Sir Colin Davis (1927-2013)

[ARBurton]

Tributes on BBC4 TV on Friday next week, including a new hour-long interview from earlier this year.

Sir Colin Davis with love

In Performance BBC4 7:30pm - 8pm

Petroc Trelawny pays tribute to acclaimed classical music conductor Colin Davis, who died last month at the age of 85. The programme includes footage from his Davis' televised concert at the 2011 Proms, in which he conducted part of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis with the London Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and the London Philharmonic Chorus. With soloists Helena Juntunen, Sarah Connolly, Paul Groves and Matthew Rose.

In his own words BBC4 8pm - 9pm

An interview with Colin Davis, filmed shortly before his death. The conductor - who shot to fame in the 1960s as Malcolm Sargent's successor at The Proms - talks to John Bridcut about his life, beliefs and musical passions.

I am somewhat bemused. Why only half an hour of excerpts from the Missa Solemnis? The entire work is only about 1hr 20. I have it on DVD from the original broadcast, so I`m fortunate, but if they`re going to show something as a tribute wouldn`t the complete work have been better?

[Nick Armstrong]

I am somewhat bemused. Why only half an hour of excerpts from the Missa Solemnis? The entire work is only about 1hr 20. I have it on DVD from the original broadcast, so I`m fortunate, but if they`re going to show something as a tribute wouldn`t the complete work have been better?

Yes!

The thoughtful hour after that was a much, much better idea.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

The In His Own Words documentary was excellent: a reminder of the days when this sort of programme regularly featured on BBC2. Particularly rivetting were the clips from rehearsals and the Davis String Quartet - 'cellist about ten years old and concentrating like fury! Even some of Birdcut's more seemingly-inane questions were given considered and interesting replies.

My only quibble - why no mention of Tippett?

[amateur51]

The In His Own Words documentary was excellent: a reminder of the days when this sort of programme regularly featured on BBC2. Particularly rivetting were the clips from rehearsals and the Davis String Quartet - 'cellist about ten years old and concentrating like fury! Even some of Birdcut's more seemingly-inane questions were given considered and interesting replies.

My only quibble - why no mention of Tippett?

I'm delighted to see that the gradual impact of BBM's tryping method has affected even one as discerning as ferney

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I'm delighted to see that the gradual impact of BBM's tryping method has affected even one as discerning as ferney

I meant, of course, "Briudcutr".

[amateur51]

I meant, of course, "Briudcutr".

[aeolium]

The In His Own Words documentary was excellent: a reminder of the days when this sort of programme regularly featured on BBC2. Particularly rivetting were the clips from rehearsals and the Davis String Quartet - 'cellist about ten years old and concentrating like fury! Even some of Birdcut's more seemingly-inane questions were given considered and interesting replies.

My only quibble - why no mention of Tippett?

Yes, it was an excellent programme. CD came across as a very strong personality yet quite without vanity, someone for whom service to the music - and to those who made music, including the many younger musicians he helped - was the important thing. His second marriage seems to have been a real turning-point in his life; he gave the impression that he didn't like the person he had been up to then. I don't remember his bad treatment at the hands of critics and audiences during his ROH tenure. I only saw a few performances there conducted by him, in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including an excellent Freischütz and Don Giovanni with Raimondi (which we saw him rehearse in the programme). But I'm glad he achieved a kind of serenity in his later years.

I agree about the lack of mention of Tippett, for whose music he did so much.

[salymap]

I was moved bythe second programme very much and wish I had had opportunity to meet him in his later life
He was in and out of my Library where I worked in the late1940s/early 50s. He was easy totalk to and friendly.

I was later sent to see him at the RFH by my boss, armed with catalogues and scores. He was on the phone to his wife April Cantelo while I was in the office with him, quite brusque and dismissive and I crept out, feeling I'd done a bad job. He'd agreed to the meeting.

I had no idea of the personality change until recently, and ofcourse understand fully. AsI said earlier,he made the journey publicly and thank goodness we have those programmes and his recordings to remember him by.

RIP Sir Colin.

[hafod]

There is a 6 disc set (I think jewel cases rather than a cap box), due out on 1 July from Profil of Colin Davis conducting the Dresden Staatskapelle. The works are:
Elgar: Symphony No. 1
Berlioz: Grande Messe des Mortes; Overtures
Mendelssohn: Symphonies Nos. 3 and 5
Sibelius: Symphony No. 2; En Saga; Luonnotar
Schubert: Symphony No. 8 “Unfinished“
Brahms: Symphony No. 3

The cheapest I have seen it by far is £24.49 at (unfortunately) the tax dodger - UK branch but domiciled no doubt elsewhere for tax purposes. The ASIN is B00CIJ2UIG. This price is likely to rise.

[Stanfordian]

There is a 6 disc set (I think jewel cases rather than a cap box), due out on 1 July from Profil of Colin Davis conducting the Dresden Staatskapelle. The works are:
Elgar: Symphony No. 1
Berlioz: Grande Messe des Mortes; Overtures
Mendelssohn: Symphonies Nos. 3 and 5
Sibelius: Symphony No. 2; En Saga; Luonnotar
Schubert: Symphony No. 8 “Unfinished“
Brahms: Symphony No. 3

The cheapest I have seen it by far is £24.49 at (unfortunately) the tax dodger - UK branch but domiciled no doubt elsewhere for tax purposes. The ASIN is B00CIJ2UIG. This price is likely to rise.

Hija Hafod, I have been working my way through this set of live performances from Sir Colin Davis that I should think were recordings of radio broadcasts. All the accounts are of a consistently high quality from a top class orchestra. By the way the 6 discs in presented in the box in card sleeves on Profil PH13032.

[hafod]

Hija Hafod, I have been working my way through this set of live performances from Sir Colin Davis that I should think were recordings of radio broadcasts. All the accounts are of a consistently high quality from a top class orchestra. By the way the 6 discs in presented in the box in card sleeves on Profil PH13032.

I am really looking forward to this set having read some good things about individual discs, notably the Elgar. Thanks for confirming this and for the info about the box. I thought it would be the dreaded jewel cases given the profile of the illustration i.e. not square, but glad to hear that this is not so.

[Barbirollians]

I found the Elgar 1 far too hard driven - his old RCA account is vastly preferable to my ears.

[hafod]

I found the Elgar 1 far too hard driven - his old RCA account is vastly preferable to my ears.

Intriguing - the antithesis of JB. I look forward to hearing it. Meanwhile, I need to investigate the old RCA Navigator.

[amateur51]

Better late than never, a revealing homage to Sir Colin by Ben Gurnon who became one of Sir Colin's conducting students and who has recently won the Nestlé and Salzburg Festival Young Conductors Award ...

http://tycerdd.sequence.co.uk/news/60200

Their relationship was clearly inspirational

[Petrushka]

I've been waiting for my birthday to come (yesterday) so I could get the 15 disc set 'Colin Davis - the Philips Years' with my Amazon vouchers. The price last night was £32.34 but as it was very late I decided to wait until today. When I did so the price had jumped to £46.36!!!