Sir Charles Mackerras, Master Conductor – a Profile, written by Jon Tolansky
Reproduced here with the kind permission of Jon Tolansky and the WFMT Radio Network.
The WFMT Radio Network Presents ‘Sir Charles Mackerras, Master Conductor – a Profile’: commemorating the great conductor’s life, career and influence, at the 90th anniversary of his birth. This documentary is underwritten by the Buonacorsi Foundation and is hosted by Lisa Flynn and produced by Jon Tolansky.
2 Introductory Summary
MUSIC 1: Collage of music extracts and interview sound bites
Sir Charles Mackerras was profoundly admired by international soloists, orchestras and impresarios for his masterly direction of an exceptionally wide repertoire. He was, as Anthony Freud, the General Director of the Lyric Opera of Chicago said, an intensely dynamic interpreter – and, as soprano Renée Fleming and former orchestral players David Corkhill, Leslie Lake and Thomas Higgins were saying, he had a panoramic knowledge of musical styles and could convey the very essence of them to all the musicians he conducted – compellingly and authoritatively. We’ll be hearing many examples of his remarkable versatility and many recollections of his brilliance and impact on performers as well as archive clips of him in conversation in this two part memorial to him at the 90th anniversary of his birth. I’m Lisa Flynn, your host for “Sir Charles Mackerras, Master Conductor – a Profile.
MUSIC 2: JANACEK – SINFONIETTA
