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The Dispatch wrote
Symphony dismisses music director
Thursday, November 13, 2008
BY JEFFREY SHEBAN
The Columbus Symphony announced this afternoon that Junichi Hirokami is leaving as music director.
Hirokami, a native of Japan, took over the baton in June 2006 and had one year remaining on his contract. He was openly critical of the symphony board during labor negotiations with musicians in the last year. The contract dispute led the symphony to suspend operations for almost five months before reaching an agreement in September.
Martin Inglis, chair of the Columbus Symphony board, said the symphony is searching for a replacement.
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- Symphony shuts down for summer, future in doubt
I have to admit – I don’t think I made it to a single concert under the baton of Hirokami – however I am VERY eager to learn who will replace him.
Your mom. No really, LaChewla’s mom is a music director near Akron, she is looking for a job right now too. If she can’t at Kent State or CWRU, maybe CSO?
That’s really disappointing. I only saw him a few times, but man oh man, what a presence! (and apparently, the musicians really liked him). Is it just me or does the CSO keep making some screwy decisions?
I’ve never known the symphony to make a bad decision.
(Note: today is opposite day).
I heard a lot of people complaining not too long about about the giant expenses incurred from having a music director who lives on the other side of the world.
Perhaps we could get someone who lives a little closer to Columbus and doesn’t need to fly so far between work and home?
Perhaps we could get someone who lives a little closer to Columbus and doesn’t need to fly so far between work and home?
There was that..it’s not clear to casual observers if he said he did not intend to live here if he accepted the job.
Not that he’s great, but just get Alessandro Siciliani in there and move on. The symphony won’t last two more years anyway.
This is not shocking with the recent history of spats with the board and the lingering financial difficulties, but I really did like him as a symphony leader. He was so energetic, and I think he brought out the best from the group. I do think it would be wise to find someone a little closer to home. I really don’t understand how he was even able to manage the orchestra being so far away most of the time.
Perhaps we could get someone who lives a little closer to Columbus and doesn’t need to fly so far between work and home?
Whoa, I had somehow never heard the fact that he commuted…from Japan. That’s absurd. Sad and disappointing, but also surprisingly not surprising. No wonder they were having issues. Of course a great music director is essential but hopefully they’ll look closer to home next.
As a fan of the CSO, I believe the termination of Junichi Hirokami was a terrible mistake. He led the musicians to perform at levels better than their individual skills.
Much has been brought up about his commuting from Japan, but that should not have been a surprise to the board since he was already the music director of at least one symphony orchestra in Japan. The executive director of the CSO commutes to Boston every week end. The cost of Hirokami’s travel to and from Japan is propably small compared to what the CSO will be paying him to sever the contract.
Hopefully the CSO will survive the boards foolishness.
I’d like to hear the CSO finally playing something that had been composed in the 20th Century. Charles Ives, Olivier Messiaen, Takemitsu, and there are plenty more than just Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, and Mozart.
Mission to replace conductor slow, steady
Sunday, April 12, 2009 3:17 AM
BY JEFFREY SHEBAN
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Attention, classical-music lovers: The silence you hear is the Columbus Symphony searching for a new music director. That’s the way the troubled orchestra hopes it will stay until a replacement is found for Junichi Hirokami, the musicians’ favorite who was sent packing in November with a year left on his three-year contract.
How long the process will take is an open question.
READ MORE