The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #100236 Message #2007088
Posted By: Sandra in Sydney
25-Mar-07 - 08:29 PM
Thread Name: Fear Fiddlers Flying-Jobsworth(Helpful Suggestion)
Subject: Jobsworth or, The Helpful Suggestion
from a friend & too good not to share.
Anyone have a similarly good story to share? Musical, of course, this is a music forum!
....................
I was at the Sydney Opera House yesterday at a performance of the Australian Chamber Orchestra (a friend of ours is the principle violinist). The Director (Richard Tognetti) has recently been provided with a violin worth $10mil. He, in turn, passed his previous violin, valued at only $2mil to our friend.
He normally doesn't say anything at performances, but he made an exception yesterday to recount the following tale.
The orchestra were flying from Canberra to Melbourne last week as part of their current tour. A security guard at the airport refused to let them take their violins on the plane with them because they represented a security risk. Apparently, the strings could have been used to strangle the crew. . She told them that she wasn't suggesting that they may do the strangling, but that the strings "could fall into the wrong hands". The Orchestra members were, understandably, reluctant to entrust their instruments to the baggage handlers and the hold, so she then offered the suggestion that they all (there are around 10/12 violin/viola payers in the orchestra) de-string their violins and pop the strings into the post.
Sanity eventually prevailed, and they were allowed to board the plane with their violins