Riccardo on the conductor's art!!

[visualnickmos]

Quite right,and not just LvB ones

They're for when I branch out into 'Speciality Pastorals!'

[Tetrachord]

What a fantastic speech - and what a funny, charming and extremely likeable man. And - yes - very profound. I'm sure musicians and singers must get huge enjoyment out of working with him, if they have the opportunity.

It actually made me want to investigate more of his recordings! I have his Manfred symphony, also 1-6, Shostakovich no. 5, and one or two other pieces, plus a couple of operas. I've often wondered what his Beethoven symphony cycle is like? Or, indeed what other recommendations might be worth looking at...?

It's strange you should mention the Beethoven; I've seen Muti twice at the Musikverein, the latest was May, 2015 when he conducted Beethoven #3. The woman sitting next to me started talking during the break and she said, "I don't like Muti's Beethoven tempi; too slow". I felt her apprehension when the work started and it was way too slow, IMO. A couple of times I looked over at her and she grimaced. (I hope I haven't told that anecote already - if so, senior's moment!!)

Riccardo is obviously a very charming man, though I have read that he can be quite tyrannical!! And he was a very good friend of Carlos Kleiber, as it happens.

[Richard Tarleton]

Released exactly a week from today precisely in response to your post, RT:

http://www.europadisc.co.uk/classical/127976/Riccardo_Muti:_The_Verdi_Collection.htm

... your "problem" solved in one swooped fell!

Thanks ferney - tho' what I really need is a convenient box set of the 10 or so Verdi operas I don't have one or more versions of ....do you think a set labelled "Verdi - the galley-slave years" would sell?