a mic on the podium

Sometimes you meet someone who you not only get on with immediately but you also seem to share the same beliefs with - Enrico Delamboye was one such person. A lovely chat with a very thoughtful conductor. We had a very honest discussion about "being yourself" regardless of the outcome, we chatted about "anti-specialism" in conducting, and I discover which 90-minute opera made him age by 90 years!...

Over the course of making this podcast, I have encountered conductors who just want to tell you everything and my chat with Bernard Labadie was one such encounter. It is a deeply frank, honest, and candid interview! We discuss the perils of conducting accompanied recitatives, he was brutally honest about his career as an opera conductor, and his answer to Question 8 went down a very dark path inde...

It had been a very long time since I had spoken to a choral conductor and I think I made the perfect choice to interview. Nigel Short was a joy to chat with and what an interesting career journey he has had! We talked about the difficulties of recording sessions, I discovered how a skiing trip changed his career path completely, and we have a good chuckle over one particular word that has a very d...

Otto Tausk and I are born a few months apart but it seems that we also had a few other things in common. A lovely chat with a very warm and open person! We discussed how important it is to do your homework when assisting Valery Gergiev, I discovered which orchestra he likens to a Ferrari, and I also discovered which particular food item has been named after him in Vancouver! If you would like to d...

Having played for Nicholas on many occasions, I knew he would be fun to chat with given his ebullient nature. I also found out how open and honest he is and also how much he has thought about his craft! With many anecdotes and stories, I heard his thoughts on many conductors, both past and present, we discussed how important it is as a conductor to "read the room", and I discover what he has in co...

Anja Bihlmaier and I seemed to have a lot in common right from the outset and it made this an extremely enjoyable chat. Lots of warmth, honesty and humour! I heard her describe the differences between conducting opera and symphonic work in terms of skiing, I discovered that we had a similar childhood experience whilst playing Dvorak's New World Symphony, and I found out why she took some coca-cola...

This was a truly fascinating chat! As one of the foremost conducting teachers of today, I hoped Mark Heron would be good to chat with and I was not disappointed - I learned a lot and I know you will as well. It was such a warm and thoughtful discussion. We discussed strategies when faced with guest conducting an orchestra for the first time, I discovered which famous ex-pupil was "pretty rubbish"...

As two ex-violinists, Gábor and I had quite a lot in common and we seemed to hit it off immediately. He is such a warm and thoughtful person to chat with! I discovered how music helped him cope with living in a communist regime, we discussed in depth how conductors should talk to an orchestra, and he told me how a joke told to him by his violin teacher changed his life. If you would like to discov...

This is a deeply touching and personal episode. Grant Llewellyn was so open and candid about his experiences of having suffered a stroke in 2021 and how it has impacted his life and career. I heard his honest opinions of four of the greatest conductors of the past who mentored him, we quickly got sidetracked talking about football (well, it is a World Cup year?!), and I allow him to "break the rul...

My chat with Eva Ollikainen started with us noticing our studies have the same coloured walls and it carried on being a very relaxed and fun interview to make! We discuss fixing problems in rehearsals and whether we should, we got very geeky about metronome markings, and I discover which very famous conductor she once had to ask to be quiet in her rehearsal! If you would like to discover a whole l...

Having heard Nicholas Buc's podcast, it was great to put a face to the voice. We also had a lot in common and it made this a really enjoyable interview! I discovered how his podcast came into being and why the chemistry between his co-presenters and himself works, we discuss the similarities between "footballs" and "eggs", and you will discover which avid listener to this podcast will be rather pl...

Some interviews feel good from the very start and my chat with Leslie Suganandarajah felt like that immediately - such a thoughtful and humble person to chat with! We agree that conducting opera when you cannot actually see the singers is extremely difficult, he told me which specific rehearsal always gives him "goosebumps", and I hear how, at an early age, a dentist changed his life! If you would...

Having worked with Stéphane Denève on a project together in the summer of 2022, I knew he would be a brilliant guest and a very interesting person to chat with. It helped that we had become friends very quickly indeed! I discovered who his "Yoda" was, he gave a really brilliant answer to Question 7 that I just did not see coming, and I heard how an experience in the "night bar" of the Ritz Hotel,...

I have probably known Jamie Phillips for more of his life than any other conductor I have interviewed! I knew, therefore, that he would be perfect to chat with and interview. We discussed when and why you should stop entering conducting competitions, I discover what the "golden rule" was when he attended CBSO rehearsals as a child, and I find out what sporting event he has been training for! If yo...

I had been told that I would enjoy chatting with Eduardo Strausser and that proved to be correct - he was both fascinating and fun in equal measure! Eduardo explained to me how Brazilian musical life changed after the fall of the Berlin Wall, he explained how he feels that score learning has to be like archeology, and we both discuss being caught in a tropical rainstorm! If you would like to hear...

On July 12th, 2022, the music world lost the much-loved conductor, pianist, and composer Bramwell Tovey. I had the great pleasure to chat with him back on 15th May 2020, when the world was in lockdown and in the full grip of the Covid pandemic. Much to my regret, it was the only time we chatted and I loved every second of our time together.  There have been countless heartfelt tributes to him sinc...

Marta Gardolińska is the first Polish conductor interviewed for the podcast and was a joy to chat with - very open and honest about her life and career and had a warm and chatty nature. I discovered what was the "best school" she encountered on her way through her studies, we get rather geeky about espresso coffee, and I discovered which work, composed in her homeland, gets her rather emotional wh...

Pietari Inkinen is the epitome of a busy conductor and it was fascinating chatting with him about his life, career, and much more. You couldn't wish to meet a more charming person! We discussed Wagner & Bayreuth, the Finnish attitude to young conductors, and the massive benefits of some local knowledge when you are guest conducting and want to eat well! If you would like to discover a whole lot mo...

As a recently retired conductor, Roy Goodman and I had a lot of things to talk about and I think we covered most of them! We seemed to hit it off immediately and I loved his warmth and honesty. We talk about the beginnings of the HIP movement and how he got involved, one year in particular crops up on a regular basis, and we chatted about one rather famous recording he participated in having just...

Having met him once before, I knew Enrique Arturo Diemcke would be a very interesting person to interview and I was proved correct! We discussed the differences between Anglo-Saxon and Latin people and orchestras, I discovered what the most important factor is when he considers which drink to choose in Question 10, and I hear which LP he and his siblings bought when they were young and why it wasn...

Jonathan Bloxham and I have known each other for 6 years now and I knew he would be perfect to interview - we get along very well and I knew he would be open, honest, and interesting as he has a real passion for what he does. As an example of that, he was very open about his experiences as Assistant Conductor with the CBSO, I discovered how a nightmare set of circumstances meant that his debut at...

I have been so lucky to have met such lovely people during the course of making this podcast and François-Xavier Roth was no exception - we had a lovely warm and open chat! I discovered how Janos Furst's pragmatic approach to teaching conducting taught him so much, he explained his vision & ethos for his orchestra, Les Siecles, and I found out that he is a podcast fan but not necessarily this one?...

Lina Gonzalez-Granados had been on my radar to interview for a long time and when we finally chatted, we seemed to hit it off immediately - such a lovely person to chat with and very honest about her experiences so far. I discovered where she was "a guinea pig', who is the "most badass woman" she has ever met, and she was the first conductor for a very long time to mention a specific restaurant in...

James Gaffigan was another conductor who I had not met previously yet we seemed to get on with each other immediately. An episode with a lot of laughter and a lot of food for thought! I discovered who was the first person to make him cry as an adult, we debated how orchestras used to sound compared to today and why things have changed, and we laugh a lot about our experiences accompanying certain...

Ben Palmer has quite a multi-faceted career and that makes him fascinating to chat with. He is also a fan of this podcast so that made it doubly joyful! I found out how he first got to meet Sir Roger Norrington, I discover that conducting music live to film and the world of historically informed performance has more in common than you might at first think, and we agree that Sibelius' Symphony No.7...