Skip to Content  Dear Mr. Henson: Your lockout is the 'barrier
to negotiations'  locked out musicians MinnPost photo by Craig
Lassig Musicians of the Minnesota Orchestra have been locked out
since Oct. 1.  The following is an open letter to Minnesota
Orchestra CEO Michael Henson, in response to a MinnPost Q & A,
"Michael Henson, MN Orchestra president: It’s time for musicians
to negotiate," published April 11.  Dear Mr. Henson,  As the
Musicians of the Minnesota Orchestra enter our seventh month of
being locked out of our jobs without salary or benefits, we
wanted to remind you, as well as the public, our audience, and
MinnPost readers, of some facts regarding our “negotiations”:
1. Since April 2012, you have demanded $5 million in annual
reductions from the musicians. Without input from the community,
you have insisted on an over-reaching and draconian reduction in
the orchestra’s budget and scope that would destroy the world-
class standing of the orchestra as we know it. You have not
moved from that posi