Montreal finds a title for Kent Nagano
mainThe Orchestre symphonique de Montréal will today endow Kent Nagano with the honorary title of Conductor Emeritus.
He is the third Music Director of the OSM to receive this title after Wilfrid Pelletier and Zubin Mehta.
It appears that Charles Dutoit has been airbrushed from OSM history.
KN should be air-brushed from music history, he’s such a podium peacock of dubious impact and musicality.
At least his photo has been air-brushed.
It’s interesting how these people of “dubious impact and musicality” keep getting booked by top-tier orchestras. As though they might know something about him that you don’t.
It’s because the suits never listen to the opinions of the musicians. Cannon fodder for their ridiculously paid managerial positions.
Not possible. They are all stupid.
I only saw him conduct once in SF: Prokofiev 6. It was not good.
I do love his Poulenc “Carmelites” and Canteloube with Upshaw, though, so he definitely has some moments.
Nothing with Montreal has stood out for me…or his German orchestra…or Halle.
I saw KN hundreds of times in Montreal and he only had a handful of duds. I remember many really great concerts too. A riveting Shostakovitch 11th, a super concert with Beethoven’s 5th, Dvorak’s 9th, and new work by Gougeon, the rarely heard Dvorak 5th, a superb Mahler 2nd, and in his last season a Schubert festival.
“He is back in town to accept the honour and to preside over three concerts that will be streaming in March. ”
https://cultmtl.com/2021/02/conductor-emeritus-kent-nagano-returns-to-orchestre-symphonique-de-montreal-symphony-orchestra-concerts-to-stream-in-march/
I want to be THERE and not see a stream.
I like the ring of that.
Hey Americans, how about this;
Donald Trump – POTUS Emeritus!! Arania Exumai!!!
(That last part is from Harry Potter)
POTUS Horribilis suits Trump much better, Rogerio.
How about this:
Donald Trump, Prisoner #4873925
USP Florence ADMAX
Love it, Herr D.!
Do you ever post about anything but American politics? You seem pretty happy to denigrate US; where, pray tell, is your Utopia for comparison?
Charles who?
Well the Emeritus title also means that an orchestra wants to maintain links with a conductor. Neither Dutoit nor the OSM wanted to maintain links after his exit, even less since it emerged that he harassed colleagues throughout his career.
For Nagano, evidently both parties will benefit from continued links, even more so as his farewell concerts were scrapped due to COVID.
I assume the OSM would have wanted to renew a relationship with Dutoit after his return (in 2015?), but the harassment allegations put paid to that idea.
Also, a number of musicians in the orchestra were clearly not keen – the OSM paid some musicians to stay home for those concerts. It seems to me it was a one-off.
BOMBSHELL: MONTREAL CLEARS CHARLES DUTOIT OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT
https://slippedisc.com/2018/11/bombshell-montreal-clears-charles-dutoit-of-sexual-harassment/
I see no valid reason why he couldn’t return. His 2016 concert was very well received and he got a huge ovation.
If you read, the Montréal allegations were not upheld because the plaintiffs pulled out. Meanwhile, the Boston and Philadelphia complaints were upheld. So no, he’s not been “cleared” of harassment. And he should absolutely not return.
Dutoit is still mentioned in one place on the OSM website as far as I see. Not totally scrubbed.
“Oro was her (Ana Sokolović) first OSM commission in 2001 and premiered at the Théâtre Maisonneuve under the direction of Charles Dutoit.
https://www.osm.ca/en/ana-sokolovic-penser-la-musique-en-couleurs/
hm…as far as one can believe the musical gossip: there was not much love between them…..anyway, business must go on…..;-(
The title should be “chief overrated conductor”. Nagano is probably one of the worst conductors I have ever worked with.
For the record, Charles Dutoit also appears in the section on the OSM website detailing the ensemble’s history: https://www.osm.ca/en/osm-history/. Irrespective of his alleged and proven transgressions — numerous and deeply troubling though they are — his impact on the OSM was singular and profound, and the extensive Decca recordings from the 1980s and 1990s stand as a remarkable and unparalleled achievement, at once scintillating and sublime and spanning an impressive array of challenging repertoire.