Music: Duck Feathers

In the thunderous climax of Tchaikovsky’s Festival Overture, 1812, cannon (or cannon sound effects) have been booming forth for 70 years. In Rochester last week, the gunfire brought down some trophies. As the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra reached the firing point, and cannon roared offstage, the audience in Eastman Theater was astonished to see a cloud of duck feathers float down from the ceiling. The orchestra people hastened to explain that it was no part of the program. Their best guess: “Pranksters who knew music and the catwalks.”