Trustee, Delegate to the AFM Convention
Hello! My name is Allison Allport. I joined Local 47 when I was 16 years old after my first union recording session. I remember how special it felt to be brought into this wonderfully wacky and vibrant family of musicians. I looked up to individual musicians, and I also looked up to the community as a whole.
As my freelancing career got going, I realized something very quickly… The gigs where everybody was relaxed and comfortable and free to focus on making music— those were union gigs. The gigs that were disorganized and stressful, those were not.
I didn’t quite understand the connection at the time, but as my involvement with the union has evolved over the years, I’ve come to realize something simple but very important:
We are the union.
Those fair contracts that allow people to relax and focus on the music? They do not just happen; they are not magically granted by the employer. WE stand together and negotiate those contracts. And if we are not happy with those contracts? We band together and work to change them.
The union gives us the power to influence our life and career and community in a way we would not be able to individually.
As a freelancer, I enjoy variety in my career. I’ve done casuals, perform with many different orchestras, including ICSOM, ROPA and Metropolitan/Community orchestras, record for film and television, and teach both in the classroom and privately.
My varied career helps me understand and relate to the needs of our diverse membership. At times it may seem like our differences threaten our ability to work together, but I strongly believe that our fundamental commonality forms a stronger bond than any of our differences. We are people passionate about shaping a world in which we can thrive as musicians.
Good contracts lift up our entire community and are worth fighting for, even if we never personally work under them. Over the years, I’ve demonstrated a commitment to do my part to make sure the union stays strong and works for us all. I’ve attended negotiations, protests, rallies, and marches. I’ve served on the board of directors of a players conference. I’ve attended union conventions and conferences and met with legislators to advocate for our interests at the state and national levels of government.
2021 is going to be a difficult year for most of us in many ways. The local will face many challenges, including financial ones brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. On a personal level, I have always viewed financial awareness and responsibility as an essential foundation that allows me to weather, and even enjoy, the ups and downs of a freelance career, and this philosophy will inform my approach as trustee.
Though so much is uncertain in the world right now, there are a few things I can promise. I promise to do my part to uphold the mission of the local. I promise to work diligently, energetically and creatively to find solutions to problems that arise. I promise to listen to you, work for you, and learn as much as I can to better serve you.
I’ve never lost that feeling of how special it is to be a part of this community and I would be honored to move into a role where I can do even more to help us thrive as musicians, employees and people.