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# 𝗡𝗜𝗞𝗢𝗟𝗔𝗨𝗦 𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗢𝗡𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗧 — 𝗪𝗘 𝗔𝗥𝗘 𝗔 𝗙𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗢𝗪𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣 𝗢𝗙 𝗘𝗫𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗘𝗥𝗦 ## 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝘀 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗘𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗔𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁 **𝗪𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝗙𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗿𝘀** recounts the beginnings of a…

𝗡𝗜𝗞𝗢𝗟𝗔𝗨𝗦 𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗢𝗡𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗧 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Nikolaus Harnoncourt did not merely change the way Baroque and Classical music was performed. He transformed the modern understanding of what interpretation itself could mean. For him,…

# 𝗥𝗢𝗕𝗘𝗥𝗧 𝗦𝗖𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗡𝗡 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖 𝗢𝗙 𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗡𝗘𝗦 𝗕𝗥𝗔𝗛𝗠𝗦 — 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗠 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗧𝗛𝗙𝗨𝗟 𝗗𝗜𝗦𝗖𝗜𝗣𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗢 𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗛𝗘𝗜𝗥 The influence of **𝗥𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗻** on **𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗵𝗺𝘀** was profound, but it cannot be reduced to direct imitation.…

𝗕𝗘𝗥𝗡𝗔𝗥𝗗 𝗛𝗔𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗞 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Bernard Haitink’s greatness was rarely proclaimed through theatrical gestures, violent tempo manipulation or the deliberate imposition of a conductor’s personality upon the score. His authority emerged gradually,…

𝗭𝗨𝗕𝗜𝗡 𝗠𝗘𝗛𝗧𝗔 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Zubin Mehta’s extraordinary career connects several apparently different musical worlds: the Central European tradition he absorbed in Vienna, the orchestral brilliance of Los Angeles, the distinctive identity…

𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗗𝗢 𝗠𝗨𝗧𝗜 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Riccardo Muti is one of the defining conductors of the modern Italian tradition: a musician of rhythmic authority, textual discipline, theatrical instinct and uncompromising respect for the…

𝗦𝗘𝗜𝗝𝗜 𝗢𝗭𝗔𝗪𝗔 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Seiji Ozawa was one of the most internationally influential conductors of the post-war era. His art united rhythmic precision, luminous orchestral colour, exceptional transparency and an instinctive…

𝗟𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗡 𝗠𝗔𝗔𝗭𝗘𝗟 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Lorin Maazel was one of the most technically formidable conductors of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. He possessed an exceptional ear, an almost photographic memory, absolute…

𝗝𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗵 𝗟𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲’𝘀 𝗙𝗮𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗨𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗪𝗼𝗹𝗳𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘂𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝘇𝗮𝗿𝘁 This celebrated portrait was painted in Vienna by 𝗝𝗼𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗵 𝗟𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲, an actor and amateur painter who was also Mozart’s brother-in-law through his marriage to 𝗔𝗹𝗼𝘆𝘀𝗶𝗮…

𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗞𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗳𝘁’𝘀 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗣𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗼𝘇𝗮𝗿𝘁 — 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗜𝗺𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 This celebrated portrait of 𝗪𝗼𝗹𝗳𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘂𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝘇𝗮𝗿𝘁 was painted in 𝟭𝟴𝟭𝟵 by the Austrian portraitist 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗞𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗳𝘁, almost twenty-eight…

𝗙𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗭 𝗩𝗢𝗡 𝗪𝗔𝗟𝗦𝗘𝗚𝗚 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗖𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗧, 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗦𝗘𝗖𝗥𝗘𝗧 𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗠𝗜𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡, 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗧𝗛 𝗕𝗘𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗗 𝗠𝗢𝗭𝗔𝗥𝗧’𝗦 𝗥𝗘𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗘𝗠 Few minor figures in musical history have exercised such a decisive influence over the fate of a masterpiece…

𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗚𝗜𝗨 𝗖𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗕𝗜𝗗𝗔𝗖𝗛𝗘 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Sergiu Celibidache occupies a unique and paradoxical position in the history of recorded performance. Few major conductors distrusted recording technology more profoundly, yet few left behind such…

𝗟𝗲́𝗼𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗮𝘂 — 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗩𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗠𝗼𝘇𝗮𝗿𝘁 Among the great lyric tenors of the twentieth century, few embodied elegance, musical intelligence and vocal purity as completely as Léopold Simoneau. His was not a…

𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗥𝗟𝗘𝗦 𝗠𝗨𝗡𝗖𝗛 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Charles Munch was one of the most spontaneous, incandescent and unmistakably French conductors of the twentieth century. His finest performances combine rhythmic freedom, nervous energy, luminous orchestral…

𝗦𝗜𝗥 𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗦 𝗕𝗘𝗘𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗠 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Sir Thomas Beecham was one of the most charismatic, cultivated and immediately recognisable conductors of the twentieth century. His interpretations rarely depended upon severity, intellectual demonstration…

𝗦𝗜𝗥 𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗡 𝗕𝗔𝗥𝗕𝗜𝗥𝗢𝗟𝗟𝗜 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Sir John Barbirolli was one of the most affectionate, instinctive and profoundly humane conductors of the twentieth century. He did not seek orchestral perfection as an…

𝗥𝗔𝗙𝗔𝗘𝗟 𝗞𝗨𝗕𝗘𝗟𝗜́𝗞 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Rafael Kubelík was one of the twentieth century’s most humane, spontaneous and musically generous conductors. His interpretations rarely sought the immaculate finish of Karajan, the iron discipline…

𝗪𝗜𝗟𝗛𝗘𝗟𝗠 𝗙𝗨𝗥𝗧𝗪𝗔̈𝗡𝗚𝗟𝗘𝗥 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Wilhelm Furtwängler remains one of the most powerful, individual and controversial conductors preserved on record. His interpretations were founded not upon literal regularity but upon organic growth,…

𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗛 𝗞𝗟𝗘𝗜𝗕𝗘𝗥 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Erich Kleiber was one of the great representatives of the Central European conducting tradition, yet he never belonged comfortably to any single school. His performances combined rhythmic…

𝗟𝗘𝗢𝗣𝗢𝗟𝗗 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗞𝗢𝗪𝗦𝗞𝗜 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Leopold Stokowski was one of the most imaginative, controversial and influential conductors in recording history. His art was founded not only upon interpretation, but upon the very…

𝗖𝗔𝗥𝗟𝗢 𝗠𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗔 𝗚𝗜𝗨𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗜 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Carlo Maria Giulini possessed one of the most unmistakable conducting personalities of the twentieth century. His authority did not depend upon theatrical aggression, autocratic display or…

𝗛𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗢𝗥 𝗕𝗘𝗥𝗟𝗜𝗢𝗭’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 Hector Berlioz occupies a unique place in nineteenth-century music. He was neither a conventional symphonist in the Beethovenian tradition nor principally a composer of absolute music. His greatest creations…

𝗚𝗘𝗢𝗥𝗚 𝗦𝗢𝗟𝗧𝗜 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Georg Solti’s discography is one of the most formidable in twentieth-century music. He was a conductor of incisive rhythm, explosive dramatic instinct, dazzling orchestral control and extraordinary…

𝗚𝗘𝗢𝗥𝗚𝗘 𝗦𝗭𝗘𝗟𝗟 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 George Szell is often remembered as the supreme orchestral disciplinarian: a conductor of relentless rehearsal, exact ensemble, perfectly balanced textures and uncompromising technical standards. Under his direction,…