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𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗵 𝗘𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗣𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗧𝗼 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗵 𝗘𝘀𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗵 — born on 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟮𝟬, 𝟭𝟵𝟰𝟬, in 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘂, then Germany and today Wrocław, Poland — belongs to that rare category of musicians whose life…

𝗔 𝗣𝗦𝗬𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗟𝗢𝗚𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟 𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗜𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗙𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗫 𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗟𝗦𝗦𝗢𝗛𝗡 𝗜𝗡 𝗛𝗜𝗦 𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗬𝗘𝗔𝗥 (𝟭𝟴𝟰𝟳) 𝗜. 𝗔 𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗽𝘀𝗲 To understand 𝗙𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘅 𝗠𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗵𝗻 in 𝟭𝟴𝟰𝟳, one must begin with a paradox. He…

𝗙𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗫 𝗪𝗘𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗔𝗥𝗧𝗡𝗘𝗥 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗖𝗥𝗔𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗧𝗬 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗡 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗗𝗘𝗙𝗜𝗘𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗬𝗧𝗛𝗦 Few conductors of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries combined intellectual rigor, aristocratic poise, and polemical courage as strikingly…

𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗦 𝗥𝗢𝗦𝗕𝗔𝗨𝗗 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗥𝗼𝘀𝗯𝗮𝘂𝗱 was one of the twentieth century’s most complete and least theatrical great conductors. His reputation rests largely on his advocacy of modern music, especially 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗲𝗻𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗴,…

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗠𝗕𝗘𝗥-𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗔𝗟𝗟 𝗧𝗜𝗠𝗘 Any attempt to identify the fifteen greatest chamber-music recordings must begin by acknowledging that “greatest” cannot mean merely the most technically perfect. A genuinely historic chamber…

𝗪𝗢𝗟𝗙𝗚𝗔𝗡𝗚 𝗦𝗔𝗪𝗔𝗟𝗟𝗜𝗦𝗖𝗛 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Wolfgang Sawallisch represented one of the last great manifestations of the traditional German Kapellmeister: a conductor whose authority was founded not upon personal exhibitionism, but upon complete…

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…

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…

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…

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…

𝗕𝗥𝗨𝗡𝗢 𝗪𝗔𝗟𝗧𝗘𝗥 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝟭𝟱 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗦𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗥𝗗𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦 Bruno Walter occupies a unique position in the history of conducting. He belonged directly to the final world of late Romanticism, worked closely with Gustav Mahler and…

𝗧𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗜𝗞𝗢𝗩𝗦𝗞𝗬’𝗦 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖 𝗢𝗙 𝗣𝗔𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗢𝗡, 𝗙𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗔𝗡 𝗛𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗧 Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky is often presented as the supreme composer of emotional immediacy: the creator of unforgettable melodies, tragic symphonies,…

𝗕𝗘𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗡’𝗦 𝗧𝗪𝗘𝗟𝗩𝗘 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦: 𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖 𝗕𝗘𝗖𝗔𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗗𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗬 To choose Beethoven’s twelve “true” masterpieces is not simply to choose his most famous works. Fame is not enough. Beethoven wrote works so central to Western…

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗧𝗘𝗡 𝗧𝗥𝗨𝗘 𝗠𝗢𝗭𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗣𝗜𝗘𝗖𝗘𝗦: 𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘 𝗕𝗘𝗔𝗨𝗧𝗬 𝗕𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗠𝗘𝗦 𝗔𝗕𝗦𝗢𝗟𝗨𝗧𝗘 To choose Mozart’s ten “true” masterpieces is not to choose merely the most famous works, nor even the most immediately seductive. Mozart wrote too much…

𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗖𝗢𝗟𝗢̀ 𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗖𝗜𝗡𝗡𝗜: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗜𝗧𝗔𝗟𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗟𝗬𝗥𝗜𝗖 𝗠𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗢𝗣𝗣𝗢𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝗚𝗟𝗨𝗖𝗞 𝗜𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗧 𝗣𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗔 𝗪𝗔𝗥 𝗡𝗶𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼̀ 𝗣𝗶𝗰𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗶 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟭𝟲 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟮𝟴, 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗶, 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟳 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟭𝟴𝟬𝟬, 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝘀𝘆, 𝗙𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 Among the great Italian…

𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗡 𝗡𝗘𝗣𝗢𝗠𝗨𝗞 𝗛𝗨𝗠𝗠𝗘𝗟: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗚𝗔𝗡𝗧 𝗩𝗜𝗥𝗧𝗨𝗢𝗦𝗢 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗕𝗘𝗧𝗪𝗘𝗘𝗡 𝗠𝗢𝗭𝗔𝗥𝗧, 𝗕𝗘𝗘𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗩𝗘𝗡 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗖𝗛𝗢𝗣𝗜𝗡 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻 𝗡𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗺𝘂𝗸 𝗛𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗹 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟭𝟰 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟳𝟳𝟴, 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴, 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗱𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝗳 𝗛𝘂𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗿𝘆 — 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗹𝗮𝘃𝗮, 𝗦𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗮 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟭𝟳 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟴𝟯𝟳, 𝗪𝗲𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗿, 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆…

𝗟𝗨𝗜𝗚𝗜 𝗕𝗢𝗖𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗜: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗣𝗢𝗘𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗘𝗟𝗟𝗢 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗔𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗖𝗥𝗔𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗠𝗕𝗘𝗥 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖 𝗟𝘂𝗶𝗴𝗶 𝗕𝗼𝗰𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗶 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟭𝟵 𝗙𝗲𝗯𝗿𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟰𝟯, 𝗟𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗮, 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟮𝟴 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟭𝟴𝟬𝟱, 𝗠𝗮𝗱𝗿𝗶𝗱, 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗻 Among the great composers of the Classical…

𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗡 𝗖𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗛 𝗙𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗗𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗛 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗛: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗕𝗨̈𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗕𝗨𝗥𝗚 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗛 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗘𝗧 𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗚𝗔𝗡𝗖𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗖𝗟𝗔𝗦𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗔𝗟 𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗡𝗦𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗵 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗱𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟮𝟭 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟭𝟳𝟯𝟮, 𝗟𝗲𝗶𝗽𝘇𝗶𝗴, 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟮𝟲 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟵𝟱, 𝗕𝘂̈𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴, 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 Among the musical…

𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗡 𝗖𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗛: 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗢𝗡𝗗𝗢𝗡 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗛 𝗪𝗛𝗢 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗡𝗘𝗗 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗗𝗢𝗢𝗥 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗠𝗢𝗭𝗔𝗥𝗧 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗕𝗼𝗿𝗻: 𝟱 𝗦𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟳𝟯𝟱, 𝗟𝗲𝗶𝗽𝘇𝗶𝗴, 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝗲𝗱: 𝟭 𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝟭𝟳𝟴𝟮, 𝗟𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗻, 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱 Among the sons of 𝗝𝗼𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗯𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗵,…

𝗝𝗢𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗡 𝗦𝗘𝗕𝗔𝗦𝗧𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗕𝗔𝗖𝗛 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗗 𝗠𝗨𝗦𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗡 𝗖𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗣𝗛 𝗪𝗢𝗟𝗙𝗙 𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝟱 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 “𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗣𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆” 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁 𝗢𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗪𝗲𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗿, 𝟭𝟳𝟬𝟴–𝟭𝟳𝟭𝟰 𝗪𝗲𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗿: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗕𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗵 When Johann Sebastian Bach…

𝗚𝗘𝗢𝗥𝗚𝗘 𝗦𝗭𝗘𝗟𝗟 — 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗜𝗥𝗢𝗡 𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗧 𝗢𝗙 𝗢𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗥𝗔𝗟 𝗣𝗘𝗥𝗙𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗜𝗢𝗡 𝟮𝟬 𝗔𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗱𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀, 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗠𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 George Szell, born 𝗚𝘆ö𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗘𝗻𝗱𝗿𝗲 𝗦𝘇é𝗹𝗹 in Budapest on 𝟳 𝗝𝘂𝗻𝗲 𝟭𝟴𝟵𝟳 and deceased in Cleveland…

𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗔 𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗡𝗜 — 𝗔 𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗘 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗩𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗥𝗲𝗳𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗕𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗢𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘀 “𝗮 𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝗩𝗶𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁” 𝗘𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗶 was one of the most remarkable violinists of the twentieth century: a child prodigy…

𝗣𝗔𝗦𝗖𝗔𝗟 𝗥𝗢𝗚𝗘 — 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗢𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀 𝗔𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗚𝗶𝗳𝘁: 𝟭𝟵𝟱𝟭–𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆 𝟭𝟵𝟲𝟬𝘀 𝗣𝗮𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗥𝗼𝗴𝗲 was born in 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘀 on 𝟲 𝗔𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗹 𝟭𝟵𝟱𝟭. He belongs to the distinguished French pianistic tradition, but his…

𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗽𝗮 — 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗗𝗶 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘇𝗶𝗮 𝗢𝗳 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝘄𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗵 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝘆 𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗼 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗽𝗮 was one of the most beloved Italian tenors of the twentieth century and is often regarded as perhaps the greatest…