Music: After Toscanini

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Arturo Toscanini had a birthday last week, and as usual refused to take the slightest formal notice of the event. On his 87th birthday, when he was scheduled to rehearse his NBC orchestra, he stayed home and let a visitor take his place—and newspapers suggested that it was, among other things, the Maestro's way of avoiding congratulations from his musicians.

But the visiting conductor, who led the NBC Symphony in its broadcast this week, was the brilliant conductor of the Boston Symphony, Alsace-born Charles Munch (TIME, Dec. 19, 1949). And Munch's visit to Manhattan was something more than the Maestro's way of ducking congratulations.

It has been 17 years now since NBC coaxed Toscanini back to the U.S. from Milan and assembled a symphony orchestra for him. This spring, as usual, the Maestro is expected to go to Italy for a long vacation. This spring, more acutely than ever, NBC foresees the day when the Maestro will choose to stay in Italy. Although full details have not been arranged, Conductor Munch and his Boston Symphony are the planned replacements for Toscanini and the NBC Symphony when the Maestro decides to retire for good.

Such an arrangement would be ideal for the Boston; the broadcast fees would help balance its budget. Without even an extra rehearsal, Munch and his musicians could broadcast any one of their four weekly concerts. The NBC Symphony would disappear, though under union contracts most of its members would be kept on for other studio assignments.

This week's broadcast by Munch was his introduction to NBC's 200-station audience. Next week's NBC broadcast will be Arturo Toscanini's farewell, at least for the 1953-54 season.