Cara Kizer. Photo by Sara Messinger.
In Friday’s (4/12) New York Magazine, features editor Christopher Cox writes, “For years, there’s been a mystery inside the New York Philharmonic. Two male musicians—a trumpet player and the orchestra’s principal oboe—were fired in 2018 for unspecified misconduct. Then, in 2020, with little public explanation, they were reinstated…. New York Magazine publishes the details of the alleged misconduct, including an accusation from Cara Kizer, a French-horn player, that she was drugged and sexually assaulted. As investigative reporter Sammy Sussman discovered, the crisis at the Philharmonic did not stop there: One female musician said she felt pushed out of the orchestra for her support of Kizer, and additional women came forward with allegations of misconduct.” In the article, Sussman writes, “In early 2018 … the Philharmonic returned to the allegations [Cara] Kizer made against [Philharmonic musician Matthew] Muckey. The organization hired … a former federal judge, to conduct an independent investigation. In addition to Kizer’s claims, the orchestra learned about the earlier rape allegation against Muckey and unrelated allegations of sexual misconduct against [Philharmonic musician Liang] Wang. (Muckey and Wang denied the allegations.)… [Following] a six-month … investigation … the Philharmonic concluded that the two men had ‘engaged in misconduct warranting their termination.’… Muckey and Wang continued to deny they were guilty of misconduct and appealed to … Local 802 of the American Federation of Musicians, to challenge their firings. The union … ruled in favor of Muckey and Wang … The Philharmonic released a statement that it was ‘profoundly disappointed’ by the decision. Shortly afterward, Muckey and Wang were reinstated to their positions…. Both the Philharmonic and Local 802 have recently taken steps to reform their grievance processes…. In a statement, the Philharmonic stressed that it takes allegations of workplace misconduct seriously and has ‘policies and protocols in place to prevent and address any instances of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation.’ ” Kizer and Philharmonic trombonist Amanda Stewart, who supported Kizer’s allegations, left the Philharmonic. “Today, Kizer teaches French horn and still takes orchestra jobs; Stewart teaches trombone and performs with the St. Louis Symphony.”
