Tony Woodcock: "Orchestras Are Too Important to Fail"

An interesting article by the president of the New England Conservatory ... who is, by several accounts, a controversial figure (see post here).

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-woodcock/orchestra-music-crisis_b_2010490.html

Crane Boom Over Carnegie Hall

The damaged crane boom caused the cancellation of several concerts.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/01/arts/music/dangling-crane-boom-keeps-carnegie-hall-off-limits.html?_r=0

Our Own Kathleen Poe Ross!

ArtsATL Review: Carnegie Hall Performance

Here's our best review yet, by Leslie Kandell.

http://www.artsatl.com/2012/10/review-atlanta-symphony-chorus-rise-occasion-carnegie-hall-concert/

Last Concert for Tehran Symphony Orchestra

Sent in by Laurie Cronin.  This is a very sad article about the Tehran Symphony Orchestra ... not only financial but hard-line ideological pressures are stopping the music.

http://www.ajc.com/ap/ap/entertainment/iran-orchestra-finale-rings-of-hard-line-pressure/nSrfX/

Laurie writes:  'If classical music is so dead, how come musicians are still willing to risk so much to perform it, and audiences to hear it?   One answer is that in an oppressive regime, it is often the only form of protest – in the universal language.'

Tehran Symphony Orchestra rehearsing in Roudaki Hall, 2010.  Photo Associated Press

A different article from the Associated Press reports that the Tehran Orchestra was just reactivated last year, following a two year break.  The orchestra's woes are blamed on the faltering economy, the sanctions from the West, and the collapse of Iranian currency.  But players say that the orchestra suffers mostly from mismanagement and lack of government funding from the country's oil profits.  No one in government cares about the 80-year old institution, which is the oldest orchestra in the Middle East.  Decades-old instruments have not been replaced, players receive very low pay, and many receive no pay. 

Cleveland Orchestra Musicians Ratify Contract...

"....bringing the negotiation process to a notably swift and uncontentious conclusion."

http://www.cleveland.com/musicdance/index.ssf/2012/10/cleveland_orchestra_musicians_4.html

The Cleveland Orchestra had been playing without a contract for some time, but had continued to talk, as civilized people of good faith often used to.  And now they have come to a satisfactory compromise--does anyone still remember the meaning of that word?  All this and they get to play in the visually and acoustically exquisite Severance Hall.  If you ever get a chance to go there to hear one of the CO's concerts, I highly recommend it. Even in the last row of the balcony, it's wonderful. The only drawback is that it makes coming back to the Woodruff such a downer.

Fist Bump: Carnegie Performance Reviews

Sent in by Nicole Khoury ... unfortunately, Ms. Schweitzer got the night wrong.  On Sunday night, I was being blown back to Atlanta on a plane.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/30/arts/music/atlanta-symphony-orchestra-and-chorus.html?ref=music&_r=0

First review out of the chute ... Arts Examiner reviewer Jake Johanson was enthusiastic and seemed to find the program and musicians engaging ... although it has to be noted that he gets a major detail wrong with regard to the ASOC soloists (not the quality of their performance, which he liked very much, but the piece in which they sang).  Sigh.

http://www.examiner.com/review/the-atlanta-symphony-orchestra-at-carnegie-hall