Andrew Davis out of Pittsburgh's European tour

In the afternoon I hear Shura Cherkassky; the immediate reason for my hearing him is that Richter (left), who was to give today's recital, has cancelled yet again. One of theses days I am going to arrange a Grand Cancelling Championship, so that the three leaders in this field, Richter, Michalengeli and Peter Schreier, may finally decide the question: which is the greatest Canceller of them all? It will, I predict, be a very exciting finish, and no one but a fool would bet a penny on the final placings.

The peerless, and much missed, Bernard Levin writing in his 1981 book Conducted Tour. If you haven't read it you've missed the most entertaining book on music festivals ever written.


The news has come that Andrew Davis has been forced, for very real health reasons, to drop out of the Pittsburgh Symphony's European tour , and that includes their BBC Prom on August 30. His place will be taken by Leonard Slatkin, and that news is likely to be greeted with a crouching ovation in London at least. The 62 year old Andrew Davis is to undergo a femoral-popliteal artery bypass in his left leg and is expected to rest from conducting for about six weeks, for the full story follow this link. On An Overgrown Path wishes him a very speedy recovery and return to the podium.

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Comments

Pliable said…
Carlo Maria Giulini was a bit of a canceller, but given his charismatic talent I can forgive him for that.

But I do remember one concert I attended in the 1970s at the Royal Festival Hall in London when Giulini was scheduled to conduct, I think, a Dvořák symphony. (The 7th perhaps?)

The audience was seated in the hall when the inevitable announcement came - 'Maestro Giulini is indisposed and his place will be taken by ...'. At the announcement of the name of the substitute a not inconsiderable number of the audience left the hall ...

The substitute obviously didn't go on to greater things, as Bernstein did when he famously substituted for the indisposed Bruno Walter in New York. I can't for the life of me remember who he was!

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