Music: Homesick

The conductor was so stiff with arthritis that he had to lead the orchestra sitting down. France's No. 1 composer, chunky little Darius Milhaud, climbed carefully into a chair raised a foot above the stage of Boston's Symphony Hall. From the chair he led the Boston Symphony Orchestra through the first performance of his Symphony No. 2. During tranquil passages he waved his arms gently, as if they would waft him into the air like a weightless blimp. When the music was loud he slid from his chair and stood threateningly on tiptoe.

This week Boston heard and cheered the world premiere...

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