In general American conductors have not done well with British orchestras. But why? “In Britain, one problem has been the resistance, by management and musicians alike, to the American model of the music director, which in turn is a watered-down holdover from the dictatorial maestros of yore. According to many London critics, British orchestras are adept sight readers and can rip off a plausible performance at the first rehearsal. But they apparently balk, by and large, at the hard work, directed from the podium, that would allow them to reach the exalted level of several American orchestras — or, indeed, of such self-governing Continental bands.”