... the LSO did a TV show in 1972 with André Previn which had that very title Is Your Conductor Really Necessary? This time we put it to the test, with interesting results, and very little rehearsal. It was some well-known Dvořák with which we started, and the plan was that André should start us on it, then walk off and leave us playing on our own. It had, of course, been carefully selected, and upon his exit there was no serious difference, so after about a minute he scrambled back on to the podium, muttering something about 'not letting those fellows give our secrets away like that'. It was a clever ruse, because he chipped in just before a change of tempo which would have made it pretty obvious that we did need a conductor. I can't remember how this was demonstrated in the remainder of the show, but I know it was. (This was of course a 'fun' concert, so no real conclusion was attempted.)