In this town not far from the Adirondacks, with its venerable and wonderfully atmospheric racetrack, the question of how Almighty Silver, Cannonball, and all the colts and geldings did in Wednesday's Race 9 trumps local interest in how Charles Dutoit handled himself at that night's opening concert.

No matter. Dutoit, the Swiss-born maestro who leads the orchestra's annual summer concerts here, is feeling incomparably self-satisfied. Sitting behind boxy, retro-chic tortoiseshell sunglasses last week, he rattled off a golden list of orchestras he would guest-conduct this coming season - Boston, Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco.

In the United States and abroad, Charles Édouard Dutoit, a nimble, restless 71, might be the most visible conductor in the world for the next few seasons.

He has shifted elegantly into elder-statesman mode, but it's hardly his valedictory lap. Dutoit takes the helm of the Philadelphia Orchestra this fall - a post he relishes so eagerly that not even the recent cancellation of his first major tour with the ensemble, slated for a year from now, seems capable of taking much wind out of his sails.

It's the economy, he says philosophically. "The sponsor withdrew his participation. We'll do another one."

This one, however, was to have carried timely artistic weight - a tour to Paris; London; Lucerne, Switzerland; and Edinburgh, Scotland, with fiery pianist (and Dutoit ex-wife) Martha Argerich on the 50th anniversary of their first concert together.

Such a gathering of power and precision could have gone a long way to restoring the orchestra's somewhat battered reputation, especially in London, where critics were especially dissatisfied with what they heard in the ensemble under Christoph Eschenbach.

What happened, said orchestra president James Undercofler, was that he looked at the escalating expense of the two-week tour, weighed it against likely support from a group of potential sponsors, and figured that going ahead with the tour would produce a gap of about $1 million.

Unfortunately, the more prestigious the presenter, the lower the fee paid. So Undercofler made what he calls the now-irrevocable decision to pull out.

Dutoit says he is disappointed. But because the same itinerary is being planned for 2011, he's hardly wallowing; rather, he's talking excitedly about ambitions for a four-year Philadelphia tenure with an unusual title: chief conductor and artistic adviser.

What is the difference between that and music director? It's not meant to signal a less-than-full presence in the city or a distaste for raising money, Dutoit explains, saying both will come with the job. "The activity is the same as far as I am concerned," he says.

He will also identify soloists, and work with guest conductors on formulating their programs.

The key difference, says Undercofler, is that Dutoit will not have a primary voice in questions of musicians' tenure and auditions. Instead, that process will be more musician-driven, with Dutoit as but one voice among several.

The other thing he won't do (which has nothing to do with titles) is end his time in Philadelphia having left the kind of imprint on the recording world that he did during his quarter-century as head of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, which ended in 2002. There he made almost 100 recordings, he said. But that was a different time. What the future most likely holds in Philadelphia is some downloading.

"We have not yet found the future. Whether it will be the Internet is not clear. The archives of the orchestra are very much ready to be released - it's a question of how and when."

Dutoit says he thinks Verizon Hall is a fine venue for recording, though he says he has never heard the Philadelphia Orchestra in the hall live except from the podium.

Even now that he is taking over the orchestra's winter season, Dutoit sounds no less thrilled about Saratoga than he did after taking charge here in 1990. He rents a nearby house - a "bungalow" - as does Chantal Julliet, the violinist now acting as the conductor's assistant, and the two host a rotating list of visiting soloists as roommates.

Last week it was pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet, whose culinary skills Dutoit praises.

"It's fun - like a family," says Dutoit.

Although his contract with the Saratoga arts center is up this year, Dutoit speaks about the matter of his continuation - and the orchestra's - as mere housekeeping. "I don't think the situation here will change," he says.

Marcia White, president and executive director of the center, which also books a good deal of jazz, dance and commercial music, said it was too soon to tell.

"We will be meeting with Charles and talking about the future. We evaluate at the end of each season and see where we are," she said. "I'm hoping our attendance will be strong, but we're in much more difficult times at this point. People are making different decisions on how to spend their time."

Assuming Dutoit and the orchestra continue in Saratoga, there will now be a certain artistic economy to programming, since Dutoit can repeat in Saratoga repertoire already rehearsed and performed in Philadelphia in fall and winter.

What can listeners expect? "Some people like to hear the names that they know," he says, though a few younger artists he mentions as favoring are violinists Viviane Hagner, Julia Fischer and Lisa Batiashvili.

And even if Dutoit won't be taking Argerich and his new orchestra on tour a year from now, that doesn't mean the pianist won't be around. She's performing in Saratoga, both with the orchestra and in chamber music, and opens the season in Philadelphia - with two concertos.

True, Argerich tends to cancel. But one of the benefits of Dutoit is that when it comes to Argerich, he has uncommon powers of persuasion.

"She canceled with the New York Philharmonic - she was really not well. But she loves the Philadelphia Orchestra. And when I ask her to come, she says, 'but I play so much.'

"And then I say, 'Oh come on, come on.' "

And she does.