Sent to various lists August
23, 1999
Earlier this month the VPO
held an orchestra meeting which lasted several hours. As usual, it was reported to be tense and emotional. The Austrian government has offered the
orchestra 30 million Schillings (ca. 2 million dollars) for its services at
various governmental functions on condition that the orchestra offer equal
employment opportunity to women. The
orchestra rejected the offer.[1]
In effect, this confirms
that the Vienna Philharmonic has reneged on its agreement to admit women into
the orchestra. It has been three years since they agreed to admit
women, but none have been employed--excepting women harpists which they have
always used. They are now openly
rejecting subvention from the government connected to the employment of women.
The Vienna State Opera
Orchestra/Vienna Philharmonic also receives special pensions which are more
lucrative than the normal governmental pensions in Austria. The government has now changed this
policy. All new members of the Opera
Orchestra/VPO will receive only normal pensions. The orchestra Chairman, Clemens Hellsberg, has said this will
create a "two class system" within the orchestra: the older members
with special pensions, and the younger members with normal pensions. Apparently it does not concern him that the
discrimination against women is a much more egregious two class system.
Further meetings are
scheduled. A more complete update will
be in the next issue of the IAWM Journal, but I wanted to add this latest
news. Thanks to Regina Himmelbauer for
her assistance.
William Osborne
[1] "Kein Okay der Philharmoniker zu Wittmanns Angebot", _Der
Standard_ (August 4, 1999).