Portland's New Music Director--Business as Usual

[Modernistfan]

The Oregon Symphony in Portland just announced its new music director, the Austrian David Danzmayr. It seems that American orchestras are sliding back to business as usual where any random Assistant Vice-Kapellmeister of the Kleinmachnow Philharmoniker has a tremendous advantage over American candidates and women and people of color are shut out as usual. (Yes, I know that Kleinmachnow, a small community on the outskirts of Berlin, doesn't really have its own orchestra, but you get my point.)

[maestrob]

The Oregon Symphony in Portland just announced its new music director, the Austrian David Danzmayr. It seems that American orchestras are sliding back to business as usual where any random Assistant Vice-Kapellmeister of the Kleinmachnow Philharmoniker has a tremendous advantage over American candidates and women and people of color are shut out as usual. (Yes, I know that Kleinmachnow, a small community on the outskirts of Berlin, doesn't really have its own orchestra, but you get my point.)

James DePriest did a fine job there for many decades.

[Modernistfan]

Agreed about DePreist. There are many potential American candidates, and they don't even seem to be looked at for these jobs. For example, why is John McLaughlin Williams not even getting a shot for these orchestras?

[maestrob]

Agreed about DePreist. There are many potential American candidates, and they don't even seem to be looked at for these jobs. For example, why is John McLaughlin Williams not even getting a shot for these orchestras?

I'm with you!

I used to correspond with John McLaughlin Williams on the NY Times Forum before they took it down. He had a seriously rigorous set of tuning exercises that he would put the orchestra through before each recording session that worked like a charm. I've bought several of his CDs. He won a Grammy for one of them that was well deserved. I enjoy his recordings of works by Nicholas Flagello (brother to the well-known MET bass Ezio Flagello, btw). He's been nominated four times with one win in 2006 for a disc of Messiaen's Oiseaux Exotiques (sadly now OOP):

https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/ ... iams/17574

[THEHORN]

David Danzmayr is a new name to me , so I have no way of knowing how good a conductor is or what impact he will have on this orchestra . He must have made a very favorable impression on the orchestra members or he would never have been chosen .
Possibly he is on the verge of becoming much better known . Only time will tell . Orchestras should choose music directors on the basis of merit, not nationality, race or gender .
Yes, I can understand people wanting to see more American conductors, as well as women and minorities being chosen to head US orchestras, and I'm 100 % for this .
But look at all of the American conductors who hold important posts in Europe and elsewhere or have in the past :
A random list : Lorin Maazel ( I know he was born in France but his parents were American ) .
Bavarian RSO . Berlin RSO, Berlin Deutsche Oper. Orchestrre National de France . Vienna State opera . James Conlon - Rotterdam Philharmonic. Cologne opera. Paris opera .
James De Preist - Monte Carlo Philharmonic .
Dennis Russell Davies - Wurttemburg State opera, Stuttgart . Stuttgart chamber orchestra . Bruckner orchestra, Linz. Bonn Beethovenhalle orchestra .
James Levine- Munich Philharmonic. Leonard Slatkin - Orchestre National De Lyon. B.B.C. symphony. Michael Tilson Thomas - London symphony orchestre .
Marin Alsop - Bournemouth symphony orchestra . Vienna Radio orchestra . Sao Paulo symphony orchestra. Joann Faletta - Ulster orchestra, Northern Ireland .
Kent Nagano- Montreal symphony . Halle orchestra . Bavarian State opera . Hamburg State opera .
Gerard Schwarz - Royal Liverpool philharmonic . Alan Gilbert- Royal Stockholm Philharmonic. Elbe Philharmonic, Hamburg( formerly NDR symphony ) , Stockholm opera . Dean Dixon - Frankfurt radio symphony orchestra .
This is not a an exhaustive list by any means . American conductors haven't had any lack of opportunities in the past

[maestrob]

Sure enough, as have many American singers, who are much more disciplined than their Eastern European (formerly Soviet client states) and Russian counterparts. American singers who sing in European languages have generally better language skills than Europeans who try to sing in English!

Just think of the many fine recordings Leonard Bernstein made with the Vienna Philharmonic, for example.

And don't forget Myung-Whun Chung, who, while born in Seoul, trained in New York (finishing his studies with Jean Morel at Juilliard) and led the Paris opera from 1989-1994.

[Wallingford]

James DePriest did a fine job there for many decades.

Me three.

[Wallingford]

Speaking of Dean Dixon, he was also head of Sweden's Gothenburg Symphony. Dixon HAD to establish his career early on, on account of his race.

Some schoolkid out there should do a term paper on him, if they haven't already.

[Modernistfan]

Yes, I understand that these conductors had substantial careers in Europe, but the issue is why American conductors are frequently not even in the running for music directorships at American orchestras. (James DePreist also conducted the Helsinki Philharmonic frequently.)