There was a time when L&O plots were "ripped from the headlines" of the front page. By this point and for the rest of the long run of the series, they were much more often than not ripped from the society pages. No longer are we seeing detectives furtively chasing drug dealers down dingy alleys. From now on it's mostly captains of industry, masters of the universe and, in this case, orchestra conductors.
It's not a bad episode, but I can't help feeling I've seen the same plot before, or maybe a similar plot later in the series. As usual, professional musicians are shown as incredibly vain, venal and occasionally spiteful creatures about whom I can't really generate interest, much less sympathy.
Then there's Dianne Weist. I have no idea why she agreed to do this series. She's introduced two episodes ago as an "interim" DA, meaning the Lewin character wasn't long for L&O. And Weist, who has delivered fine performances on the big screen, seems a bit bored, as if taking the role were a favor to Dick Wolf. Her character has none of the irascible charm of Steven Hill's, nor the folksy bluster of Fred Thompson's. Maybe because the writers knew Weist was just pinch-hitting, they didn't exert themselves on her character's behalf.