Dutch appoint young Brit chief
mainThe Philharmonie Zuidnederland has named Duncan Ward chief conductor from September 2021.
Ward, 31, has been an assistant to Simon Rattle and is marketed by the same agency. In 2005, he was BBC Young Composer of the Year.
He succeeds Dmitry Liss who will have held the post for 5 years.
I have seen Duncan conduct a few times and he is a great talent and will have a great future.
I’ll never understand how people can judge a conductor from an audience. I wouldn’t be able to tell a good one from a bad one – some of the best look less than convincing in concert.
You’d need to be there for the hours of rehearsal, and be in the orchestra on stage. (And even then opinions differ.)
Erm…it’s actually fairly easy to judge a conductor from the audience. You listen.
That’s sort-of the point of music, really.
But until you have heard him beat 7 against 5, how do you know if he can conduct? No seriously, Appleby yours is the best comment I have ever read on SD, and I have read a few.
Waving that stick around actually produces no sound! Obviously is the players, who in the majority of cases have immensely more experience with the repertoire both individually and collectively than 99% of conductors.
I am reminded of a conversation that I once read about, between Toscanini and Nikisch:
“When Nikisch conducted the Orchestra of La Scala he complimented Toscanini on its fine quality. Said Toscanini, ‘My dear, I know this orchestra very well. I am the conductor of this orchestra. It is a bad orchestra. You are a good conductor.'” (Harold Schonberg, “The Virtuosi”)
‘Eton Mess’, as he’s known to UK orchestras.
Assistant to SSR? Let’s hope the mediocrity hasn’t rubbed off then.
I share your opinion of SSR.
conducting is the easiest job like the traffic cop. all you need is a good publicist.
Serious question, no snark. Does anybody know what the arrangements will be for EU-based orchestras to hire UK conductors now that the UK is out of the EU? I realise that we are still in transition so single market rules apply for now, but what happens after that? Will work visas be required? And if so, will the orchestra need to demonstrate that there was no EU conductor capable of filling the role just as well?
Serious reply: How many non-EU conductors currently conduct in the EU? Many. There will be forms to fill in but the problem will be far from insurmountable.
It’s interesting (i.e. depressing) how so many people have fallen into the facility of EU legislation since 1992.