A Customs spokesperson at Ekaterinburg Koltsovo says that the 1855 Vuillaume violin confiscated from the Czech Philharmonic concertmaster Josef Spacek was returned to him last night after he provided the necessary documentation.

Josef, who has spent five extra days in Russia clearing up the misunderstanding, has confirmed receipt of the violin. He is now awaiting an export permit that will allow him to leave the country together with his precious instrument.

Musicians and management of the Philadelphia Orchestra agreed on a 12-month contract last night to enable the present season to continue. But divisions remain deep.

Local sources say the deal includes a 3 percent pay rise and one extra musician to he hired.

Official statement:

The Philadelphia Orchestra Association and the musicians of The Philadelphia Orchestra have reached a tentative agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement. Out of respect for the union, Local 77, American Federation of Musicians, the details will be released only after the agreement has been fully ratified by both parties. The Association expects the musicians of The Philadelphia Orchestra to perform as scheduled in the interim, anticipating ratification.

There are no frontrunners as the contest reaches round three, though local hearts are beating for three surviving Poles. Here’s the survivors list:

Mr Luigi Carroccia (Italy)
Ms Galina Chistiakova (Russia)

Mr Seong-Jin Cho (South Korea)
Mr Chi Ho Han (South Korea)
Mr Aljoša Jurinić (Croatia)
Ms Su Yeon Kim (South Korea)
Ms Dinara Klinton (Ukraine)
Ms Aimi Kobayashi (Japan)
Mr Marek Kozák (Czech Republic)
Mr Łukasz Krupiński (Poland)
Mr Krzysztof Książek (Poland)
Ms Kate Liu (United States)
Mr Eric Lu (United States)
Mr Szymon Nehring (Poland)
Mr Georgijs Osokins (Latvia)
Mr Charles Richard-Hamelin (Canada)
Mr Dmitry Shishkin (Russia)
Mr Alexei Tartakovsky (United States)
Mr Zi Xu (China)
Mr Yike (Tony) Yang (Canada)