All the Wright moves

Posted at 10:14 AM on May 24, 2007 by Don Lee

Minnesota Orchestra trombonist Douglas Wright left a hole in Cleveland that's not been easy to fill. A story in The Cleveland Plain Dealer says the Cleveland Orchestra is taking its time finding someone to replace Wright, who accepted the principal trombone job there in 2004 after nine years in Minnesota.

Wright came back here after only a year because, according to the story, "he had received conflicting signals about what [Cleveland Orchestra Music Director Franz] Welser-Most wanted from him and decided to return to his old job, which was still open, in a city where he and his family had been happy. "

A conflict of sorts was built into Wright's solo role last month with the Minnesota Orchestra. In composer Kalevi Aho's Symphony No. 9, he was called upon to play both the trombone and its Renaissance-era predecessor, the sackbut. He talks about the challenge here in an interview with MPR's Brian Newhouse.