The Symphony strike is causing a loss of revenue as concerts get cancelled causing lost sales and refunds are paid to those who purchased tickets prior to the strike. Two questions come to mind. One, do the cost savings from not having to pay the orchestra members exceed the lost revenue and two, how does the lost revenue affect the overall bottom line because of the ongoing costs associated with the non-orchestra employees who remain on the job as well unavoidable overhead?

The answer is to the first question is interesting. Since the cost of the musicians actually exceeds the revenue from performances, the short term the impact is positive for Symphony balances. And since the orchestra costs are reduced more than revenue losses, the net effect on the bottom line is positive, at least in the short run.

However, this will depend on whether or not the contributions that make up almost two thirds of the funds necessary to maintain the orchestra operation continue to flow in at the pace of recent years. Any reduction in the contributions from supporters will almost certainly force cuts in non-orchestra spending as well. The timing and amount of any contribution reductions will almost certainly depend on the length of the strike and the terms of an eventual settlement.