May 1996 News



May 29: The board of the San Diego Symphony voted today to file for bankruptcy under Chapter 7, which would terminate operations and liquidate the organization's assets. The San Diego Daily Transcript has details.


May 28: ROPA (Regional Orchestra Players' Association) member-at-large and Richmond Symphony delegate Mike Lisicky has been appointed Interim ROPA Treasurer and conference coordinator for the period between now and the ROPA Conference in August.

The New York Philharmonic has announced that contrabassoonist Arlen Fast and cellists Maria Kitsopoulos and Qiang Tu have been selected as the Orchestra's newest members. The appointments begin immediately


May 24: The Boston Symphony Orchestra has hired Steven Ansell as its new principal violist and Andrew Pearce to join the orchestra's cello section. Ansell, a native of Seattle, co-founded the Muir String Quartet. Pearce has appeared as soloist with the New York Philharmonic and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and was awarded a Presidential Scholar in the Arts Medallion by Ronald Reagan in 1983. Both musicians will join the orchestra in September.


May 23: The journal Nature reports that "Schooling in music and the arts can lead to dramatic improvements in other areas of learning such as reading and mathematics, according to a study by Gardiner et al. Groups of first-grade pupils (between 5 and 7 years old) were introduced to an arts curriculum that emphasized pleasure and enjoyment, and compared their performance with a 'control group' of peers exposed to the visual arts and musical training typical of the US public school curriculum. Many of the test pupils had been poor performers in kindergarten compared with the control pupils, but after seven months they had caught up their reading ability, improved their attitude and behaviour, and had outstripped the control group at mathematics. The researchers suggest that pupils respond to the 'pleasurable' aspects of arts and music, and arts training fosters mental skills such as ordering on which mathematical learning at this age depends. M F Gardiner, A Fox, F Knowles & D Jeffrey."


May 22: Radio Prague reports that "The Czech Philharmonic Orchestra has filled a four-month vacancy by handing the head conductor's baton to Vladimir Valek, conductor of the Czech Radio Symphony Orchestra. Valek replaces German conductor Gerd Albrecht, who resigned earlier this year after a long dispute with the orchestra's management. Albrecht had claimed to be a victim of
anti-German sentiment in the orchestra. At the same time as holding his new post Valek is to continue conducting the Czech Radio Orchestra, a job which he has held since 1985."

The Kansas City Symphony has announced that William McGlaughlin, the orchestra's Music Director, will be leaving the orchestra at the end of the 1997-98 season. A new labor agreement between the orchestra's management and musicians was also approved.


May 21: Mike Karr, treasurer of the Regional Orchestra Players' Association, was killed in a car crash yesterday. Andy Brandt, chairman of ROPA, wrote an obituary.

The San Diego Daily Transcript reports that "The cast and staff of San Diego Repertory Theatre's comedy hit, "Six Women With Brain Death or Expiring Minds Want to Know," are holding a special fund-raising performance on May 22 to help pay the San Diego Symphony musicians.


May 17: The six Atlanta Symphony Orchestra players originally denied tenure for
financial reasons January 30 (Mark Hughes, Bruno Eicher, Greg Staples, Kenn
Wagner, Judy Cox, and Michael Kurth) were given letters on May 15 granting
them full tenure, and giving those players until June 30 to decide if they
will sign on for next season.


May 15: The San Diego Daily Transcript reports that "the San Diego Symphony Orchestra Association has officially canceled the four remaining concerts of the 1995-96 season scheduled for May 17, 18, 19 and 25."

The Salt Lake Tribune reports that "Utah Symphony players -- facing what they hope is a one-time-only abbreviated summer season this August -- Tuesday night voted overwhelmingly to extend an amended contract for another three years."

Volume 34 #2 of Senza Sordino shipped today to orchestras, managements, and AFM locals with ICSOM orchestras. Articles include a story on the rebirth of the Honolulu Symphony and a report on the recently-concluded negotiations for a new national phonograph agreement.


May 14: The San Diego Daily Transcript reported that "If the San Diego Symphony does not perform this weekend, its 1995-96 season will be at an end."


May 10, 1996: The Oregon Symphony announced that "when longtime Portland City Commissioner Mike Lindberg retires from public office in January of 1997, he will continue his arts advocacy and leadership role in the community and state as President of the newly established Oregon Symphony Foundation."

The New York Philharmonicwill present a free Memorial Day performance on Monday, May 27, at 8:00 p.m., at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine with the Harlem Boys Choir


May 9. 1996: The Florida Philharmonic will perform a free concert on June 1.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that "In an effort to bring its finances under control, the
Philadelphia Orchestra will not fill the post of composer in residence and will reduce the amount of money it spends next season on guest conductors and soloists by 5 percent. Orchestra leaders hope that the moves, along with others announced yesterday, will keep the group's deficit this fiscal year to $600,000 to $700,000, and produce a balanced budget for the 1996-97 season."


May 8, 1996: The Minnesota Orchestra has launched a web site.

AT&T Chairman Robert E. Allen and AT&T will receive the New York Philharmonic's second Mahler Award on May 29. The orchestra also announced the final subscription concert of the season.


May 7, 1996: The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that "In response to a barrage of inquiries, Philadelphia Orchestra leaders attempted yesterday to explain to the board, staff and musicians why they had hired a new chief financial officer who had left his last job [with the Boston Symphony] after being accused of sexual harassment."


May 6, 1996: The Chicago Symphony has hired Peggie Schwarz as Artistic Administrator.


April 22: The Grand Teton Music Festival has appointed Eiji Oue music director, who will also take a day-long tour of Minnesota on May 1.

David Wiley has been appointed music director of the Roanoke Symphony.

The Atlanta Symphony holds a musical "open house" on May 11.


April 16: The Tampa Tribune reported that the Florida Orchestra would downsize its budget by almost $1 million next season. "Orchestra officials Tuesday said the cuts could run deeper than just money-musicians might be let go to trim the fat from the area's largest performing arts organization. 'I wouldn't want to go to a slash-and-burn scenario, but right now it's all negotiable," said Kathryn Holm, the orchestra's executive director. "We've been overly optimistic about our income and now we're being hard-nosed.'"

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