The Tamesis
Renowned composer Philip Glass said in a statement today that he has withdrawn a symphony he commissioned to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in honor of Abraham Lincoln. Work, Symphony No. 15is scheduled to be performed for the first time by the National Symphony Orchestra this June.
Glass informed the center of his decision in a letter on Tuesday that he later shared on social media. “The Fifteenth Symphony is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the Kennedy Center’s values today are in direct conflict with the symphony’s message,” he wrote, adding that he considered the decision an “obligation.”
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The Kennedy Center has become increasingly isolated from its many patrons and performing arts peers, with the National Symphony becoming the biggest casualty of the ideological overhaul the Trump administration launched at the center last year. Glass joined artists including famed soprano Renée Fleming in severing ties with the center, while the Washington National Opera, which had performed there since 1971, moved out earlier this month, citing low attendance.
“We’re going to make this work,” Joan Bialek, president of the National Symphony Orchestra’s board of directors, told the media. new york times Its commitment to staying at the Kennedy Center. “I was born in Washington, I grew up at the Kennedy Center, I grew up at the NBS, and I can’t let it go away. We’re going to get through this.” She added that the center’s current priority is attracting people back to the concert hall.
Gianandrea Noseda, the symphony’s music director, told era He said he has no plans to leave, and band executive director Jean Davidson has vowed to stay. Davidson said the orchestra’s finances are closely tied to the Kennedy Center, which has been its home for 55 years.
Davidson added: “We greatly admire Philip Glass and were surprised to learn of his decision at the same time as the media.”
In December, the Kennedy Center’s board of directors voted to add President Donald Trump’s name to the institution—The move raised questions about its legality and prompted opposition from members of the Kennedy family. Legal experts said the vote may have violated rules enacted by Congress after renaming the center in 1963 after the assassination of John F. Kennedy.
A board spokesman later said the vote was unanimous, a claim that was immediately disputed by Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty, an ex-officio member of the board. “I was on that call and when I tried to press the button to express my concerns, ask questions and certainly not vote for this, I was muted,” Beatty said. “Every time I tried to speak, I was muted.”
