The Brazilian Symphony Orchestra fired nearly half of its musicians after they refused to take part in assessment auditions as required by conductor Roberto Minczuk, the organization said Wednesday.

The dismissals of 36 of the orchestras 82 musicians were confirmed in a statement from the OSB Foundation, after negotiations failed to resolve a three-month dispute. "(The management) always believed in a positive outcome and made the utmost effort to comply with the requests of the group of musicians, but unfortunately no consensus was reached," the Foundation said in a statement.

The sacked musicians had demanded Minczuk's dismissal, which the OSB management refused.