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Article: The Philadelphia Inquirer Peter Dobrin column.(Column)
- Article from:
- The Philadelphia Inquirer (Philadelphia, PA)
- Article date:
- October 1, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 The Philadelphia Inquirer. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Peter Dobrin
Oct. 1--What if they gave a masterpiece and nobody came?
As arts groups become increasingly sensitive to an audience increasingly sensitive to repertoire, box-office timidity is often ruling decisions on programming.
So what happens when a group insists on unadulterated boldness? The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia found out Friday night when Harbison, Stravinsky, Persichetti and Berg managed to fill Perelman Hall to perhaps one-fifth of capacity.
Part of the problem, of course, is that the program was rather like an Orchestra 2001 concert, and the Chamber Orchestra has no trained following for contemporary works ...