Celebrate an American conductor, 80 today

Malcolm Jay Kottler says:

Pierre Boulez (1971–75) and Gennady Rozhdestvensky (1978–81). Slatkin was 2000-2004.

In his book “Conducting business : unveiling the mystery behind the maestro” (2012), he writes about his BBC experience on pp. 138-139. Here it is, if Norman will let me use this much space to quote the entire passage:

“Over the years, I had conducted all the major British orchestras, spending regular periods with the LSO, LPO, Philharmonia, RPO and BBC.

It was probably just a question of time before a British group would ask me to serve as its principal conductor. In the meantime, a few offers had emerged from other European orchestras. I wanted to wait for a London posting. In 1999, the invitation came from the BBC. Sir Andrew Davis had been leading the orchestra for nine years and was stepping down. I had worked with the BBCSO on several occasions in the past, mostly with contemporary music and on tour. It seemed like the perfect job. Every performance would be broadcast, there would be an emphasis on English music, and I would be able to tour often with my own ensemble.

“It did not work out quite as I expected. Several in the orchestra opposed my candidacy, but I did not know this at the time. I was convinced that we could accomplish mutually beneficial, musical goals. The problem was figuring out whose goals they were.

“As with most government orchestras, the BBC operates according to a hierarchy and chain of command that dictates policy for the season. The principal conductor has little or no control of programs, even his own. I gamely went along with the presentation of obscure composers whose musical style did not fit comfortably into my convictions.

“Rehearsals and some performances took place in the studios at Maida Vale. Their concert hall is the Barbican, on the other side of town. Similar to most London orchestras, the BBC is only permitted to rehearse there on the day of a performance. To me, this makes it almost impossible to develop a sense of sonic profile. And the constantly varied repertoire, although commendable, also works against cultivating an orchestra’s individual sound.

“More disheartening was the organization’s attitude that because every performance was being heard on the radio, the number of people in attendance was less important. On some evenings we played to perhaps four or five hundred people, despite ticket prices that were among the lowest in the world.

“It was only with the summer Proms that we attracted the kind of enthusiastic crowds I had hoped for. Everyone loves performing for this audience. They are quiet when needed, and vociferous in their approval. Having the opportunity to play a half-dozen times in the Albert Hall was a dream. But even there, the directive to play new music could conflict with proper preparation of some of the programs. Also, the orchestra only got into the hall on the day of a concert, as the place is booked solid with presentations by groups from across the globe.

“The hope I had for touring disappeared, as the BBC was making financial cutbacks. A proposed American tour featuring all-British music was scrapped, including a proposed Carnegie Hall presentation of Britten’s War Requiem. In lieu of this trip, we taped two programs for television that revolved around Korngold and Rozsa. They were fun to do and seemed to be well received, but did not air outside of England. The project did give me the opportunity to spend a week in Hollywood, location filming and running around from studio to studio.”