Rattle To Leave LSO?

[jayne lee wilson]

How well informed are you about Rattle's career, really, in its earlier stages?

Yes - including his role as founding patron of the BCMG - I heard him conduct them on Radio 3 through the 90s, though it is hard to track down specifics now...

https://www.bcmg.org.uk/who-we-are

[Richard Barrett]

How well informed are you about Rattle's career, really, in its earlier stages?

Pretty well, I would think, although I wasn't aware we were only discussing his early career. What about my question?

[Leinster Lass]

Pretty well, I would think, although I wasn't aware we were only discussing his early career. What about my question?

I never doubted it (honest!)
Yes - and what ABOUT his question, eh?

[Petrushka]

Pretty well, I would think, although I wasn't aware we were only discussing his early career. What about my question?

An unfair question coming from a contemporary composer and musician. I doubt if silvestrione will fall into this trap.

Rattle built up a huge following in Birmingham for contemporary music. He got a lot of people thinking that if Simon Rattle likes it then it must be worth a hearing. Given the constraints of 'bums on seats' it was no mean feat and many would, I'm sure, have been inspired to go on to listen to much music they would otherwise have ignored. Perhaps some of them listen to yours (well, me, for one as I've got your Vanity on CD and like it).

[Richard Barrett]

An unfair question coming from a contemporary composer and musician.

It's just a way of saying "please don't call my opinion absurd, I do know what I'm talking about".

I'm sure you're right about Birmingham. But it would have been nice for SR to have spread his net a bit wider than what looks from my viewpoint like "rounding up the usual suspects".

[jayne lee wilson]

Worth checking out the "Interlude Three" in Kenyon's book on Rattle for some pretty distinguished musicians' views on the Conductor, detailed comments from Haitink, Brendel, Fowke, Knussen, Henze, Judith Weir, John Adams and Nicholas Maw...

Suffice to say he is most definitely in the top flight for them, and pretty damn near the top of that!

[Leinster Lass]

It's just a way of saying "please don't call my opinion absurd, I do know what I'm talking about". :smiley:

I'm sure you're right about Birmingham. But it would have been nice for SR to have spread his net a bit wider than what looks from my viewpoint like "rounding up the usual suspects".

Perhaps it's time to move on and dissect/assess/trash/rubbish some other musician's career and private life ....

[Richard Barrett]

I do find it a bit strange that hackles are raised at the idea that Simon Rattle isn't regarded by everyone as the hero some think of him as. Some of us have seen performances and heard recordings of his that they found lacking. Some of us regard his supposed commitment to performing contemporary music as more hype than substance. That's all. I don't think anyone has attempted to "trash" him. Now playing: Mahler 4 conducted by Michael Gielen, a visionary and powerful performance by a conductor whose commitment to the musical thinking of his own time was far more than skin deep...

[Bryn]

I do find it a bit strange that hackles are raised at the idea that Simon Rattle isn't regarded by everyone as the hero some think of him as. Some of us have seen performances and heard recordings of his that they found lacking. Some of us regard his supposed commitment to performing contemporary music as more hype than substance. That's all. I don't think anyone has attempted to "trash" him. Now playing: Mahler 4 conducted by Michael Gielen, a visionary and powerful performance by a conductor whose commitment to the musical thinking of his own time was far more than skin deep...

Later today, I plan to listen to two Gielen conducted recordings of Mahler's 6th (an In Memoriam triple album from Hänssler Classic.

[Leinster Lass]

I do find it a bit strange that hackles are raised at the idea that Simon Rattle isn't regarded by everyone as the hero some think of him as. Some of us have seen performances and heard recordings of his that they found lacking. Some of us regard his supposed commitment to performing contemporary music as more hype than substance. That's all. I don't think anyone has attempted to "trash" him. Now playing: Mahler 4 conducted by Michael Gielen, a visionary and powerful performance by a conductor whose commitment to the musical thinking of his own time was far more than skin deep...

Let's have a 'Who's A Better Conductor Than Simon Rattle?' thread - it sounds as though there are plenty of candidates who qualify for consideration. My first choice would probably be Timothy West - marvellous stick technique combined with deep knowledge of the music of Delius.

[gradus]

Let's have a 'Who's A Better Conductor Than Simon Rattle?' thread - it sounds as though there are plenty of candidates who qualify for consideration. My first choice would probably be Timothy West - marvellous stick technique combined with deep knowledge of the music of Delius.

Arthur Lowe as 'Tommy' or would have been had not the spectre with the scythe intervened.

[Leinster Lass]

I've always thought Edward Heath was seriously underrated as a conductor. (Or do I mean Ted Heath?)

[silvestrione]

I do find it a bit strange that hackles are raised at the idea that Simon Rattle isn't regarded by everyone as the hero some think of him as. Some of us have seen performances and heard recordings of his that they found lacking. Some of us regard his supposed commitment to performing contemporary music as more hype than substance. That's all. I don't think anyone has attempted to "trash" him. Now playing: Mahler 4 conducted by Michael Gielen, a visionary and powerful performance by a conductor whose commitment to the musical thinking of his own time was far more than skin deep...

My last comment on this coming up! Of course we weren't talking just about Rattle's early career, that was disingenuous of you to say that. Nor were just talking about the recent stage: you made two sweeping judgements, which came across as on his career as a whole. I was just looking for a bit more generosity (which I can see we're not going to get), especially as it was Sir Simon's birthday! (yesterday)

P.s my credentials as a follower of contemporary music, as an audience member, are pretty good, up to about 2005. (ah, you will say, thought as much...)

[Richard Barrett]

My last comment on this coming up! Of course we weren't talking just about Rattle's early career, that was disingenuous of you to say that. Nor were just talking about the recent stage: you made two sweeping judgements, which came across as on his career as a whole. I was just looking for a bit more generosity (which I can see we're not going to get), especially as it was Sir Simon's birthday! (yesterday)

P.s my credentials as a follower of contemporary music, as an audience member, are pretty good, up to about 2005. (ah, you will say, thought as much...)

Woteva, as the young people say. Simon Rattle is not really someone I have strong feelings about either way, to tell the truth.

[teamsaint]

I think that one, just one, of the things that Rattle represents is the culture of the celebrity, which has both potential upsides and downside, as perhaps this thread has demonstrated.
In the main though, in my opinion, that kind of culture has a tendency to be rather unhealthy for the business concerned,whatever it might be, leading as it does, to rather narrow focus.