Minnesota Musicians to Go It Alone, as Legislators Call for Corporate Heads' Heads

The Minnesota press are reporting that the much-beleagured players of the stricken Minnesota Orchestra will defy the fates--and the ongoing nasty industrial dispute--and play a 10-concert season. Osmo Vänskä, who walked away from the orchestra amid much sadness and publicity recently, will return for two concerts.

In the others, Joshua Bell and Itzhak Perlman will be among the featured soloists. And alongside the staple fare will be modern works, such as Judd Greenstein's Acadia which the orchestra premiered in 2012. The concerts will take place between three venues, the Ted Mann Concert Hall, the Northrop Auditorium and the O'Shaughnessy at St. Catherine University.

And what if the arguments with the orchestra's management gets finally resolved in the meantime. Simply merge the two seasons, say the players.

Whether the management itself will survive in the same shape is not something anyone would bet on. On the same day the Minnesota Orchestral Association was bullish about better-than-they-expected financials, 10 DFL legislators sent a letter to the MOA's board of directors demanding the resignations of chairman Jon Campbell, CEO Michael Henson and former chairman Richard Davis. The MOA, for its part, denies the letter's accusation that the three and others are "destroying" the orchestra, citing evidence to the contrary from independent inspectors. The stand-off continues.