San Francisco Symphony Musicians Protest Contract Proposal 

Citing wage stagnation and programming cuts, the musicians recently launched a public campaign during their season opening concert

Following contract negotiations with their management, the musicians of the San Francisco Symphony (SFS) distributed leaflets at their opening gala concert last week, honoring former Music Director Michael Tilson Thomas. 

Promoted as his 80th birthday celebration, the conductor explained that this performance would be his last public appearance after he revealed the return of an aggressive brain tumor that he was first diagnosed with in 2021. 

At the concert, the flyers created and printed on blue paper (as a nod to Thomas’s favorite color) by members of the orchestra and American Federation of Musicians praised him as a “rock-star, risk-taking maverick” who elevated SFS’s global standing during his 25-year tenure.

(PC: Stefan Cohen/SFS)

However, the one-page leaflet also stated that recent administrative decisions by SFS leadership, including alleged budget cuts, would “jeopardize the world-renowned status Michael helped build.” 

“We thank you for your ongoing support,” the leaflet read, “and hope to continue to be able to uphold the San Francisco Symphony’s standard of excellence under a fair contract that reflects and sustains our world-class status.”

In response, the SFS has launched a new “SFS Forward” website to provide financial context and organizational updates during the ongoing contract talks.

“We were disappointed that our musician colleagues chose to distribute misleading leaflets about contract negotiations at Saturday evening’s concert honoring Michael Tilson Thomas, an event that was intended to be unifying and celebratory in spirit,” said SFS CEO Matthew Spivey. 

The SFS has also since issued an open letter to patrons signed by Spivey and board chair Priscilla B. Geeslin, calling out the musicians' union for failing to acknowledge the financial pressures threatening the institution’s future.

“Most institutions in San Francisco and beyond are absorbing that message and responding to this moment with realism and resolve. Regrettably, the union representing the San Francisco Symphony’s orchestra musicians is not,” the letter reads. “As we continue labor negotiations, we are disappointed that the musicians’ representatives have yet to acknowledge the seriousness of the financial circumstances confronting our institution, our city, and our sector.”

Projecting a $12.5 million deficit this year and claiming rising operational costs and donor fatigue, SFS leadership maintains its need for financial prudence. 

“Temporary fixes are no substitute for permanent solutions,” Spivey and Geeslin wrote in the letter. “What the musicians’ representatives are asking for today simply isn’t realistic.”

SFS musicians had also distributed flyers in 2024 protesting the departure of Music Director Esa-Pekka Salonen, who cited a lack of alignment with the board. His final concerts with SFS are set for June 12–14, 2025. 

(PC: Brandon Patoc/SFS)

While Spivey said in a media briefing that he was “excited about some of what I’m seeing in terms of the process for the search for our next music director,” he added that he could not discuss any specifics. 

“It is incredibly disheartening that Symphony leadership has chosen to launch a smear campaign against their own musicians while they claim to be negotiating in good faith,” SFS musicians representative Andy Lynch told the SF Chronicle. “While we had hoped that management and the board would prioritize the best interests of the Symphony, their offers to date demonstrate that they lack any plan or vision to grow the organization or even maintain its status as a world-class orchestra. 

“Instead, they are insistent upon imposing drastic cuts that will hurt the Symphony for years to come,” Lynch said. “There is still no new announced music director, no plan to resume touring, no plan to restore programming, and no plan from the board to fundraise or increase philanthropy … (prompting some musicians) to leave or apply for jobs elsewhere.” 

“The musicians would like nothing more than to focus on their craft and performing for the patrons they love. Instead of blaming the musicians for their own mismanagement,” he added, “it is time for management and the board to negotiate in good faith and present a proactive, positive vision to restore the Symphony to its world-class reputation.”

The next meeting for negotiations between the SFS and the musicians' union is scheduled for May 11, 2025.