The debate over whether or not the New York Philharmonic should perform in Pyongyang, North Korea is puzzling. There have been so many thought provoking articles written on the issue that it is easy to understand and relate to just about every point. At the same time, this is a good indication that the minutia of the discussion has hijacked clarity. As a result, this is precisely the sort of thing that can benefit from applying Occam’s razor…
Current Events
An Interesting Challenge In Pittsburgh
The Saturday, October 27, 2007 edition of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette published an article by Andrew Druckenbrod that reported Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra (PSO) artistic advisor Andrew Davis would not return to conduct the orchestra this season, the last of his contracted tenure with the ensemble. Andrew’s article does an excellent job at bringing you up to speed on the details surrounding Davis’ time with the ensemble but looking ahead, the core of this situation will inadvertently test the PSO’s standing within he greater professional orchestra community…
Catching Up On Some Conductor News
Although Leonard Slatkin’s appointment received a good bit of attention here soon after its announcement, two other recent announcements are worth noting…
One Tour, Two Viewpoints
While the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) makes its way through Europe from September 23 – October 7 on their seven city tour, patrons back home are offered the unusual luxury of having two sources for a behind the scenes peek at what it takes to move a top-tier orchestra through a major European tour… Officially, the CSO maintains a special your website at http://www.cso.org/europe2007 which provides a very nice array of …
Full Of Sound And Fury, Signifying Nothing
Much has been written throughout the blogosphere about last weekend’s New York Times article by Stephanie Strom on the merits of certain charitable deductions. Frankly, I’m surprised the piece garnered that much attention as it seems more to do with the typical class-warfare nonsense associated with national elections than anything having to do with the inherent value of charitable giving…