San Diego

Locked-out musicians and representatives of the San Diego Symphony Orchestra Assn. on Wednesday extended until Jan. 9 a deadline for canceling a March mini-series of concerts.

Earlier, the symphony, which has canceled its entire winter concert season, had offered to produce the mini-series if a labor contract was agreed to by Dec. 31. The musicians’ union requested the extension because some members will be out of town during the holidays.

The deadline extension was the only action announced after two days of contract talks, which were the first negotiations in two weeks.

The symphony canceled its winter season Nov. 11 because of financial problems and the stalled contract talks. The symphony ended the last fiscal year with an $877,000 deficit, according to unaudited figures, and projected a $700,000 loss during the current season, despite more than $1.2 million in budget cuts.

Citing a need to improve its fiscal stability, the symphony has proposed a reduction in the number of contracted weeks with musicians, amounting to a 10.6% pay cut for the lowest-paid players and a slightly larger cut for higher-paid musicians.