A Rare Glimpse Behind the Curtain!
Have you ever wondered what goes on backstage at professional shows? After working with some of the biggest names in show business, professional trumpet player John Hughes Bennett shares unique stories about the famous entertainers, dancers, singers, and musicians he worked with for over 60 years. Continue reading
Congratulations 2021 GRAMMY winners & nominees! AFM Local 47 musicians can be heard on many of the hottest hits of the year. Listen to our #AFM47 2021 Grammys Playlist while you review our list of #AFM47 63rd Grammy honorees below, and be sure to check out the live broadcast of winners airing Sunday, Jan. 31 Sunday, March 14 on CBS (new date!).
* UPDATED 3/15/2021 WITH WINNERS*
Record Of The Year Continue reading
Congratulations to all the winners and nominees of the 72nd Emmy Awards! This list celebrates all of this year’s Emmy-winning and nominated projects scored union with AFM 47 musicians here in Los Angeles: Continue reading
by Max Weinstein
To say that stories about serial killers enjoy a permanent residency in popular imagination would be to state the obvious. The challenge, now, isn’t for stories about psychopaths to draw an audience, but to offer a fresh take on a subject done to death.
Composer Nathaniel Blume says that “Prodigal Son” — the Fox crime drama he recently scored—meets that challenge by putting family first. The series follows Malcolm Bright (Tom Payne), an ex-FBI profiler whose relationship with his father, serial killer Dr. Martin Whitly (Michael Sheen), gives him unique insight into murderers’ motives. Blume, whose credits include “Arrow” and “The Flash,” approached “Prodigal Son” by focusing more on its characters’ blood ties than on the blood itself. Continue reading
The new video feature by Doug Cameron shares a truly inspiring story about world-class violinist Clayton Haslop’s struggle with focal dystonia which left him with the use of only two fingers on his left hand. Continue reading
Composer/arranger/producer, AFM Local 47 member Dr. Richard Niles has had musical adventures with some of the world’s most successful and acclaimed artists from Paul McCartney to Pat Metheny, James Brown to Randy Brecker, Tina Turner to Michael McDonald, Ray Charles to the Pet Shop Boys. Continue reading
LA Times Sports Column by Bill Plaschke: “He plays alone to empty seats, but L.A.’s only working live musician has song of hope”
“Call to the Post” never sounded so sweet: Last week bugler Jay Cohen returned to work at the Santa Anita Park racetrack, the first AFM Local 47 member to file a live performance contract with the union amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.
We spoke with Jay after his first day back to work on Friday, May 15 about his experience returning to work with the new safety procedures in place. Continue reading
With COVID-19 stay-at-home orders issued throughout the world prohibiting in-person gatherings, people are increasingly turning to virtual meetings to stay connected. Here is our step-by-step guide on how to participate in virtual meetings using Zoom. Continue reading
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought our industry to a complete halt, and even as we are socially isolated from one another, we are suffering together both economically and artistically.
But we are a diverse union. Our members include musicians who compose, prepare and perform music in an incredibly wide variety of fields, from theater and club work, symphonic, opera and ballet, film, television, sound recordings and other recording work — if it involves music, at least some of us are doing it as part of our livelihoods Continue reading
Just in time for the holiday shopping season, Labor 411, the nation’s #1 guide to ethical products, offers its first annual Ethical Holiday Gift Guide encouraging consumers to shop their way to a stronger middle class. Continue reading