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American Federation of Musicians

 

 
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American Federation of Musicians
 
 
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The American Federation of Musicians (AFM/AFofM) is a labor union
Trade union

A trade union or labor union is an organization run by and for workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages, hours, and working conditions....
 of profession
Profession

"A profession is a vocation founded upon specialised educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation, wholly apart from expectation of other business gain"....
al musician
Musician

A musician is a person who plays or writes music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music:* An instrumentalist plays a musical instrument....
s in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 and Canada
Canada

Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
.

The American Federation of Musicians was founded in 1896, at which time it took over from an older and looser organization of local musicians unions, the National League of Musicians.

Among the most famous actions by the AFM was a ban on all commercial recording by members in the 1942–43
1942-44 musicians' strike

On August 1, 1942, the American Federation of Musicians, at the instigation of union president James Petrillo, started a strike against the major American recording companies because of disagreements over royalty payments....
 and in 1948, in order to pressure record companies
Record label

In the music industry, a record label can be a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of recorded sound and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the Record producer, manufacturing, distribution , marketing and promotion, and enforcement of copyright protec...
 to make a better arrangement for paying royalties to recording artists.






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The American Federation of Musicians (AFM/AFofM) is a labor union
Trade union

A trade union or labor union is an organization run by and for workers who have banded together to achieve common goals in key areas such as wages, hours, and working conditions....
 of profession
Profession

"A profession is a vocation founded upon specialised educational training, the purpose of which is to supply disinterested counsel and service to others, for a direct and definite compensation, wholly apart from expectation of other business gain"....
al musician
Musician

A musician is a person who plays or writes music. Musicians can be classified by their roles in creating or performing music:* An instrumentalist plays a musical instrument....
s in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 and Canada
Canada

Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
.

The American Federation of Musicians was founded in 1896, at which time it took over from an older and looser organization of local musicians unions, the National League of Musicians.

Among the most famous actions by the AFM was a ban on all commercial recording by members in the 1942–43
1942-44 musicians' strike

On August 1, 1942, the American Federation of Musicians, at the instigation of union president James Petrillo, started a strike against the major American recording companies because of disagreements over royalty payments....
 and in 1948, in order to pressure record companies
Record label

In the music industry, a record label can be a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of recorded sound and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the Record producer, manufacturing, distribution , marketing and promotion, and enforcement of copyright protec...
 to make a better arrangement for paying royalties to recording artists. This was sometimes called the Petrillo Ban, because James Petrillo
James Petrillo

James C. Petrillo was the prominent leader of the United States's trade union of professional musicians.James Caesar Petrillo was born in Chicago, Illinois....
 was the newly–elected head of the union.

Most recently the AFM has been involved in dealing with problems caused by virtual orchestras
Virtual Orchestra

Virtual Orchestra is a term used to identify a variety of different types of technology and art forms. Most commonly used to refer to orchestral simulation, either for pre-recorded or live environments, it also has been used to describe other activities, such as IRCAM?s Virtual Orchestra database....
. Many producers are now trying to save money by eliminating live musicians and using this device.

Presidents

  • 1896–1900 Owen Miller
  • 1900–1914 Joseph Weber
  • 1914–1915 Frank Carothers
  • 1915–1940 Joseph Weber
  • 1940–1958 James Petrillo
    James Petrillo

    James C. Petrillo was the prominent leader of the United States's trade union of professional musicians.James Caesar Petrillo was born in Chicago, Illinois....
  • 1958–1970 Herman D. Kenin
    Herman D. Kenin

    Herman D. Kenin was an United States trade unionist.He was head of American Federation of Musicians and later was a leader at American Federation of Labor....
  • 1970–1978 Hal Davis
  • 1978–1987 Victor Fuentealba
  • 1987–1991 Martin Emerson
  • 1991–1995 Mark Massagli
  • 1995–2001 Steve Young
  • 2001–Present Tom Lee


External links