Another Famous Conductor Charles Dutoit  Accused Of Sexual Assault : The Two
Charles Dutoit
Another Famous Conductor   Charles Dutoit   Accused Of Sexual Assault
The Associated Press has reported allegations of sexual assault against the famed conductor  Charles Dutoit  made by four women  in incidents that span from 1985 to 2010 and that took place in five different U.S. cities.
After the AP published its report Thursday  six major American orchestras with decades-long ties to  Dutoit  â the Philadelphia Orchestra  the Boston Symphony Orchestra  the New York Philharmonic  the Chicago Symphony Orchestra  the Cleveland Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony â hastily issued separate statements that distanced the respective institutions from the conductor to varying degrees.
In Britain  the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra also responded to the allegations  writing in a statement that it and  Dutoit  have " jointly agreed to release  him  from  his  forthcoming concert obligations with the Orchestra for the immediate future."
The alleged victims include one world-famous vocalist  the Grammy winning-soprano Sylvia McNair. Now 61  McNair told the AP that  Dutoit  "tried to have  his  way" with her after a rehearsal at the Minnesota Orchestra in 1985  when she was 28 years old.
Paula Rasmussen  a former professional mezzo-soprano  alleges that  Dutoit  assaulted her in his dressing room at the Los Angeles Opera in September 1991.
The other two accusers chose to remain anonymous  due to  Dutoit 's still-significant power within the classical music world.
One of those women  an anonymous soprano  claims that  Dutoit  assaulted her three times in 2006  at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in Saratoga Springs  N.Y.  and again in Philadelphia  in 2010.
The fourth accuser was 24 years old at the time of her alleged assault. She was a musician at the Civic Orchestra of Chicago  a "training" orchestra for emerging professional players associated with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO)  when  Dutoit  came to the city as a guest conductor of the CSO. She says he invited her to a lunch originally scheduled at a restaurant but then changed  at  Dutoit 's request  to his hotel suite at the Four Seasons  where he tried to force himself on her. In a series of emails the conductor allegedly sent to her afterwards  he wrote that he did not know that "that an affectionate hug and kiss could have such a negative effect " but that "of course  I forgot you are still a child."
The Philadelphia Orchestra â which Dutoit has conducted some 650 times since 1980 â said in a statement this evening that it was "horrified to learn of  the deeply troubling accusations of sexual misconduct against Charles Dutoit . We had no knowledge of these allegations. The Association is committed to providing a safe and respectful work environment for all of its employees and guest artists. We have had no communication with Mr. Dutoit and he has no future engagements." The Philadelphia symphony added  "We deplore the type of behavior described by Mr. Dutoit's accusers and we recognize
our responsibility to be a forceful opponent of abuses of power. The seriousness of  the accusations  demands a thorough investigation. We offer our sincerest sympathy to those who have been impacted."
 Dutoit 's upcoming U.S. performances were largely tied to a series of appearances with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet  a longtime musical colleague: with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center and with London's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in a tour of California next month; with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Boston's Symphony Hall and with the Cleveland Orchestra at Cleveland's Severance Hall in February; and with the Chicago Symphony in April at the city's Symphony Center.
Thibaudet declined to comment on the allegations against  Dutoit .
Rather than make any declarations about future collaborations with  Dutoit  â or about anyone in the Philharmonic administration or orchestra's knowledge of his alleged behaviors â the New York orchestra released a brief statement Thursday night that said: "In the wake of the very serious allegations reported today about  conductor Charles Dutoit    Mr. Dutoit  informed the New York Philharmonic that  he  has withdrawn from conducting concerts for the New York Philharmonic scheduled for January 17â20  2018. The New York Philharmonic remains committed to providing a professional and safe workplace  free of sexual harassment and all other forms of inappropriate conduct."
After an initial statement in which the Chicago Symphony said it was taking the allegations seriously and was still determining the best course to follow  the CSO ultimately took a similar tack to the New York Philharmonic. In a terse statement  the CSO said: "In response to the allegations about  conductor Charles Dutoit  reported in the media today   Mr. Dutoit  informed the Chicago Symphony Association (CSOA) that  he  has withdrawn from conducting concerts with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra scheduled for March 8  9  10 and 11  2018 and April 5  6  7 and 10  2018. The CSOA is committed to maintaining a workplace that is free from intimidation  coercion and harassment  including sexual harassment."
Also Thursday  the Boston Symphony Orchestra  which was scheduled to feature Dutoit as a guest conductor in a series of February performances  released a statement severing its decadeslong ties with the conductor: "Given the extremely troubling allegations against  Charles Dutoit  reported by Associated Press this morning  the Boston Symphony Orchestra will end its relationship with  him  and  he  will no longer appear as a guest conductor with the orchestra. The Boston Symphony Orchestra is committed to a zero tolerance policy towards anyone who exhibits inappropriate behavior in the workplace  and behavior that runs counter to these core values will always be met with serious consequences." The BSO statement echoes the one the same orchestra released earlier this month regarding its relationship with James Levine  its former music director who also led the Metropolitan Opera for more than four decades.
Another  [TGT] Accused Of Sexual Assault
The Associated Press has reported allegations of sexual assault against the famed conductor   [TGT] made by four women  in incidents that span from 1985 to 2010 and that took place in five different U.S. cities.
After the AP published its report Thursday  six major American orchestras with decades-long ties to  Dutoit  â the Philadelphia Orchestra  the Boston Symphony Orchestra  the New York Philharmonic  the Chicago Symphony Orchestra  the Cleveland Orchestra and the San Francisco Symphony â hastily issued separate statements that distanced the respective institutions from the conductor to varying degrees.
In Britain  the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra also responded to the allegations  writing in a statement that it and  Dutoit  have " jointly agreed to release  him  from  his  forthcoming concert obligations with the Orchestra for the immediate future."
The alleged victims include one world-famous vocalist  the Grammy winning-soprano Sylvia McNair. Now 61  McNair told the AP that  Dutoit  "tried to have  his  way" with her after a rehearsal at the Minnesota Orchestra in 1985  when she was 28 years old.
Paula Rasmussen  a former professional mezzo-soprano  alleges that  Dutoit  assaulted her in his dressing room at the Los Angeles Opera in September 1991.
The other two accusers chose to remain anonymous  due to  Dutoit 's still-significant power within the classical music world.
One of those women  an anonymous soprano  claims that  Dutoit  assaulted her three times in 2006  at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in Saratoga Springs  N.Y.  and again in Philadelphia  in 2010.
The fourth accuser was 24 years old at the time of her alleged assault. She was a musician at the Civic Orchestra of Chicago  a "training" orchestra for emerging professional players associated with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO)  when  Dutoit  came to the city as a guest conductor of the CSO. She says he invited her to a lunch originally scheduled at a restaurant but then changed  at  Dutoit 's request  to his hotel suite at the Four Seasons  where he tried to force himself on her. In a series of emails the conductor allegedly sent to her afterwards  he wrote that he did not know that "that an affectionate hug and kiss could have such a negative effect " but that "of course  I forgot you are still a child."
The Philadelphia Orchestra â which Dutoit has conducted some 650 times since 1980 â said in a statement this evening that it was "horrified to learn of  the deeply troubling accusations of sexual misconduct against  [TGT]  . We had no knowledge of these allegations. The Association is committed to providing a safe and respectful work environment for all of its employees and guest artists. We have had no communication with  [TGT]  and  [TGT]  has no future engagements." The Philadelphia symphony added  "We deplore the type of behavior described by  [TGT] 's accusers and we recognize
our responsibility to be a forceful opponent of abuses of power. The seriousness of  the accusations  demands a thorough investigation. We offer our sincerest sympathy to those who have been impacted."
 Dutoit 's upcoming U.S. performances were largely tied to a series of appearances with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet  a longtime musical colleague: with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center and with London's Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in a tour of California next month; with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Boston's Symphony Hall and with the Cleveland Orchestra at Cleveland's Severance Hall in February; and with the Chicago Symphony in April at the city's Symphony Center.
Thibaudet declined to comment on the allegations against  Dutoit .
Rather than make any declarations about future collaborations with  Dutoit  â or about anyone in the Philharmonic administration or orchestra's knowledge of his alleged behaviors â the New York orchestra released a brief statement Thursday night that said: "In the wake of the very serious allegations reported today about  [TGT]  [TGT] informed the New York Philharmonic that   [TGT]   has withdrawn from conducting concerts for the New York Philharmonic scheduled for January 17â20  2018. The New York Philharmonic remains committed to providing a professional and safe workplace  free of sexual harassment and all other forms of inappropriate conduct."
After an initial statement in which the Chicago Symphony said it was taking the allegations seriously and was still determining the best course to follow  the CSO ultimately took a similar tack to the New York Philharmonic. In a terse statement  the CSO said: "In response to the allegations about  [TGT] reported in the media today    [TGT] informed the Chicago Symphony Association (CSOA) that   [TGT]   has withdrawn from conducting concerts with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra scheduled for March 8  9  10 and 11  2018 and April 5  6  7 and 10  2018. The CSOA is committed to maintaining a workplace that is free from intimidation  coercion and harassment  including sexual harassment."
Also Thursday  the Boston Symphony Orchestra  which was scheduled to feature Dutoit as a guest conductor in a series of February performances  released a statement severing its decadeslong ties with the conductor: "Given the extremely troubling allegations against  [TGT] reported by Associated Press this morning  the Boston Symphony Orchestra will end its relationship with  him  and  he  will no longer appear as a guest conductor with the orchestra. The Boston Symphony Orchestra is committed to a zero tolerance policy towards anyone who exhibits inappropriate behavior in the workplace  and behavior that runs counter to these core values will always be met with serious consequences." The BSO statement echoes the one the same orchestra released earlier this month regarding its relationship with James Levine  its former music director who also led the Metropolitan Opera for more than four decades.