Colloquium - Presenters
Practice Makes Perfect: Learning From the Successes and Shortcomings
in Organizing Performing Arts Workers
Daniel Walsh
ABSTRACT
My presentation will be an auto-ethnographic study on an early attempt I had made during the COVID 19 pandemic to create a musicians’ union. The COVID 19 pandemic was a devastating time for musicians, particularly those who work primarily as performers who lost significant career momentum. In response to this and the absenteeism of the Toronto Musicians Association, without any formal education and minimal understanding of the theory surrounding activist organizing, I organized a union for performing arts workers. Our union, called the Independent Performers Coalition (IPC), identified a wide variety of issues facing performers both internally between performers, and externally from venue owners and patrons. We documented some ways for performers to resolve these issues themselves, and drafted policy recommendations we wanted to advocate for in favour of supporting musicians. Despite good intentions, IPC was mired by internal conflict and ultimately dissolved. In this study, I will describe some theory and best practices of labour organizing from Jane McAlevey and the Industrial Workers of the World, describe the activities, goals and ambitions of IPC and then compare and contrast them against a number of successful and unsuccessful organizing campaigns. Through this analysis, I will assess the viability of IPC’s union activities, hypothesize on its trajectory had it continued on the course it was on, and prescribe some changes, based on best practices and case studies to make it more successful as an organizing
force.
BIO
My name is Daniel Walsh, I am a multi-instrumentalist from Markham. I have a degree in music from York University, a post-graduate diploma in marketing from Seneca College and am presently completing my MFA at York University in music. As a musician, I have 16 years of working experience as a bandleader, multi-instrumentalist (trombone, sousaphone, bass, guitar and voice), arranger, composer and music director for musical acts spanning a wide range of genres and formats from small jazz combos, to large theatre productions; from brass bands to funk bands. I started the street brass band movement in Toronto with my old band Turbo Street Funk. Since then I've played with a number of well respected Toronto acts such as the Shuffle Demons, SHOUT! The Band, Bangers Brass, Hitmen Drumline and Saul Torres to name a few and hundreds of high profile events such as the 2019 NBA finals where I played as a part of the official Raptors hype band. As a performer, my major influences include Thundercat, Michael Brecker, Chick Corea, Tom Waits, Daft Punk and Rebirth Brass Band to name a few.