Jose Iturbi, conductor of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, said today that he had been asked to direct the Palestine Symphony Orchestra next May and June in Jerusalem and that the idea appealed to him.
The invitation, from Rabbi Isidor Levy, chairman of the Palestine Symphony directors, revealed that “transportation there will be no problem as our British friends have graciously offered to ferry you there in a Royal Air Force bomber.” Once there, the telegram said, there would be no danger of the concerts being cancelled by air attacks “as Jerusalem has the largest, most luxurious air-raid shelter in the Near East, with marvelous acoustics, where the concerts will be given in case of alarm.”
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
