By admin 
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — The Phoenix Symphony’s musicians say they aren’t ready for their final curtain call and want answers so they can save the orchestra and 66 musicians’ jobs.
Read more Tucson Celtic Festival celebrates 40 years of culture, history and Scottish heritage
The organization announced Tuesday that it was suspending its season after the performance scheduled for Nov. 1, and that musician layoffs would begin the next day.
The musicians said they aren’t asking the community to save them without a plan, and they’re now asking the board to see the numbers so they can help find one.
“It’s not a decision that is necessary,” one musician said.
“Just the outpour from the community and the support we’re seeing… We know that people want to come and we want to play for them,” another musician said.
Years chasing a seat
For Harry Gonzalez, earning a seat took dozens of auditions.
“It means the world to me really,” Gonzalez said. “This is my third season. I was really excited about this season.”
Until last week.
“I was blindsided,” Gonzalez said. “So we were engaged in negotiations with the board of directors and attending in good faith. And we ended up finding out just at the same time that everybody else did, which was shocking.”
Jobs and insurance at risk
66 musicians are now set to lose their jobs in a week, with their health insurance ending just a week later.
Now they are fighting for a role in finding the solution.
“We’re happy to help as long as we can be informed,” Gonzalez said.
Questions over funds
The musicians want to know what happened to the $60 million fundraising campaign’s success and where those reserves are. They say they have requested financial records hoping to find answers.
Read more Tornadoes confirmed in Arizona
“With transparency, we can also join and try to help figure out whatever deficit there is,” Gonzalez said.
“We’re hearing about Symphony Hall getting updates that are worth millions of dollars,” he said. “Is there a question? Why those decisions were made if this was going to be the outcome?”
The city also just invested $7 million in Symphony Hall, so Gonzalez and his fellow musicians are asking the board and the community to make sure the stage doesn’t stay empty.
Not ready for final note
“I think that there is a lot of positive and a lot of support for the orchestra. I think we can do it together,” Gonzalez said.
The musicians are also asking potential donors to press the board for answers before giving. They say working together toward a solution is their main priority, because for them this isn’t just about saving their jobs — it’s about keeping Phoenix’s orchestra alive.
See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.
Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.
Read more Trump says he ordered the Justice Department lawsuit over Alaska’s US Senate race