Symphony cuts ties with famed conductor
Three bring multiple allegations against Charles Dutoit
The San Francisco Symphony on Thursday said it is severing ties with Charles Dutoit, after the Associated Press detailed multiple allegations of sexual assault against theworld-renowned conductor. The accusers — three opera singers and a classical musician — told the Associated Press Dutoit, principal conductor of London’s Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, sexually assaulted them.
They said the alleged incidents involved Dutoit physically restraining them, forcing his body against theirs, sometimes thrusting his tongue into their mouths, and in one case, sticking one of their hands down his pants. The incidents allegedly occurred between 1985 and 2010. The allegations prompted the San Francisco Symphony on Thursday to announce it will no longer associate with the conductor, who has made several appearance at Davies Symphony Hall over the years and was due to perform in Davies Symphony Hall next month and in April.
“This decision is the result of the serious nature of the allegations, internal and external discussions, and the San Francisco Symphony’s strong commitment to a zero tolerance policy for sexual harassment in the workplace,” the orchestra said in a statement. Dutoit was scheduled to guest-conduct the San Francisco Symphony during two weeks of concerts in April, the Symphony noted, “including a program of music by Debussy and Ravel, and a program including (Gustav) Holst’s ‘ The Planets.’
A new conductor for these concerts will be announced at a later date. Dutoit was also scheduled to conduct the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra on tour in January as a part of the Orchestra’s Great Performers Series. He will not be appearing in Davies Symphony Hall for these concerts.” The Royal Philharmonic has not officially reacted to the allegations.
The Boston Symphony Orchestra on Thursday also severed tieswith Dutoit. According to the AP report, the four female accusers allege the sexual assaults by the now- 81-year- old conductor occurred in Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Philadelphia and Saratoga Springs, New York. “He threw me against the wall, shoved my hand down his pants and shoved his tongue down my throat,” retired mezzo-soprano Paula Rasmussen recounted of an incident she said occurred in his dressing room at the Los Angeles Opera in September 1991.
She refused to ever be alone with the Swiss-born conductor again, she said. Soprano Sylvia McNair, herself a two-time Grammy winner, said Dutoit “tried to have his way” with her at a hotel after a rehearsal with the Minnesota Orchestra in 1985. “As soon as it was just the two of us in the elevator, Charles Dutoit pushed me back against the elevator wall and pressed his knee way up between my legs and pressed himself all over me,” she said.
The other two accusers did not want to be identified, saying they feared speaking up because the power the famous maestro wields could lead to them being blacklisted from the industry. One of the women who asked not to be identified said Dutoit attacked her three times in 2006 and once in 2010, grabbing her breasts, pinning her wrists against his dressing room wall and telling her that they would make better music if she willingly kissed him. All four women said Dutoit 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. They said they never filed formal complaints because they were young and Dutoit was the maestro. Dutoit, who holds the titles of conductor laureate of the Philadelphia Orchestra and conductor emeritus of the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo, didnot respond to multiple attempts to reach him through the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and his office in Montreal. The Royal Philharmonic said Dutoit was currently on vacation, but that it had forwarded the AP’s emailed requests for comment directly to him.
The AP also reached out to Dutoit’s office with several phone calls and emails. Dutoit appeared in San Francisco as guest conductor for San Francisco Symphony for two programs at Davies Hall May 4-13.