Laurie Niles of Violinist.com said the letter hit her like a punch in the stomach.

"Due to the recent extraordinary conditions in the financial markets, the Pasadena Symphony has been forced to cancel the November rehearsals and concert," read the letter I got from the orchestra's personnel manager on Friday.

What? A couple weeks of plummeting stocks and...kablouey? What about the sponsor that the Symphony already had lined up for the concert? Or the tickets that have been sold?

It's not the first time this year that I've received a letter from an orchestra asking me to help cover their economic hardship....

Niles, the blogging violinist, wrote a few years back about joining the dozens of hopefuls who tried out for a single open chair at the L.A. Philharmonic.