AMID ACCUSATIONS OF SEXUAL MISCONDUCT, FAMED CONDUCTOR WITHDRAWS FROM CSO DATES
Associated Press
Following allegations from three opera singers and a classical musician who say that world- renowned conductor Charles Dutoit sexually assaulted them — physically restraining them and forcing his body against theirs — the maestro has withdrawn from his 2018 spring engagement with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
A statement Thursday evening from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association announced the news of his withdrawal from concerts series scheduled for March and April at Symphony Center. “The CSOA is committed to maintaining a workplace that is free from intimidation, coercion and harassment, including sexual harassment,” the statement added. Dutoit most recently conducted the CSO in concert series this past spring. Over the years, he also performed at the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, where he made his debut with the CSO in 1982.
The accusers provided detailed accounts of incidents they say oc- curred between 1985 and 2010 in a moving car, the two- time Grammy winner’s hotel suite, his dressing room, an elevator and the darkness of backstage. The women accuse the 81- year- old artistic director and principal conductor of London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of sexual misconduct on the sidelines of rehearsals and performances in five cities — Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Philadelphia and Saratoga Springs, New York.
All four women, including Grammy Award- winning soprano Sylvia McNair, said the Swiss- born conductor either lured them to a private place to discuss or practice music, or simply seized a moment alone to make his move. The women all said they resisted him and escaped.
Citing the “extremely troubling” allegations, the Boston Symphony Orchestra also cut ties with Dutoit late Thursday, saying he would “no longer appear as a guest conductor.”