Orchestra $alaries

Posted at 6:00 AM on August 23, 2007 by John Birge

Interesting list from a Detroit Free Press article about Detroit Symphony contract negotiations.

I'd not seen this tally in quite a while; would be interesting also to see a version weighted by salary vs. cost-of-living in the various cities. Keep in mind as well that almost no one makes minumum salary, except perhaps first-year section string players. Principal players can easily earn 100% more, and many players also earn additional income from teaching and other gigs.

U.S. symphony orchestra pay, 2006-07
Annual Minimum Salary

1. Boston Symphony $118,040
2. Los Angeles Philharmonic $117,520
3. Philadelphia Orchestra $114,400
4. San Francisco Symphony $114,400
5. New York Philharmonic $112,060
6. Chicago Symphony $111,670
7. Cleveland Orchestra $107,640
8. National Symphony Orchestra $103,792
9. Pittsburgh Symphony $99,501
10. Detroit Symphony $98,800
11. Minnesota Orchestra $90,168
12. Cincinnati Symphony $88,260
13. Dallas Symphony $77,376
14. St. Louis Symphony $75,000
15. Atlanta Symphony $74,100

Source: International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians