Musicians with the Boston Symphony Orchestra have voted to authorize what would be the first strike in the orchestra’s history.
The vote comes ahead of the expiration of the BSO musicians’ contract late Sunday night. It does not mean a strike will necessarily take place, but a work stoppage could happen if musicians and management are unable to come to an agreement.
“We respect the musicians’ right to take this step as part of the negotiating process,” BSO CEO Chad Smith said in a statement.
“Our focus remains on the negotiations and the ongoing constructive conversations. We are committed to reaching an agreement with competitive pay and benefits that enhances collaboration with the Players.”
A BSO source familiar with the negotiations described the vote as “standard” and “not an unexpected step in the negotiating process.”
The Boston Musicians’ Association and the chair of the BSO players committee, Todd Seeber, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Negotiations have been taking place amid continued drama surrounding the pending departure of the orchestra’s music director and conductor, Andris Nelsons. In March, the BSO announced that the 2026-2027 season would be Nelsons last leading the orchestra, saying the leadership team and Nelsons were not aligned on a future vision. The announcement left many BSO musicians stunned and rankled. It also sat poorly with some patrons, who’ve been pushing the orchestra’s leadership to reverse course and retain Nelsons.
In an interview with GBH’s The Culture Show in June, Smith defended the decision to move on from Nelsons. “We landed at a place where we felt that the organization, that the orchestra must serve Boston, must serve our communities more expansively and inclusively,” Smith said in the June interview.
This summer, Seeber told GBH News that BSO management’s decision to cut ties with Nelson had complicated contract talks.
“There are things we can and can’t do because we’re in negotiations,” said Seeber.
“One huge question is why would they blow this up when we have to go into negotiations when we can’t talk about it? And clearly we’re trying to deal with things at the table as a result of this.”
