SHORT TAKES : Toledo Symphony Gets New Chief

An Englishman who is music director for symphonies in Rhode Island and California has been named to the top position with the Toledo Symphony. Andrew Massey will be the orchestra’s music director-designate for the symphony’s 1990-91 season and music director and conductor for the 1991 through 1993 seasons.

The Nottingham native spent two years as assistant conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. Currently, he is music director of both the Rhode Island Philharmonic and the Fresno Philharmonic in California. Massey said that Toledo will be his primary commitment but that he plans to maintain his Rhode Island residency.

When not conducting in Toledo, Massey said he will keep in touch through computers, facsimiles and telephones. The arrangement will include electronic contacts with his offices in Fresno and San Francisco, where he was associate conductor and maintains a music library.