Professor
Greg Mankiw, author of the leading textbook
Principles of Economics, chairman of the
Harvard University Department of Economics, and chairman of the
Council of Economic Advisors from 2003-2005 for
President George W. Bush, also happens to be one of the foremost interpreters of
Ludwig von Beethoven. At Harvard's annual
Arts First celebration, on April 27, 2013,
Maestro Mankiw conducted the River Charles Ensemble in the first movement of Beethoven's 5th Symphony. This free outdoor concert was a genuinely positive externality.