Dutoit Leaves the Philadelphia Orchestra

After five seasons as principal conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra, and many more before that as a frequent guest conductor with the orchestra, Charles Dutoit is stepping down. He will preside over a residency in China coming up in the next few weeks but then he is gone. His successor is, of course, Yannick Nezet-Seguin.

Under Dutoit the orchestra has been dealing with major financial problems and even had to declare bankruptcy. It remains to be seen whether the board and the management and musicians can pull together to build for the future. Dutoit deserves credit, however, for maintaining the orchestra's artistic quality through this difficult period.

Paul E. Robinson