8/2/2019 The IAM Archive (the Gig Years): Issue 5, April 2005

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Gig

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Kathryn McDowell--3

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5-30 APRIL 2005 GIGMAG.CO.UK 2.25

LA SCALA MUTINY UNDERMINES UK TOUR The palace coup that has unseated

Riccardo Muti from his operatic power

base in Milan has left the orchestra of

La Scalas planned UK tour headless.

According to the press office at

Londons South Bank Centre where

the La Scala ensemble is due to appear

on 27 May the orchestra is actively

seeking an appropriate replacement

from its roster of conductors who

have a significant relationship with

La Scala.

As Gig went to press, no candidate

had been confirmed.

Paolo Besana, PR manager of the

La Scala Filharmonica, insisted the tour

which also takes in Birmingham and

Glasgow would go ahead.

Im not authorised to tell you the

name until the contract is signed,

he added.

8/2/2019 The IAM Archive (the Gig Years): Issue 5, April 2005

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The cloud over the tour is nothing to

the storm which broke over La Scala ear-

lier this month, when 63-year-old Muti

became embroiled in a power struggle at

the worlds most famous opera house.

His troubles began in February, when

the board of the lyric theatre decided to

dismiss its widely respected superintend-

ent (general manager) Carlo Fontana.

Mutis favoured candidate for the job,

Mauro Meli former director of La Scalas

theatrical division and serving artistic

director was appointed as Fontanas

successor, prompting anger from mem-

bers of the Orchestra Filharmonica della

Scala and other contract staff. The crisis deepened when an over-

whelming majority of staff voted for

Mutis removal. Suspicious of his open

support for Meli, they attacked the music

directors dictatorial style and took

industrial action that led to the cancella-

tion of several performances, including

the scheduled run of Hindemiths Sancta

Susanna and Azio Corghis Il dissoluto

assolto. In return, Muti declared that he

would no longer conduct concerts with

the Filharmonica della Scala, defending

his position in a long letter to Italian

newspaper Corriere della Sera.

How can La Scala workers have for-

gotten my struggles with them against

the threats from our rulers to cut arts

funding, to suppress music teaching

in schools, to bring cultural institutions

to their knees and to render their veryexistence precarious? asked Muti on

8 March. It appears that their gratitude

was tempered by resentment of the con-

ductors perceived power-mongering

and authoritarian approach.The relation-ship between Muti and the orchestra is

sick, reported flautist David Formisano

after one union meeting. Were like a

separated husband and wife bickering.

In what appears to have been an

attempt to consolidate his backing from

La Scalas board, Muti withdrew from

conducting the orchestra, saying that

there were not the conditions for us to

play music together. The strategy back-

fired, serving only to alienate the

companys already hostile staff, and Muti

stepped down on 2 April.

Media speculation about Mutis

potential successor began to appear

several weeks before his official resigna-

tion, with Riccardo Chailly, Daniele Gatti,

Zubin Mehta, Claudio Abbado and

Antonio Pappano all being touted.

The strongest contender is Chailly, a

popular figure in his native Milan and

music director of the citys Orchestra

Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi.

But Chailly has entered a labour-

intensive contract to become chief

conductor of the Gewandhausorchester

and music director of the Oper Leipzig

from September a contract he is unlike-

ly to be able to extricate himself from

easily even should he wish to do so.

Similarly, Pappano is unlikely to quit

the Royal Opera House presently

recognised for its artistic adventure

and financial stability for a company

facing a possible seasons deficit ofaround 8m.

www.teatrodellascala.com

La Scala

15-30 APRIL 20052 Gig

Photos:courtesyofChrisCraker,LaScalaandOperaNorth

Opera North is to mount a full, diverse

but different season despite losing its

Grand Theatre home for a year of

extensive renovation work from May.

Unveiling the Leeds-based compa-

nys future plans on 13 April, general

director Richard Mantle said that,despite

audiences being venue-loyal, he was

confident Opera North would be able

to take audiences with us on an

artistic journey.

Opera North will be performing three

semi-staged operas (Duke Bluebeards

Castle, Saul and Hansel and Gretel) at

Leeds Town Hall and Nabucco and

Salome in concert. Both Nabucco and

Bluebeard are to be recorded for

ChandosOpera In English label.

The company is also forging partner-

ships with a number of other concert

venues in the North of England, includ-

ing The Sage Gateshead, Bridgewater

Hall in Manchester, the Royal Concert

Hall in Nottingham and Birminghams

Symphony Hall, where a selection of the

semi-staged and operas in concert are to

be performed.

Theres going to be a different-

looking Opera North next year, Mantle

told Gig,but its one that will be following

on in the tradition weve established.

Part of that tradition of staging

operetta and music theatre is echoed

in the 2005/06 season, when Opera

North mounts Kurt Weills satirical

operetta Der Kuhhandel (above) . A co-

production with the Bregenz Festival and

Vienna Volksoper, it follows previous

Opera North productions of Weill works,

including last seasons One Touch of Venus.

www.operanorth.co.uk

Opera North

La Scala mutiny puts tour at risk (CONT FROM P1)

OPERA NORTH UNVEILS PLANS AHEAD OF VENUE CLOSURE

Jascha Heifetz and Isaac Stern, pianists

Vladimir Horowitz and Glenn Gould andsingers such as Caruso and Domingo. Its

current roster includes cellist Yo-Yo Ma,

pianists Murray Perahia, violinist Joshua

Bell and tenor Ramn Vargas.

Theres been a huge shake-up at Sony

BMG, Craker told Gig, and Gilbert

Hetherwick has given his complete sup-

port to core classical. Ill be looking after

everything on the Masterworks label

anything soundtracky or film scores will

be handled by the commercial division in

the UK so theres a clear differentiation.

Peter Gelb wanted to downscale core

classical and focus on things like Titanic,

which commercially were humungous

but werent classical. Gilbert has reposi-

tioned things in a way that is appropriate

for the classical division. Craker also saidhe was not expecting any more termina-

tions of artist contracts.

Craker is now exploring ways of

making the archive available to non-

traditional classical audiences via internet

downloads, an approach he pioneered

with his Black Box Music label more than

seven years ago.

www.chriscraker.com

Chris Craker

CRAKER (CONT FROM P1)

have yet to see a cogent argument to sup-

port that view.

An SAC spokesperson remained

unconvinced. Local authorities have no

statutory obligation to provide arts

through their remit, they told Gig and we

are concerned at the variance this might

mean for funding culture around the

country. We are concerned that expertise

will be dissipated and that local authorities

will be less willing to invest in risk,which is

essential if the arts are to develop.

www.cosla.gov.uk

Cosla

www.scottisharts.org.uk

Scottish Arts Council

THREAT TO SCOTTISHARTS BODY(CONT FROM P1)

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