhoff are also available for public sale.

The BSO’s change in venue locations was made to give time and space for Strathmore and IATSE Local 868, the union that represents Strathmore’s Ticket Office employees, to resolve their labor negotiations and for the BSO and Strathmore to reach agreement on an annual license agreement for the BSO’s 2021-22 season of performances at The Music Center.

“As a Founding Partner, we are committed to continuing collaborative conversations with our partners at Strathmore and are willing to be flexible. However, we cannot agree to changes in our license agreement that require the BSO to compel our stagehands and musicians to cross a picket line and work with replacement workers,” said Tonya McBride Robles, BSO Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “We have provided Strathmore with a signed license agreement that contains the same provisions included in previous years regarding staffing and collective bargaining units, and we have engaged in efforts to help steer Strathmore and IATSE Local 868 towards mediation. We remain hopeful that a resolution of their underlying labor dispute will help to resolve the connected issues with our license agreement and enable the return of the BSO to our beloved second home.”

The BSO’s musicians are represented by the Musicians’ Association of Metropolitan Baltimore, Local 40-543 AFM, and stagehands are members of IATSE Local 19. As a Founding and Resident Partner, the BSO reserves its dates at The Music Center at Strathmore two years in advance and signs an annual license agreement outlining the financial and legal terms for its concerts each season at Strathmore.

Strathmore subscribers and ticket holders can make their desired ticket request at BSOmusic.org/Relocation and are encouraged to contact Patron Support at 877.276.1444 with any questions.

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About the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra 
For over a century, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) has been recognized as one of America’s leading orchestras and one of Maryland’s most significant cultural institutions. The orchestra is internationally renowned and locally admired for its innovation, performances, recordings, and educational outreach initiatives including OrchKids.

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra performs annually for more than 275,000 people throughout the State of Maryland. Since 1982, the BSO has performed at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore, and since 2005, with the opening of The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, MD, the BSO became the nation’s first orchestra performing its full season of classical and pops concerts in two metropolitan areas. More recently, 2020 marked the beginning of a new era of artistry, innovation, stability, and digital accessibility, including the launch of the virtual platform BSO OffStage and a groundbreaking docu-concert series BSO Sessions. More information about the BSO can be found at BSOmusic.org.

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