James Levine: A Verbier statement

In response to concerns raised by a former Festival Orchestra violinist in a message to Slipped Disc:

The Verbier Festival is aware of the recent allegations of sexual harassment made against conductor James Levine. We are profoundly disturbed and saddened by these accusations.

James Levine participated in eight consecutive editions of the Verbier Festival (1999-2006). He has not returned to the Verbier Festival since 2006 and no future engagements are either confirmed nor anticipated.

The Verbier Festival maintains a strict zero-tolerance policy in regard to sexual harassment. Since the Festival’s founding in 1994, it has not had any such incidents. Were an allegation to occur, the Festival would treat the report seriously, support the victim, and act swiftly in compliance with its sexual harassment reporting protocol.

Sexual harassment is abhorrent. We are committed to reviewing and, as necessary, strengthening our current policies and procedures in light of current events.

Martin Engstroem