|
A Tale of Two Conductors
ROBERT ANDERSON attends
two orchestral concerts in London
Of course there was a third conductor of supreme genius hovering over concerts by the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic on succeeding evenings last week, the irreplaceable Sir Thomas Beecham. Founder of both orchestras, he presided over their initial excellence for many years, a tradition they still maintain. Fiercely critical of the Festival Hall, where the organ has since side-stepped far to the left and the LPO performed on 12 October, Beecham may have had equally strong views on Christian Science and its temples -- hence the Cadogan Hall, permanent home to the RPO, as on 13 October 2011 -- for all I know.
The mercurial Beecham died in March 1961, an event celebrated with almost ludicrous gravity by Klemperer's relentless baton and the 'Eroica' funeral march...
Copyright © 17 October 2011
Robert Anderson,
London UK
|
