Music: Genius

Concerts by Manhattan's Philharmonic-Symphony have been dull this season. Conductor Willem Mengelberg seemed sleepy. The aging Walter Damrosch was uninspired. Then, because Sir Thomas Beecham was unable to come, because Toscanini was late, there followed a string of substitute conductors — Ossip Gabrilowitsch, Fritz Reiner, Arthur Honegger, Hans Lange, Bernardino Molinari. The results were adequate but not memorable. Yet the houses were sold-out. Subscribers had bought in advance for the entire season so that they should by no sorry slip miss Toscanini.

For months they had awaited last week's concerts. It...

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