No Gatti at Scala Until 2013; Milanese Conductor Pulled Out of "Unconvincing" Bondy Tosca, Zeffirelli's Old Bohème

Daniele Gatti's busy summer (in Bayreuth with Parsifal and in Salzburg with Elektra) included an interview in today's Corriere della Sera (not online until tomorrow): the Milanese conductor explained to the august Milanese newspaper why Italian conductors thrive abroad but have problems in their own country, and says that he has cancelled his next two commitments at la Scala because he found Luc Bondy's staging for Tosca "unconvincing" and because "I asked for a new production of Bohème, not, with all due respect, for Zeffirelli's. I'll be back to Milan in 2013, for the anno verdiano: with Messa da Requiem and Falstaff".

 

Comments

[Paolo M.]

They give him bad casts, old productions, then he refuses to work in Scala! No surprise!

[lella]

We want Gatti as Music Director of La Scala!

[Fabio]

"with all due respect" to Zeff! The Zeffirelli backlash has seeped everywhere.

[Evenflow]

I'm with PAOLO M. above. I've been reading about Gatti on this blog for ages, and while he's managed to have a great career elsewhere and bring beautiful conducting to the unwashed masses, La Scala never wasted an opportunity to abuse him. La Scala dangles the MD title in front of every eligable conductor and then pulls it away when it's within reach. It's like breaking up with a bad boyfriend: Gatti's better off without them.

[Alexander]

Sheesh;) When I read this first I decided you were talking about "no cats at Scala", only in a second I've got your idea on Mr. Gatti;)
O'K, I wish them to have both Gatti and gatti at Scala;))))

[prose]

Interesting that when European conductors pull out of dreadful productions, it's about their sophisticated judgment. When American public says as much, they are all dumb yokels. I wonder what the people at the other opera blog react to this news.

[Steven M]

Of course, some of us find Mr. Gatti's conducting unconvincing, so I guess that makes us even.......

[walter]

@StevenM: A LOT OF PEOPLE find Gatti's conducting unconvincing.

[David Spence]

La Scala is better off without Gatti.

Falstaff, after amorphous mess he made out of Don Carlo three years ago - without Giuseppe Filianoti's help - is beyond his reach. Please don't tell me this Falstaff may mark St. Ambrogio's Day for 2013.