A type of understated British conductor
OrchestrasThe death this week of James Loughran called to mind a species of excellent British conductors who never pursued the limelight. Loughran’s 12 years at the Halle, succeeding the irreplaceable John Barbirolli, was a phenomenal achievement for which he never received full credit.
Here are some others whose acknowledged excellence was never matched by fame or fortune, in some cases due to personal reticence:
Edward Downes (1924-2009)
Vernon (Tod) Handley (1930-2008, pictured)
Norman Del Mar (1919-1994)
Reginald Goodall(1901-1990)
Jeffrey Tate (1943-2017)
Warwick Braithwaite (1896-1971)
David Lloyd-Jones (1934-2022)
Rudolf Schwarz (1905-1994)
Kathleen Riddick (1907-1993)
Bryden (Jack) Thomson (1928-1991)
I would add Frank Shipway to that list.
I think Frank Shipway would have been much better if he had been himself (whoever that was) instead of trying to be a clone of Karajan.
I think that Tate stood well above all the others…
Norman del Mar has been a hero of mine for decades. His brilliant series of books on how to conduct the orchestral works of composers like Beethoven and Elgar are indispensable. His book Orchestral Variations opened my mind to the complexities involved with errors in so much printed music. What a scholar he was! What is it that makes the so-called “great” conductors great and lifts them above the understated, lesser baton wavers?
Richard Hickox- a fine musician that left us at too early an age. He did a lot for British music.
That look more like Vernon Handley to me.
It is Tod
Yes- Norman- all very worthy figures on the podium. Trouble is- there are hardly any ‘British’ conductors left (but that does not mean to say- still some good ones out there) & most, to pursue their art, are having to work abroad. The simple reason- orchestras/arts organisations are folding in the UK every week- & there just aren’t the opportunities. A depressing situation.
There are – including the understated ones (which in this day and age, also means those not interested in the competition circus circuit or social media). The problem is, aside from cuts as you mention, that the UK scene does not nurture or support British conductors in the way the Finnish system or German system does, and UK orchestras tend to favour anything non-British conducting them on principle. As such, we simply look for work elsewhere in the world, and you never hear of us. And so long as we work well, continue to love music and are somehow able to support ourselves – that’s enough for us.
Which orchestras folded last week?
Look out for Tom Fetherstonhaugh: a huge talent. And do not forget the versatility and genius of Martin Brabbins. Ed Gardner, Daniel Harding, Nicholas Collon etc
Ed Gardner- a genius LOL?! he’s got a great hair style.
Add Bramwell Tovey. We need more conductors like Tovey and Loughran.
Richard Hickox
When I was a schoolboy in the 1960s, the BBC Symphony Orchestra visited Northern Ireland once a year and gave 3 concerts each time. We travelled in the old school minibus to the Londonderry event, taking about 3 hours to do the 60 miles on bad roads. The concert was great, but the conductor Rudolf Schwarz was very grumpy and refused to autograph our programmes. The next year Colin Davis ( Very young) came to the same venue and, along with the soloists in Don Quixote – Harry Danks and Alexander Kok- autographed everything and chatted to little schoolboys. I learned years later that Rudolf had suffered badly in WW2, so I felt sorry for bothering him!!
They should have conducted in sleeveless t-shirts to get more attention.
Hmm. Is it really true that Reginald Goodall ‘never pursued the limelight’? When I met him he was, admittedly, north of 80 but he had what polite obituarists describe as a healthy self-regard. My impression was that he very much *did* want fame and fortune but had little idea how to achieve it. In particular, he could alienate otherwise well-disposed people.
His self-regard was in keeping with his talent and knowledge, surely… He was ignored for years. A bit of an Indian summer was his due.
Alexander Gibson?
Roderick (Rod) Brydon was another one. All about the music (and text).
I would add to that list – some of these, happily, still alive…
Julian Smith
Anthony Negus
Richard Armstrong
David Atherton
sad not to mention either Alexander Gibson or Roderick Brydon
I would also vote for Robin Stapleton to be added to the list. His performances of the Puccini operas at ROH, at least during the time I worked there, seemed to me to be as good as any I’ve heard. Not exactly reticent, perhaps, but he was a gentleman, and a joy to work under.
I get your point, but I think Jeffrey Tate probably had greater mainstream prominence.
John Pritchard perhaps? A favourite of the late Sir John Drummond.
And one of the few for which a full-length biography was written. Pritchard did a Schmidt 4th at the London Proms that was searing, unforgettable and desperately needs to be released on CD. Unfortunatley, his sexuality always hindered his career – our loss.
It’s all about “prophets in their own kingdom…” Another example of the same syndrome is the fact that John Rutter had to wait much longer than he should for his “gong”.
Charles Groves deserves mention here as well–an underappreciated musician.
One possible reason for the relatively modest careers of Groves, Downes, Handley, Del Mar, Lloyd-Jones, Thomson et al. is that in the public perception they were mainly identified with British music, as
was, perhaps to an even greater extent, Adrian Boult.
Their respective discographies bear this out. Unlike Karajan, Bernstein, and others, they were not asked or expected to give us their versions of the orchestral warhorses. Boult recorded the Brahms symphonies but was better known for Elgar, VW, and Holst. Loughran recorded the Beethovens as well as the Brahms, but those did not make him an international star.
Beecham, Barbirolli, and Colin Davis achieved international podium fame and recognition for a wide repertoire. But the majority of British maestros have found themselves relegated to more provincial careers. It seems there have been only so many stars in the firmament of orchestral fame and fortune.
I took thought of adding Charles Groves to the list. At least he did get a well deserved knighthood!
Hear hear, Norman!