Diversity Committee Members
Diversity Committee Members
Lovie Smith-Wright (Chair) -
Lovie Smith-Wright, President of Local 65-699, Houston, TX, since 2003; has been on the Executive Board since 1983 and served as Vice President for two of those terms. Lovie also serves on the Board of Trustees for the AFM-EP Fund, was President of the Southern Conference from 2007-2009, and is presently the Secretary-Treasurer of the Southern Conference. She is Principal Percussionist for Theatre Under the Stars in Houston, and performs with various other musical organizations including the Houston Ballet Orchestra, the Broadway Show Series Orchestra and Houston’s Ebony Opera Guild. Lovie is also a Gospel Marimbist performing concerts throughout the Houston area & the United States. She was a member of the Wichita Symphony for seven years, Principal Percussionist with the Houston Ballet Orchestra five years and Percussionist with the Houston Grand Opera Orchestra twelve years.
She is currently on the faculty of the University of St. Thomas and Houston Baptist University, Houston, Texas, where she teaches percussion, percussion methods and a music business class.
World premiere performances includes: “Sophia” by Ann K. Gebuhr in January 1994 and the 1981 Houston Ballet world premiere of Just By Chance choreographed by Daniel Jamison to the “Concertino for Marimba” by Paul Creston. She has toured and performed with such artists as Roger Williams, Tommy Tune, Johnny Carson, Liberace, Lena Horne and many others. Solo appearances include the 1989 Soirees Musicales with the Wichita Symphony Orchestra and the Houston Symphony Orchestra in 1977. She was the featured artist with The Good News Singers of Texas during their recent Northwestern United States/Canada Tour 2001 and Heritage Tour 2004, from South Main Baptist Church.
Lovie believes that we, as members of the AFM, should help each other achieve unity through diversity.
After all, “Diversity is the one true thing we all have in Common. Celebrate it every day.”
Otis Ducker -
Ducker boasts a long history in music, beginning with saxophone lessons as a teenager in New Orleans and then a small college in Alabama. Following college, Ducker shouldered the responsibility of supporting his family after the death of his father. Ducker's union affiliation began early. "A teacher in high school planted it in my head that the path to being proficient on an instrument was through joining the union," he recalls. He joined the New Orleans Local 496, the black AFM local, and had to audition to get in. Nevertheless, he says one of the proudest moments of his life was when they gave him that union card.
Around 1950 Ducker was drafted into the army, posted to the Washington, DC, area in a construction engineer battalion. Ducker soon transferred into the 75th Army Band, where he spent the next three years. Following the Army, Ducker decided find a government job and remain in the DC area. Ducker wore three hats: working for the federal government, playing music part-time, and music administration through the union. His work with Washington DC Local 710 almost became a full time job, but he says he enjoyed it despite the heavy workload. Later, he became the vice president of 710, and then secretary. Diversity was already an issue and the Local 710 tried desperately to maintain compatible scales, but the economic conditions for black musicians in Washington were decidedly different than for white musicians.
Currently, Otis chairs the AFM International Diversity Committee and is a member of the Futures Committee. Otis has been an AFM member for over 49 years.
Madelyn Roberts -
President, Local 586, Arizona. Guitarist (Father was Local 47 Guitarist, Howard Roberts). Formerly professional billiards player; founder and Hall of Fame inductee, Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA).
Mike Muniz -
Michael Muniz, electric bass player, has served in various positions with the American Federation of Musicians both locally and nationally since 1992. During his four-year tenure with San Antonio AFM Local #23 he served as Assistant Trustee, Recording Supervisor, MPTF Program Coordinator and Secretary-Treasurer. Michael has been working in an AFM International Organizing Staff position since 1996 and currently serves as AFM Director of Latin Organizing.
Charles W. McDaniel -
Charles William McDaniel, the eldest of four brothers, is a native of Fairfield, Alabama. Both of his parents were music teachers and organized the Birmingham Sacred Symphony Orchestra in the 1920's. Charles is an accomplished keyboard player and served over 38 years within government civil service. He first started on the saxophone at 6 years of age. He has been an AFM member for 46 years.
Charles was also active in his early years during the time when the Local 286 and Local 15 merged during the mid to late 60's. This was period of which at the time was considered a merger of a black and white Local. Charles became the first African-American Secretary-Treasurer of Local 15-286 in 1998, a position he continues to hold today. In addition, presently, because of his excellent rapport with the youth, he manages his granddaughter's gospel jazz ensemble.
Tina Morrison -
Tina Morrison is Secretary-Treasurer of the Professional Musicians of the Inland Northwest, Local 105 and is a proud member of the AFM first standing Diversity Committee. Her principal instrument is bassoon and managed the West Wind Quintet for approximately 9 years before taking office. In addition to freelancing with various orchestras and teaching, Tina has also played bass guitar with the versatile Rock-a-Billy R&B Band, the Chrome Toasters.
Music roots run deep in Tina’s family from her father, husband and son being musicians. Tina states, “I am a true believer in the AFM’s ability to improve the lives of working musicians.” She hopes that through the efforts of the AFM Diversity Committee we can forge a stronger community of musicians. “We must be willing to celebrate our differences and work together to gain better working conditions for all musicians. The strength of our community will be grown through inclusion, respect, empathy and solidarity”.
Susan Ayoub -
Susan Barna Ayoub, Secretary-Treasurer of the Detroit Federation of Musicians, is thrilled and honored to be a member of the AFM Diversity Council. In addition to her regular duties at Local 5 as an officer, she is also a member of the Advanced Programs Development Committee (Local 5's Futures Committee), as well as Law and Scale Committees.
Until taking office at Local 5, Ms. Ayoub was the principal flutist for the Fisher and Masonic Temple Theatre Orchestras in Detroit, accompanying touring Broadway-type musical productions. She continues to perform in a classical flute and harp duo with Ruth Myers and a "non-classical" flute and guitar duo with husband Alan Ayoub. Ms. Ayoub is a former member of the Pastiche Wind Quintet, performing in tours and residencies in Italy, the Dominican Republic, Philadelphia, Wisconsin and throughout Michigan.
Ms. Ayoub was a flute instructor and the director of the Oakland University Flute Ensemble in Rochester, Michigan. As such, she involved her students and the ensemble in supporting Focus: Hope, a nationally recognized civil and human rights organization in Detroit, by performing for fund raisers, including at its annual fund raising Walk. In addition, she is a co-founder of the Oakland Steiner School, a Waldorf school that opened its doors in 1989.
Ms. Ayoub has a lifelong interest in the advancement of the appreciation for human diversity in its many forms and its importance in the enhancement of the well being for all. She welcomes the potential opportunities and challenges by this appointment.
Miho Matsuno -
Miho Matsuno (Local 802 and Local 171) received a Pre-College Diploma, BM, and MM from the Juilliard School where she studied violin with Christine Dethier and Joseph Fuchs. She has been on the faculty of the Lucy Moses School at the Kaufman Center in New York City since 1992, and joined the faculty of the Special Music School in 1997. In addition to her teaching duties, Miho is an active orchestral performer with Orchestra of St. Luke's, the Springfield Symphony Orchestra (Massachusetts), and the New England Bach Festival (Vermont). She has performed numerous chamber music concerts in and around New York City, and in Hawaii as a core member of Pacific International Concert Artists.
Email: matsunoc@aol.com
Cortaz Paige -
Local 625
