FIRST OFF . . .

The sudden death of conductor Herbert von Karajan less than two weeks before the start of this year’s Salzburg Music Festival--which he dominated for over 25 years--has put the event into a state of confusion. Karajan was to have led a new production of Verdi’s “Un Ballo in Maschera,” staged by British film director John Schlesinger. Six performances of the opera--the first opens the festival July 27--have been sold out for months. Hans Landesmann, a festival board member, told Reuters that the festival would begin as planned with the Verdi opera, conducted by a replacement still to be chosen, plus a tribute to Karajan. “The premiere will take place. How, no one knows, because all of this has come as a shock despite the advanced age and physical frailty of Herbert von Karajan,” said festival spokesman Rene Galle. The silver-haired Karajan died of a heart attack Sunday at his home in Anif, outside Salzburg. He was 81. His death followed a full day of rehearsal on Saturday for its opening performance. Black flags of mourning hung outside the Festival Hall as the governing board met to consider how the event would proceed. On Monday, the Berlin Philharmonic also mourned Karajan, its former “conductor for life.” A Philharmonic spokesman said Karajan had “stamped the orchestra with his own inimitable style.”