In Tuesday’s (4/3) Irish Times, Michael Dervan writes, “The RTÉ [National Symphony Orchestra] announcement was curt. ‘Due to further budget cuts, the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra’s April tour to Galway, Limerick and Cork with pianist Barry Douglas, scheduled to take place on April 12th, 13th and 14th, and ‘A Musical Adventure: A Family Concert for Young Children,’ scheduled to take place on May 27th at the National Concert Hall, will now not take place.’ Séamus Crimmins, executive director of RTÉ’s performing groups, said that the concerts were cancelled ‘with great regret’ but that the cancellations were ‘necessary and unavoidable in the current economic climate’. The loss is significant, as it is effectively the shut-down of the orchestra’s touring programme for 2012. The orchestra had for many years toured twice a year. But cutbacks in 2009 saw a reduction to a single tour. That has now been dropped. … The question now is whether or not the orchestra remains in a position to be the kind of national provider of orchestral music that was promised all those years ago. The rumour mill is alive with speculation—that players will be let go, that the 2012-13 season will be heavily cut back, that the orchestra is struggling to hire conductors and soloists for its programme of summer activity in the face of a cut of €1 million in its budget.”
Posted April 4, 2012
