In an announcement that I found laden with irony, the Detroit Symphony is taking over the Carnegie Hall concert vacated by the financially-strapped Oregon Symphony. Ironic how? Well, when we last went to Carnegie, the Detroit Symphony was in the midst of a prolonged strike. One of their musicians played as an extra with us at the Carnegie concert. Now, we are struggling financially, and their entire orchestra is taking the extra date in Carnegie (they were to – and still will – perform the next evening). Storm Large will get to do her Carnegie debut, which is great for her, but this really hurts. As another OSO member tweeted this afternoon, the loss of the Carnegie concert wasn’t such a huge deal to me, but this makes it sting a bit more.
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9 replies on “what the???”
I’m glad that at least they’re healthy enough to do it!
The extra concert will cost Detroit very little: one extra night at the hotel and artists’ fees and travel. Most if not all of that will be covered by the guarantee from Spring for Music. I wonder if Detroit proposed this, or the Spring for Music management? Either way it’s an extraordinarily cost-effective way of getting a lot of exposure in NY.
I don’t know who contacted who, but I’d bet that SFM scrambled to see who could take over the date that was already coming – it makes sense for them to do that. It would’ve been great to offer the date to an orchestra that didn’t already have the chance, but I understand that it takes a significant time to raise the money to make the trip possible. And I can’t help but wonder if there might have been an angel donor who wouldn’t give money for anything but a Carnegie trip that might have stepped forward to help us go if given the chance, but I’m not privvy to the steps taken that got us to this point.
I can see how that would sting. But I can also imagine how it would make the Oregon Symphony’s Carnegie Hall debut that much more meaningful.
I wonder if the musicians of the DSO had a say in whether or not they would accept that date.
I doubt it, but it’s not like they’ve done anything wrong. It just feels crappy.
Charles, I played in an orchestra that I’m sure would have strongly resisted playing that date under those circumstances.
I think it is a huge shame and a managerial mistake that the Oregon Symphony cancelled this appearance at Carnegie Hall. Sure I can understand the financial implications and the need to be fiscally prudent, but certainly agree with Charles’ sentiments that there might well have been a donor out there who’d have given anything to sponsor a Carnegie Hall gig. Management pulled together funding the last time, what was so different for 2013, did they even try?
I certainly know that if I was a musician in the Symphony, I would have been particularly hurt by the comments made by the chairman to the effect that the orchestra should “concentrate on its home turf”. How provincial and unambitious an attitude is that? Especially after all the kudos and admiration your previous appearance garnered – not least from that exceedingly hard to please breed – the New York critics.
Thank goodness there will still be recordings and broadcasts. As Carnegie proved: the Oregon Symphony really does deserve to get exposure outside of its home base…
I know musicians are restricted to what they can say in public but I sincerely hope that you and your colleagues are making their feelings known about this incredibly negative decision to management and board members in private.
I appreciate your sentiments, Rosalind, and I hope that this and whatever comes next will bring the OSO back to a firm financial footing.