Breaking: New job for Simon Rattle
OrchestrasThe Czech Philharmonic today named Rattle its principal guest conductor for the next five years.
His main job is in Munich with Bavarian Radio.
He has for the position to be known as the Rafael Kubelik Chair, after the long-exiled Czech conductor.
Meanwhile Semyon Bychkov remains chief conductor and music director of the Czech Phil and Jakub Hrůša remains, confusingly, principal guest conductor.
aren’t we all overrattled…it’s ridiculous as Hrusa much more exciting so definitely not a good decision – they are a fabulous orchestra with Bychkov and others so no need for this most overrated conductor
Or just don’t go to concerts he conducts.
Eventually Hrusa will become Music Director of this orchestra, the natural successor to Neumann, Ancerl, Kubelik and Belohlavek
A successor to Bělohlávek, perhaps. To others, no way.
Yes,Hrusa is better than those.especially Neumann.
I know what you mean but I’ve heard all of them live except for Ancerl. Hrusa is a very exciting conductor and is outstanding in the Czech repertoire in particular. The Cleveland orchestra should consider him as FWM is leaving soon.
You heard Ancerl live? Lucky you! Can you share some of your impressions?
I heard everyone EXCEPT Ancerl. I remember Neumann with great affection, particularly good in Janacek and Dvorak Symphonies. Back in the day they came to the UK on tour every 3 years – with 2 trucks, one for the instruments, one for the Pilsner Urquell as they we’re allowed to mix in the pub pre-“Perestroika”
We can only hope. A damn good conductor.
Hrusa could well end up in Chicago shortly.
According to the website they now have three Principal Guest Conductors. The third is Tomáš Netopil.
Tomas Netopil is leaving the position of Principal Guest Conductor of the Czech Philharmonic at the end of this 2023/2024 season. Thus, the Czech Philharmonic will keep having three titled conductors, Chief Conductor and Music Director, Mo Semyon Bychkov, and two Principal Guest Conductors, namely Jakub Hrusa and Simon Rattle.
Not the first time Rattle is named Principal Guest Conductor while sharing the same title with another. In 1981 he, along with MTT, was named Principal Guest Conductor of the LA Phil under Music Director Giulini.
Thus ended his foray into the US. He was exposed.
Exposed? I think you’ll find that his gigs with the LA Phil between 1981 and 1994 (when his title ended) numbered under five. Perhaps under three. I was there for nine of those years and he never appeared with the orchestra. Think of another reason to support your not-ver-informed view.
You might be right Jack, and we appreciate your input and experience. But please try not to personally insult another member of this forum. We can’t assess if Bone is informed or not.
He had a long relationship with the Philadelphia after that. They tried to get him to be MD, but he chose the BPO instead. Then he alluded to maybe taking the job around the time he left the BPO in an interview, but for whatever reason, he has stopped visiting Philly. I would guess it has something to do with a lack of desire to spend time in the U.S. given the craziness here of recent years.
From the first concert he did with them under Covid restrictions, it was a real love affair between the CPO and him.You could sense it ,see it,and hear it, also in subsequent concerts. really very special concerts, and he too was at his most genial and relaxed( which wasn´t always the case in Berlin).
And Miss Kozena Principal Guest Soloist?
I’m sure he’ll tell you it’s the best decision they ever made.
Great news. They tried hard to get him to come conduct for years, and once he was done in Berlin he finally came and it seems to have been a love-fest since. You might say it’s because of his Czech spouse but he seems to have embraced their special ethos and their unique tradition.
I had hoped that at least he’d become a friend of the orchestra and make regular appearances, with or without a title. He has for the past couple years and it looks like that will continue.
I would also expect Hrusa to become the MD eventually, maybe even after Bychkov. Meanwhile he’s a regular partner, probably working with a lot of musicians he grew up with. And the Czech Philharmonic has an enviable lineup of conductors.
All wonderful musicians and conductors. Lucky Czech Philharmonic
There should be no confusion about the titles: from 2018 to 2023 there were two Principal Guest Conductors: Jakub Hrusa and Tomas Netopil. Netopil stepped down to become Prague Symphony Orchestra’s Chief Conductor. From 2024 the two Principal Guest positions will be occupied by Jakub Hrusa and Simon Rattle. The scheme remains the same as before.
Congratulations to Simon and his management. A great appointment.
So Rattle now occupies two Kubelik-seats, one a position named in his honor and the other as music director of the orchestra RK made famous…
Doesn’t he have enough to do in Munich? Isn’t it time for conductors to do their bit for the environment and stop globe trotting? How about getting back to the idea of a conductor exclusively working with one orchestra and molding its distinctive sound like Stokowski, Celibidache, Karajan, Szell etc.?
If you look at the BRSO schedule it doesn’t look like the job takes a lot of Sir Simon’s time. Also, Prague and Munich are only a 3-5.-hour drive apart, so presumably he’s driving it. Or maybe taking the train down from Berlin (five hours). It’s actually a pretty low-carbon existence compared to many conductors.
Distance between Munich and Prague, about 5 hours by car, 5 and a half by train. Globetrotting? Did your four great named conductors never guest-conduct? There is no real conflict.
I came to know a woman named Ruth Ray, a prominent violin teacher in Chicago who died in 1999 at the age of 102. A student of Auer and longtime friend of Heifetz, she had a successful career as a soloist in the 1920s and 30s. She once shared with me an interesting story about preparing for her debut at Carnegie Hall.
Somehow, the longtime Music Director of the CSO, Frederick Stock, got wind of her upcoming concert and summoned her to his home in Chicago (yes, a Music Director with a home in the city…a bygone era). He told her that she could hardly expect to go from her living room to Carnegie Hall with any concept of the scale of sound required. So he had arranged for her to have regular practice time on the stage of Orchestra Hall to prepare for Carnegie.
We lost something very precious when a city’s orchestra could no longer have a Music Director who was truly part of the community, and considered it part of the job to attend to the needs of the musical world there.
First and foremost on that list should be Ormandy.
So they have 2 co-principal guest conductors because they can’t decide which one to fire first.
One thing about Rattle is he has the most ‘catholic’ approach to music of any of the worlds conductors.
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Thanks for that, Lula.
But keep you Toolbox to yourself!
Wibble.
Well Jakub Hrůša is atm chief conductor at Bamberg and apart from CP he’s also principal guest conductor at Santa Cecilia, so he’s pretty busy as well 🙂 and of course in one and half year he’ll start as musical director at Covent Garden
I have no problem with directors working with other orchestras then their home ones – they bring sth. new to the orchestras, and they can take sth. new home…
All these well known conductors have more than one job. They always have done. Dividing their time between different orchestras in different countries sometimes on different continents. Don’t they earn enough in their main job