By securing fair wages and better working conditions, our union is committed to improving the lives of all professional creative workers in music.

Jurisdictional Coverage

The American Federation of Musicians (AFM) Local 427-721 represents a diverse network of professional musicians, dancers, and teaching artists working across West Central and Southwest Florida, U.S.A.

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Our jurisdiction spans the following areas:

Counties: Charlotte, Citrus, Collier, DeSoto, Hardee, Hernando, Highlands, Hillsborough, Lee, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, and Sarasota.

Polk County: Regions west of U.S. Route 27.
Hendry County: The town of LaBelle.

About Local 427-721

The American Federation of Musicians (AFM) is the world’s largest union representing professional creative workers in music, encompassing nearly 70,000 members across the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. Affiliated with the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), the AFM ensures the music industry works for its creators by negotiating fair contracts, protecting recorded music ownership, securing vital health and pension benefits, and lobbying lawmakers to protect artists’ rights.

AFM members span every sector of the industry—performing in independent projects, orchestras, opera pits, bands, clubs, and theater productions (both on Broadway and on tour), educating as teaching artists, and recording music for film, television, and advertisements.

The AFM’s roots in the West Central and Southwest Florida run deep, beginning with the founding of Tampa’s Local 721 on June 13, 1919. Over the decades, the union grew through strategic mergers to better serve regional musicians:

  • 1992: Local 721 voluntarily merged with Local 427 (St. Petersburg-Clearwater).
  • 1998: Local 730 (Fort Myers) joined the consolidated group, officially establishing the Florida Gulf Coast Musicians Association (Local 427-721).



Today, Local 427-721 remains dedicated to providing a powerful, unified voice that lifts up professional creative workers in music.

Organizational Structure

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Local Individual Membership Categories:

  • Regular
  • Trusted Contractor
  • Life
  • Student
  • Youth
  • Inactive Life

Local Committees:

  • Independent Creative Workers (Freelance)
  • Theatre Musicians Association
  • Wage Scales
  • Protected Classes
  • Organizing New Workplaces
  • Florida Orchestra Musicians Association
  • Sarasota Orchestra Players Association

Local Executive Board:

  • President, Tihda Vongkoth (she/they)
  • Vice President, Anna Kate Mackle (she/her)
  • Secretary-Treasurer, Richard Sparrow (he/him)
  • Six (6) Members-At-Large:
    • Alison Heydt (she/her)
    • Mark Neuenschwander (he/him)
    • Jeanie Phelan (she/her)
    • Warren Powell (he/him)
    • Harold Van Schaik (he/him)
    • Member-At-Large, Vacant

Ethos

1. Dignity in Labor

We demand and defend the right of every professional worker in music to live and work with dignity, ensuring our creative labor is both personally fulfilling and fairly compensated.

2. Solidarity Against Exploitation

We stand united as a progressive, democratic union to oppose exploitation, using our collective power to secure control over our industry sectors and labor markets.

3. Absolute Inclusivity

We treat every member with respect and dignity, fiercely opposing discrimination based on but not limited to the following: sex, gender identity and expression, race, sexual orientation, veteran status, nationality, ethnicity, immigration status, age, physical appearance, disability, HIV status, marital status, parental status, family status, education, housing instability, economic status, religion, or political views.

4. Democratic Participation

We commit to active participation in our union’s democratic process, honoring the standards, expectations, and bylaws we collectively establish.

5. Growth & Artistry

We champion the continuous development of our members’ talents and skills, ensuring every professional creative worker in music has the opportunity to reach their full potential.

6. A Voice in Governance

We fight to ensure professional creative workers in music have a meaningful, deciding voice in the workplace and in all institutional decisions that directly affect their lives and careers.

7. Strategic Organizing

We are dedicated to organizing communities and workplaces of professional creative workers in music, expanding the protections and gains of unionism to all creators across the industry.

8. Powerful Collective Bargaining

We exercise our unified strength to negotiate robust contracts that continuously elevate wages, improve working conditions, and promote unionism.

9. Political & Social Advocacy

We build political power to amplify voices of workers in music at every level of government, driving economic opportunity and fostering broader social justice.

10. Unified Alliances

We cultivate diverse, motivated leaders and build strong coalitions with external organizations that share our unwavering commitment to economic and social equity.

Affiliations


American Federation of Musicians

Founded in 1896, the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) is the world’s largest union representing professional creative workers in music. The AFM is an American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) affiliated labor union representing almost 70,000 professional musicians in Canada, Puerto Rico, and the United States. The AFM, which has its headquarters in New York City, U.S.A., is led by President Tino Gagliardi. Its members span the industry—playing in independent projects, orchestras, bands, clubs, and theater productions both on Broadway and on tour, as well as making music for film, television, television advertisements, and sound recordings. To ensure the music industry works for its creators, the AFM negotiates fair agreements, protects recorded music ownership, secures vital health and pension benefits, and actively lobbies for lawmakers to protect artists. As a powerful, unified voice, we are dedicated to making the music industry work for performers and support crew in music.


West Central Florida Labor Council (WCFLC)
Comprised of 116,000 active and retired union members from more than 100 locals around West Central Florida, including AFM Local 427-721, the WCFLC is one of nearly 500 state and local labor councils of the AFL-CIO and are the heart of the labor movement. They are democratically elected bodies dedicated to representing the interests of working people at the state and local level. They mobilize the members and community partners to advocate for social and economic justice and we strive daily to vanquish oppression and make our communities better for all people—regardless of race, color, gender, religion, age, sexual orientation, or ethnic or national origin.

The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO)

The AFL-CIOworks tirelessly to improve the lives of working people. They are the democratic, voluntary federation of 60 national and international labor unions that represent more than 12.5 million working people. They strive to ensure all working people are treated fairly, with decent paychecks and benefits, safe jobs, dignity, and equal opportunities. The AFL-CIO helps people acquire valuable skills and job-readiness for the 21st century economy. In fact, they operate the largest training network outside the U.S. military. Our work is anchored in making sure everyone who works for a living has family-supporting wages and benefits and the ability to retire with dignity. They advance legislation to create good jobs by investing tax dollars in schools, roads, bridges, ports and airports, and improving the lives of workers through education, job training and a livable minimum wage. They advocate for strengthening Social Security and private pensions, ensuring fair tax policies, and making high-quality, affordable health care available to all. They fight for keeping good jobs at home by reforming trade rules, reindustrializing the U.S. economy and providing worker protections in the global economy. The AFL-CIO stands firm in holding corporations accountable for their actions. They help make safe, equitable workplaces and give working people a collective voice to address workplace injustices without the fear of retaliation. They fight for social and economic justice and strive to vanquish oppression in all its forms.