François-Xavier Roth will no longer conduct in Cologne for the time being. The reason is allegations of sexual harassment against the Cologne musician. The 52-year-old admits his offenses.
The Metoo debate has not spared classical music either. The well-known Cologne conductor François-Xavier Roth has now temporarily resigned from his position because he is accused of sexual assault. According to a media report, the 52-year-old Gürzenich conductor and general music director of the city of Cologne is said to have harassed several members of his orchestra with nude photos and lewd messages.
Several musicians made similar accusations against the conductor to the French newspaper “Le Canard enchaîné”. According to them, Roth sent them unsolicited, intimate text messages that included photos of penises. Roth confirmed to the magazine that such incidents had occurred – and apologized.
François-Xavier Roth apologizes for “inappropriate text messages”
According to a report by “”, Roth’s statement to his orchestra reads as follows: “Due to the publication of a press article revealing that I have sent inappropriate text messages to musicians in the past, the orchestras I lead will comprehensively investigate the behavior described and collect information on the allegations. I have therefore decided not to conduct the Gürzenich Orchestra for the time being in order to allow the investigations to be carried out in peace. I apologize to anyone I may have offended.”
The investigations will show what happens next for the conductor. After Roth himself withdrew from active music making and temporarily handed over the direction of the opera “Ines” to composer Ondřej Adámek, the management of the Gürzenich Festival Hall also wants to wait and see how far the attacks have gone. A decision will then be made as to whether the conductor will return.
Roth is originally from France and has been Kapellmeister of the Gürzenich and General Music Director of the City of Cologne since 2015. Since then, he has also played in several other orchestras across Europe. Investigations are now underway against the conductor there, too.
Source: Stern
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