Fort Worth cancels Stephen Hough
mainAll concerts are off for the rest of the month.
The hardline board have pushed the strike on into October.
Details here.
Worth noting that the board is chaired by Mercedes Bass, who sits on both the Met and Carnegie hall boards.
The cancellations include three concerts scheduled for Sept. 30 through Oct. 2 that featured pianist Stephen Hough performing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 1.
“We regret that we had to cancel these performances due to the ongoing strike. The continued and loyal support of patrons and ticket holders during this difficult time is truly appreciated,” said Mercedes Bass, chairman of the symphony’s board of directors, in a statement. “The management and board are steadfastly committed to operating in a responsible manner to secure the future of this orchestra.”
One wonders what will happen if this strike continues though to next May when the orchestra is supposed to play for the Van Cliburn Competition – of which the Mercedes Bass Foundation is a sponsor!
Mrs. Bass comes from strong, near-dictatorial stock. Her step-father was the half bother of the former Iranian Prime Minister Mosaddegh, a blood relation of the older ruling family in Persia, the Qajar Dynasty, who saw the Shah as a usurper. He was overthrown in the 1953 coup following nationalisation of the oilfields in which the British and the CIA were heavily involved. She herself is a step-cousin of the Shah’s widow. She is a lady who has clearly shown she likes to get her own way.