Still talking in Detroit

… which is good news. Where there is life talk, there is hope:

The two sides in the Detroit Symphony Orchestra strike were in last-minute talks Friday evening trying to avert cancellation of the rest of the 2010-2011 season.

The DSO board had earlier stipulated an agreement had to be in hand by 5 p.m. Friday or it would scrub the rest of the season.

“We have informed the board, staff, artists and sponsors that the DSO stands ready to cancel the season,” DSO spokesman Elizabeth Weigandt said Friday evening.

“We are currently in informal conversations with intermediaries,” she said. “The content of those discussions, as we understand it at this time, remain far apart from our original $34 plus $2-million requirements.”In January, management upped its offer to $34 million in pay and benefits over three years, plus $2 million in opt-in community and educational outreach.