Conductor Told to Give Up His Baton : Music: The ouster of Alvin Mills after 39 years signals a growing rift in the Brentwood-Westwood Symphony and could threaten its survival.

BRENTWOOD —  Alvin Mills, founder of the Brentwood-Westwood Symphony and its conductor for 39 years, was abruptly ousted from the conductor’s post last week by the community orchestra’s board of directors.

Mills received a letter via commercial messenger Thursday informing him of the board’s decision to replace him with assistant conductor Steven Kerstein.

“At least when you’re doing something wrong you get a warning or a suggestion,” Mills said. “But I had nothing.”

Board President Leah Bergman refused to comment, saying she needed to speak with Mills before she would speak to the media.

Other board members also refused to explain their dissatisfaction with Mills. Before the specially called board meeting Wednesday, when the decision was made, board member Howard Rosenthal would only say, “Mills has been great, but it’s time to look at whether he’s the best man for the job.”

The ouster signals a growing rift in the volunteer organization between new members and longtime Mills supporters that could threaten its continued survival, especially during these financially tight times when donations and grants are hard to come by.

About 20 of Mills’ supporters picketed in front of the West Los Angeles home of board member Robert Armer while the meeting was in progress. The meeting had been moved at the last minute from Bergman’s home about two miles away in an apparent effort to avoid the protesters. The pickets carried signs saying “Represent us with dignity,” “Cooperation,” and “We love Alvin Mills.”

Bill Compton, flutist and member of the West Los Angeles Rotary Club, said he was irritated with the board’s lack of communication with orchestra members.

“We have no idea why this is all coming about,” he said. “The orchestra must like the conductor, they’re all volunteers. If they don’t like the situation, they’re just going to float off somewhere else.”

The Rotary Club donates about $1,700 a year to the orchestra. Compton and several other Rotary members said if an uncooperative clique was forming on the board, they would reconsider whether to support the orchestra financially.

Mills’ mother and stepfather, longtime board members Malcolm and Lillian Heuring, did not receive notice of Wednesday’s meeting but were admitted when they showed up at the doorstep.

Lillian Heuring said that during the meeting, board members gave little reason for the ouster except to vaguely blame Mills for shrinking audiences.

“They thought maybe Alvin was ready for a change,” she said. “They didn’t exactly pinpoint what was wrong.”

Two other board members, George Beck and Grusha Paterson, voted to keep Mills as conductor, but they were outvoted by the other eight to 10 board members, Lillian Heuring said.

The Brentwood-Westwood Symphony Orchestra has been providing free classical music to the Westside ever since its founding. A nonprofit association funded by memberships, donations and grants, the orchestra usually offers four concerts a year.

Most of the 50 or so players are amateur musicians who hold jobs in other professions during the day, although a few are free-lance working musicians. In addition, professional musicians join the orchestra as paid guests during concerts.

The orchestra also serves as a birthing grounds for future virtuosos, such as David Shostac, principal flutist for the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Shostac, who took part in the pro-Mills demonstration Wednesday, said he did so “just to say we care.”

Shostac began his career with the Brentwood-Westwood Symphony at 14. He said he returns to participate in about two concerts a year as pay-back for Mills’ early encouragement and guidance.

“The reason I play with the Brentwood-Westwood Symphony is out of love and respect for Alvin,” he said.

Another musician who got his start with Mills, horn player Ned Truenfels, was also present because he feels indebted to Mills.

“I owe him a lot,” said Truenfels, who now plays with the “Phantom of the Opera” orchestra at the Ahmanson Theater. “I felt like someone believed in me and it really kept me going.”

In the past six months, four new members have come onto the board, including Bergman’s parents. Board member William D. Novak, a dentist, was voted off the board while out of town.

Compton, who spoke with Novak by phone, said “He didn’t understand it.”

Mills said he is scheduled to meet with the board Monday, at which time he is to tell them whether he will accept their offer and become conductor emeritus, a title usually reserved for retirees.

The board also offered to let Mills conduct the first concert of the 1992-93 season, and a young artists concert. Mills said he has not decided if he will accept.

Kerstein joined the orchestra as a clarinetist about five years ago, Mills said. Mills appointed him assistant conductor.

For the past three years, Mills said he noticed a growing rift between himself and members of the board apparently aligned with Kerstein. They clashed over what musical selections to play for concerts.

Mills speculated that Kerstein, who conducts the Burbank Chamber Orchestra, and his supporters want to raise the performance level of the orchestra by bringing in better musicians and excluding the poorer players. Mills said he has long believed that amateurs benefit from playing alongside professionals and has allowed them to perform during concerts, sometimes asking them to skip passages that are too difficult for them.

The Heurings said they will probably resign from the board and cut ties with the orchestra because of the ouster. Lillian Heuring, 92, has been an active board member for 39 years. Malcolm, 98, has played trumpet and viola with the orchestra for the past 25.

“I’m hurt that they would do this to Alvin, who has been so loyal to them for so many years,” Lillian Heuring said. “The audience would have disappeared many years ago if he wasn’t a good conductor. People know what they like.”