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Airline terror baggage ban hits a bum note: musicians
AFP ^ | Sun Sep 10 | Katherine Haddon

Posted on 09/10/2006 8:02:03 PM PDT by Westlander

A group of top classical musicians has warned of the threat to artistic life from a hand baggage ban introduced after police foiled an alleged bomb plot against transatlantic airliners.

Many performers refuse to let their instruments, often centuries old and extremely valuable, out of their sight when they travel on planes in case they are damaged in the hold.

(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: airline; bags; ban; musicians; rop; terror; terrorwar; trop; waronterror
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To: Westlander
This is a result of our not using profiling when searching bags of people.

Who's more likely to have a bomb in their bag? A middle-aged professional cellist with the National Symphony en route to Europe or a group of 30 year old Arab males?

When I was growing up, my cello teacher had to purchase a separate ticket for her cello when she flew somewhere, because she wouldn't trust baggage handlers with the instrument.

21 posted on 09/10/2006 8:37:01 PM PDT by Koblenz (Holland: a very tolerant country. Until someone shoots you on a public street in broad daylight...)
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To: musical_airman

FR has its share of anti-art conservatives too.


22 posted on 09/10/2006 8:38:01 PM PDT by Doctor Stochastic (Vegetabilisch = chaotisch ist der Charakter der Modernen. - Friedrich Schlegel)
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To: Westlander
Many performers refuse to let their instruments, often centuries old and extremely valuable, out of their sight when they travel on planes in case they are damaged in the hold.

Then these folks need to resort to what has worked in previous days, a bus tour. There are plenty of folks out there who choose not to fly for a variety of reasons, and somebody with a (rare musical instrument|artifact|test equipment|cool NFA weapons) would do well to also become a "not-flyer" type. Hey, it works for John Madden, right?

Plenty of not-major-leage sports teams and not-quite-MTV bands live off of the ol' Bus Tour. Musicians and traveling performers simply need to coodinate their tours in a circuit that works with a travel-by-road schedule, that's all. Might lead to a less hectic lifestyle, too. Less stressful.

23 posted on 09/10/2006 8:42:15 PM PDT by kittycatonline.com
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To: Westlander

Well, there is talk of banning electronic devices from aircraft. Laptop batteries have been known to catch on fire and cell phones can be used as detonators. It's just a matter of time until those items will be prohibited from aircraft, too, even as stowed baggage.


24 posted on 09/10/2006 8:43:24 PM PDT by doc30 (Democrats are to morals what and Etch-A-Sketch is to Art.)
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To: doc30
Well, there is talk of banning electronic devices from aircraft. Laptop batteries have been known to catch on fire and cell phones can be used as detonators. It's just a matter of time until those items will be prohibited from aircraft, too, even as stowed baggage.

Probably just a matter of time before the two choices for flying will be nude and conscious or clothed and knocked out with an IV sedative.

25 posted on 09/10/2006 8:53:44 PM PDT by lightman (The Office of the Keys should be exercised as some ministry needs to be exorcised)
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To: sitetest

Ping


26 posted on 09/10/2006 8:53:52 PM PDT by good old days
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To: musical_airman
Amen! My daughter (at Northwestern) won't check her any of her trumpets, either. When you find a particularly good instrument - even horns still in production - you can't just buy a new one and be the same. One of the CSO's irreplacable York tubas was almost completely destroyed in travel (I think it was in an excellent flight case) and after the most careful restoration is reportedly still not right. A friend had her particularly fine Alexander horn destroyed ... she couldn't afford a new one and the repairs while making the horn play, dont' come close to making it right. Of course, bass players and tuba players have long had to buy a second seat if they don't want to check the horns, and even the best flight cases are only a half solution.

It seems to me they could make an exception for bona fide musicians. It's not that hard to x-ray a tuba or bass, after all.

27 posted on 09/10/2006 9:06:19 PM PDT by CatoRenasci (Ceterum Censeo Arabiam Esse Delendam -- Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit)
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To: Westlander
"Well, I won't have to worry about where to put MY flute."


28 posted on 09/10/2006 9:08:44 PM PDT by Clemenza (Dave? Dave?)
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To: Westlander
From the full article:

And Willie Park, a piper at the College of Piping in Glasgow, said he knew of Russian and Japanese pipers who had posted their instruments home rather than putting them in an aeroplane hold.

And how did the postal system get the instruments to their destinations? Did they perchance ship the mail via cargo aeroplanes? In the hold perhaps? Hmm.

29 posted on 09/10/2006 9:11:22 PM PDT by Brujo (Quod volunt, credunt.)
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To: Westlander

I read all the posts and I'm with the musicians on this one. There must be a way to drum (no pun intended) into all real Americans' heads just how difficult it is to be an American because it's more important to accomodate somebody with a towel on their head.


30 posted on 09/10/2006 9:13:48 PM PDT by printhead
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To: Clemenza

... with a piccolo, maybe.... (ok, she could get away with the headjoint....


31 posted on 09/10/2006 9:28:03 PM PDT by CatoRenasci (Ceterum Censeo Arabiam Esse Delendam -- Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit)
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To: radiohead

P.S. I meant I play guitar-family instruments. I don't play bagpipes - my hands are too small.


32 posted on 09/10/2006 9:45:33 PM PDT by Slings and Arrows ("I've never seen so many testicles in my life.")
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To: Westlander

In 1987 the Chicago Symphony came to my town.

Early on the day of the concert, the large instruments were being hauled by a semi from the previous city on the tour. It overturned on the interstate in high winds, a couple hundred miles from us. Orchestra management scrambled to arrange for another truck and driver to get to the scene, with help to salvage the cargo and bring it as quickly as possible to our venue.

The concert was delayed for hours. When we heard that the alternate truck was finally arriving, my friend and I wandered around to back dock of the concert hall.

We watched as the cases were unloaded. Some of the larger instruments hadn't fared too well, despite their elaborate packaging. I remember a few busted basses and cellos in particular. These were replaced by loaners from the members of the local orchestra.

As the unloading begain, I found myself standing next to a tall, gray-haired older fellow who looked vaguely familiar. I said it was a shame about all those big, beautiful, valuable instruments. He said he was glad he could travel with his instrument as a carry-on.

His name was Adolph Herseth.


33 posted on 09/10/2006 11:24:19 PM PDT by Erasmus (It takes branes to make an alternate universe!)
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To: Erasmus

I forgot to mention his instrument. He is now the world's Dean Emeritus of orchestral trumpets.


34 posted on 09/10/2006 11:25:57 PM PDT by Erasmus (It takes branes to make an alternate universe!)
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To: lightman

The bureaucrats would probably get mixed up and give us the choice of conscious and clothed, or nude and drugged out.


35 posted on 09/10/2006 11:34:43 PM PDT by Erasmus (It takes branes to make an alternate universe!)
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To: Slings and Arrows
I don't play bagpipes - my hands are too small.

I always thought that was why I couldn't play the guitar. I tried lessons years ago, but found I just couldn't imitate my favorite rock and rollers. I consoled myself by taking flute lessons a la Ian Anderson from Tull.

I do play classical piano and don't think my hands are particularly small, but when you look at the finger joints on male guitarists, they seem very long compared to those on women. I had no idea that you needed large hands to play the pipes.

36 posted on 09/11/2006 12:02:30 AM PDT by radiohead (Hey Kerry, I'm still here; still hating your lying, stinking, guts you coward.)
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To: badpacifist

This reminds me of a story I read about the Chicago Symphony Orchestra travelling to Vienna back in the '20s or '30s...the violinists were refused entry to their hotel because of the fact that they were carrying violin cases, which all the movies of the time showed Chicago gangsters carrying around to tote their tommy guns!


37 posted on 09/11/2006 12:30:31 AM PDT by anthropos
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To: gogogodzilla

They can lie about being Muslim, you know.


38 posted on 09/11/2006 12:33:28 AM PDT by stands2reason (ANAGRAM for the day: Socialist twaddle == Tact is disallowed)
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To: Erasmus

One could always be a pianist. They never have to ship their instruments.


39 posted on 09/11/2006 12:36:29 AM PDT by The Red Zone
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To: Brujo

Maybe they can post larger containers (thus better padding) than routine airline flights can handle through their baggage systems.


40 posted on 09/11/2006 12:39:21 AM PDT by The Red Zone
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