Christoph Eschenbach has come in for no small amount of criticism since taking the reins of the Philadelphia Orchestra. But David Patrick Stearns says that there’s no question that the maestro has earned an extension of his tenure. “He has made Philadelphia an island of European musical life in the best possible way… On good nights, Eschenbach isn’t just exciting – he goes to the heart of every phrase with a conviction and specificity that few others match.”