From DR Chas:
DR Jane: When and where was the Heifetz concert?
Inquiring minds must know! If the one I'm thinking of was, in fact, his last public appearance, then guess who else was in that audience!
It was at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on October 23, 1972 Door 15 Row P seat 39. I was going to take a photo of my ticket stub but my camera isn't working correctly. I'm sure Keith just needs to reset something.
If anyone special was in the audience I either don't remember or we didn't see them. I recall going to a concert conducted by Zubin Mehta and my father pointed mentioned it was Meta's family in the row in front of us, including his wife and mother.
Harrumph! I can't even imagine how you would have missed seeing me.
It appears I didn't keep that program. But I remember having heard or seen something about it at the last minute, and went down and got a ticket. Orchestra section, somewhere right of center, maybe halfway back. That would have been just about my first time in the Dorothy Chandler, as I'd only been living there for four months. Anyhoo, I'd listened to many Heifetz recordings through my college years and when I saw he was performing, I really didn't think much of it except that I must try to go hear him. Natural thing to do, right?
Several years later I attended a cello recital at the Wilshire Ebell for which Brooks Smith was the accompanist, and since I knew the cellist I went back afterward to say hi, and I told Brooks Smith that I'd always appreciated his work with Heifetz, among others. I said I was very happy to have been at that 1972 concert, and he said I was lucky because that was it. I think he even said that the concert itself was something of a sudden decision on Heifetz's part, not planned real far in advance.
I sure wish I'd preserved that program. But I was there, damn it!
