Boston Symphony crisis: Another resignation
OrchestrasNo sooner had Gail Samuel quit as president and CEO of the Boston Symphony on Friday than a second head abruptly fell.
Asadour Santourian, vice president of the Tanglewood Music Center and Tanglewood Learning Institute, walked out after just 10 months.
Santourian is one of Samuel’s closest friends and a key hire. A former artistic director of the Rotterdam Philharmonic and its Gergiev Festival, he was brought in to shake up old practices and increase diversity awareness. Samuel brought him in from Aspen where he had been vice president for artistic administration since 2003, but he made little headwa with the Boston old guard.
Watch this space for more.
Was known for making a meal of things already in his early days 35 years ago with the Springfield (Mass) Symphony Orchestra…..
“increasing diversity awareness”–maybe that nonsense has something to do with it–complete with anemic audiences, the “leaders” “trustees” and other orchestral “business” interlopers still won’t have a clue WHY this reality is present… Good luck and good night.
Since Munch resigned in 1962 the “tradition” of the Brahmins of Boston running the show, and excluding from the Board those whose family weren’t registered on the 1620 voyage of the Mayflower, the orchestra has been in decline despite numerous extraordinary principal players. From the somnambulant leadership of Leinsdorf, the regrettable ill health of Steinburg, the then overmatched Ozawa and moral stain of Levine the situation has been poorly led. Regrettably when a guest conductor like Colin Davis raised standards and performance the board was never able or willing to retain them as MD. “Increasing diversity awareness” is appropriate in the 21st century but it isn’t the root cause of the BSO’s problems; ineffectual leadership, from top to bottom, is.
Ridiculous. It is still the best orchestra in the US, bar none.
No one who actually lives here and attends concerts agrees with you. Then again given the content of your other posts I understand why you’d say so.
And “to shake up old practices”. Well, classical music itself is an “old practice”, a great one, thankfully so.
Maybe Samuel at al would have had more success if they instead tried to „shake up diversity awareness“ nonsense, and „increase old practices“ aka as good programming, good media production, with great performers, of classical music?
Well, they are still young. They get at least one more try to be great.
Identity politics is not designed to bring anything or anyone together. In fact, exactly the opposite. It is created by people who do not mean well, and implemented by people who sometimes mean well, but the results are the same. Division and destruction.
Do you mean like in Ripley TN where a multi-racial family, headed by a military veteran, was subjected to constant racial slurs and break-ins and while on vacation had their home set on fire? Were the arsonists well-meaning and attempting to bring people together?
The problem starts with the Board.
Tanglewood attendance in 2022 was disastrous for the BSO concerts! We all thought our beloved Tanglewood was going to turn into a Woodstock, as there were more “popular artists” than ever! That falsely boosted attendance, but something needs to be done to invite younger audiences!
Richard Burgin, we need you…
And Koussy, as well.
Perhaps Joseph Silverstein for musicianship as well as leadership.
What’s wrong with Ronald Feldman? A superb cellist and conductor. And already in the neighborhood.
Or Max Hobart, Bruce Hangen, Francisco Noya,
Diversity is an explosive topic in American society and American orchestras. Only untainted moral authorities should speak on this incendiary matter.
““I once used the word oriental at a rehearsal in Chicago, and afterwards, during a break, I was politely pointed out, “Maestro, it would be better if you used the term Asian instead of Oriental.” I tried to explain that I wasn’t capable: ‘I’m sorry, I grew up with this word, for me the Orient is something wonderful. And besides, what am I if you’re Asian?’ The answer was, ‘You’re caucasian.’ Killed me. (laughs)”
Riccardo Muti, quoted by Die Zeit
No, everybody should speak freely, as this is the land of FREE SPEECH. Ever heard of it? Diversity is just a euphemism for quotas and dispensing of talent requirements. There are no obstacles for minorities in classical music as long as they have the talent and the interest (and the money). The real obstacles are money and opportunity. If your parents don’t have enough dough for good teachers and instruments, you will struggle, perhaps, or just play locally. Like everyone else. The real problem is when rich people use their money and influence to promote their children, solely for the purpose of marrying well, or regardless of their lack of artistry. There are too-few patrons who seek out talented poor children and sponsor them.
The term, oriental is use quite often in the Orient. Anglos and those living in Anglo-saxon countries are obscessed with pc nonsense and what they deem as correct verbiage ….
Could be an anti-woke back-lash.
Tanglewood is a world of classical music, and based on talent alone.
Foregone conclusion. No way he was going to last in Boston, where big money donors act for the most part like normal, ordinary people and don’t tolerate management throwing tantrums and expecting things to go his way.
I am sure we’ll hear something from Aspen within the next week. They have all sorts of problems to be fixed at the moment and Alan Fletcher’s modus operandi has always been to hire whoever is the most conveniently available for a position. Whether he will actually be able to do anything for them is a different story…
Thank goodness. Everyone knew it was a huge mistake to hire Assadour in the first place. What goes around comes around.
You have the sequence wrong. Santourian’s departure was announced first internally.
Santourian is notorious throughout the industry for being a terrible colleague who is unspeakably arrogant, rude and nasty. Samuel was advised by many not to hire him – especially given that he came loaded with baggage from a previous Tanglewood scandal – but she ignored all common sense. She put herself in the position of being seen as a CEO without good judgement. (Obviously not inaccurate.)
Why don’t they just come out and state—the main qualification is you’re not Anglo Saxon?
My wife and I go to the BSO often enough to have an opinion. We go there to hear music in the classical tradition. So far, every “new” piece of music I’ve heard has been crap. (As a reference, I like Shostakovich). If any ethnicity wants to compose music to be performed by the BSO it better be damned good. Not simply “new” sounds to make, to make them