He was to play the Dvorak concerto in a summertime concert somewhere in the American South. At the rehearsal a few hours before the performance, he noticed that the platform on which he sat was rather ratty-looking and the chair was quite mediocre. He complained to the stage manager, who said he would try to do something about it. Later on, the concert began and Harrell was surprised when he walked out to take his place and found a shiny black platform and matching chair. He sat down and played the concerto. As Mr. Harrell put it, "When you play the Dvorak concerto, you tend to break a sweat." It was a warm sticky evening, and it was only when he stood to accept the audience's warm applause that he realized that his platform and chair were not newly-purchased. They had just been freshly painted. Consequently, as he stood, the paint which was still wet caused him to momentarily stick to the chair and the entire seat of his pants ripped out. He confided the he carried
his cello behind him as he exited the stage.
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