1971
In 1950 when players learned that Music Director and Conductor Samuel Fain was being paid $200 a season for his efforts, dissension began to grow within the orchestra’s ranks and 18 unionized players walked out (as did Mr. Fain, himself a musician). That year’s audit showed $3,286.08 in revenue, with a surplus of $1,975.17!
The union was suggesting $15 for a concert for a wage, and even volunteered to raise the money itself. Eventually, in 1952, the board agreed and, from that day to this, orchestra players have received pay for their service. Another union demand was filled when the board employed its first full-time conductor, Hungarian-born Frederic Balazs.
Volunteer organizations that support the TSO are the Tucson Symphony Orchestra League through fundraising programs and events including the biennial Art of Music, recruiting volunteers to help the administrative office, creating programs to increase awareness of the TSO and building constituencies among the outlying communities young people, professional groups, service organizations and others; the SaddleBrooke Symphony Guild and FATSO—Friends and Admirers of the TS0, which organize dinner/concert events throughout the season for their members.
In 1958, the first Tucson Symphony Youth Orchestra was formed. By the mid-1960s, the orchestra was recording season audiences of some 13,000 in a six-concert season. In 1967, the orchestra had its first sold out season (six concerts, all singles in the 2,600-seat University of Arizona auditorium). Tickets in those days were $2 to $4 while a season ticket, top seats, was $20. In 1968, the orchestra became a metropolitan orchestra with a budget in excess of $100,000. In 1971, the Symphony had its gala opening featuring guest conductor Arthur Fiedler at its new performance venue, the City’s Music Hall.
Read more about this topic: Tucson Symphony Orchestra, 1950