Soloist Rampal Passes Pacific Symphony Baton

Though he will still be the featured soloist, flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal will not be conducting the Pacific Symphony at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa Monday and Tuesday as advertised.

“With his recitals at Ambassador Auditorium (n Pasadena) and UC Davis, in addition to the Orange County dates, the back-and-forth traveling for rehearsals would be just too hectic,” said Rampal spokesperson Petrea Baruzzi. “He has had flu and bronchitis and we were not interested in running the man down.”

Replacing Rampal as conductor will be Geoffrey Simon, music director of the Albany Symphony. The reason why Pacific Symphony had to go all the way to New York for a replacement was not available by press time.

A Pacific Symphony spokesman did say, however, that the orchestra’s own music director, Keith Clark, will be unable to fill in for Rampal because he will be in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia, recording with the Czechoslovak Radio Symphony.