We have, at any given time, between 200 and 300 musician members. Approximately one third of our members are orchestral musicians who are involved in various musical organizations as the Eugene Symphony, the Oregon Bach Festival, the Eugene Opera, Oregon Mozart Players, the Oregon Festival of American Music and others. A small portion of our members are retired or no longer actively performing but keep up their membership because they want to remain involved and continue to support other musicians. Some have only become members because of the affordability of our Group Instrument Insurance. Another small portion are musicians who live elsewhere, such as Robert Cray, but continue their membership here. The remainder are a very diverse group of freelance and recording musicians whose needs are just as diverse. Q. Can you get me work? A. The Musicians' Association is not a "booking agency". However, we do give direct referrals to clients who call us looking for bands and musicians. That means that they call you, and we stay out of it. We never charge an agent or referral fee. We also do not discuss your price with them. Q. If I'm a Union member, does that mean I can only play at Union clubs? A. There are no longer any "Union clubs". Since the Taft-Hartley Act was reinterpreted in the early '70s, musicians have been defined as Independent Contractors and not legal employees of club owners. Labor laws prohibit Unions from seeking collective bargaining agreements with club owners. You may play wherever you like. However, there may be a rare occasion where we may ask you to support the efforts of ours or another Union's boycott of an unfair establishment. Q. So what does the Union do for me? A. The Musicians' Association is membership run. As a union member, you are the union! Our membership is very diverse - symphonic, folk, blues, rock, Latin and other ethnic musicians have very different needs. You tell us what you need and help us find a way as a unit to address those needs. If you don't like our Bylaws, change them. If you don't like the way we run the office, become a Board Member. If you have an idea about how to improve the lives of musicians, tell us about it. Come to our General Membership Board Meetings. Write an article for our newsletter. This is one place where you can make a difference!