a mic on the podium

Chatting with Hannu Lintu turns out to be great fun and what a charming man he is. We discussed personal repertoire choices, especially "awkward" works, I found out what it is was like to be taught by the "two popes" of conducting, Jorma Panula & Ilya Musin, and I discover which job would be difficult for him to attempt due to his "temper"! If you would like to financially support the podcast, why...

It was a real joy to sit and chat with one of the biggest names in the conducting world, Marin Alsop, for an hour. We discussed whether either of us actually liked learning the violin, why she once thought she should go into rock & roll, and I discovered she has a rather surprising choice of alternative career! A really special chat with a lovely person. If you would like to financially support th...

After quite a few requests from listeners as to when I might interview myself, to celebrate the podcast reaching Episode 50, I asked CBSO Chorus Director, Simon Halsey, to interview me instead. Simon and I discussed what it means to be "part of the CBSO furniture", I am frank and honest about some of my early conducting trips away from the UK and I tell the complete story about standing in for And...

Osmo Vänskä has been at the top of the conducting world for nearly 40 years. I found out why the ensemble of an orchestra is so important for him, why his relationship with BIS has been so successful and fruitful, and we had a particularly funny Finnish moment. A lovely chat with a lovely man! If you would like to financially support the podcast, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amicon...

Chatting with Chloé van Soeterstède was a real delight! I found out what it means to be the current Taki Concordia Alsop Fellow and how it all works, what language surprisingly she thinks she is "not good" at, and which composer's music might not be suitable to set a ballet to?! If you would like to financially support the podcast, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium , and...

In this special "bonus" episode, I tell you how the podcast was recorded, why the episodes appear in the order they do, and what you might expect in the future from the podcast. I also discuss how you can help the podcast in the future and how long you can expect to hear new episodes. If you would like to financially support the podcast, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium...

Chatting with Trevor Pinnock was both fascinating and fun and what a lovely person he is. I discovered some of his very interesting views on period performance and orchestral seating, what he learned by watching Leonard Bernstein teach at Tanglewood, and I found out how he got into trouble at school with Sir Mark Elder! If you would like to financially support the podcast, why not subscribe at htt...

Miguel Harth-Bedoya was a total joy to chat with! I discovered that he was given his job at the L.A.Philharmonic in a very surprising way, why it is so important to train the next generation of conductors in the correct way and why I should have been asking "Why?"! If you would like to financially support the podcast, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium , and for just £10...

This was such a lovely chat and an interview I really enjoyed. Michael Francis and I chatted about our shared experiences as ex-professional players and what we have learned from them. I also learned about his incredible journey from the LSO to the podium, we agreed on which is the best of all sports and I found out that he used to have a rather surprising hairstyle! If you would like to hear the...

Dalia Stasevska is a young Finnish conductor who is a rising star of the conducting world who came to the world's attention in 2020. We, of course, discussed her conducting the Last Night of the Proms, we also discussed why conducting the music of Magnus Lindberg is so hard and I found out what Leif Segerstam wanted her to do on her own in a forest!! If you would like to support the podcast, why n...

I have known Ben Gernon since he was a teenager and have always loved chatting to him about music and conducting. I discovered what lessons with Sir Colin Davis were like, which orchestra saw him through his "nappy years and on to being a toddler", and which famous conductor once gave him invaluable advice whilst he was eating a doner kebab! If you would like to hear the Patreon exclusive mini-epi...

Ludovic Morlot and I had such a lovely time chatting and what a charming gentleman he is. I discover what rather unconventional methods he was taught in his very first conducting lessons, how the eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland had an effect on his career, and which two conductors he likens to Federer and Nadal! If you would like to support the podcast, why not subscribe at https://www.pat...

Nicholas Collon is a very popular conductor across the UK, Europe, and beyond. He is also very enjoyable to chat with. I found out why he took up the viola, why the Aurora Orchestra first decided to play from memory and he has a very surprising and rather apt choice of final drink!  The Patreon exclusive mini-episode can be found here ( https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium ) along with lots of...

Karl-Heinz Steffens played the clarinet in two of the greatest orchestras in the world before becoming a highly successful conductor. I found out what advice Daniel Barenboim gave him, why playing for Claudio Abbado was so special and I hear possibly my favourite answer so far to the question "what item could could you not leave home without when travelling abroad?"!

A very honest and candid chat with a lovely person - Sian Edwards and I discussed so many topics from her successful conducting and teaching career. I discovered how Neeme Järvi shaped her early career, why she still has a piece of broken chair in her study and I got to hear an amazing story about Carlos Kleiber that I had never heard before!

The Venezuelan conductor, Domingo Hindoyan, is rising quickly to the top of the conducting profession. I found out what is was that made him fall in love with Liverpool, what he has had with him ever since he left Venezuela at the age of 19 and how his parent's background helped him become Assistant to Daniel Barenboim. A very pleasant chat to a fellow violinist!

I had such a lovely time chatting to the British conductor and fellow cricket fan, Rumon Gamba. He told me where his name comes from, he was very candid about his experiences as a Music Director and I found out what a "screaming party" is!

Sakari Oramo has been a friend since he became the Music Director of the CBSO in 1998. We reminisced about his 10 years in Birmingham and found out what "Bluffer's Guide" he wished had been written to prepare him for his time in the UK and I found out who called him "a terrible goose"! Two friends catching up and chatting about the past, the present and the future....

Young American conductor, Roderick Cox, is definitely making a name for himself in the conducting world. We talk about his charitable foundation and its origins, we get really technical over one passage of The Rite of Spring and I found out how American Football had an influence on his conducting career path!

Stephen Bell has been a friend for many years and always fun to chat with. I find out what we have to thank the National Youth Orchestra of Canada for, what method he uses to learn over 400 new works in a season and what his 6 year old daughter is better at than him! A really enjoyable chat with a lovely gent.

Kirill Karabits has been Principal Conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra since 2009 and loves them dearly. We discussed how important having the right agent at the beginning of your career is, what he learned from assisting Ivan Fischer and why conducting Beethoven Symphony No.5 is so bloody hard!

Nicholas Daniel can be described as a musical polymath - conductor, oboist, teacher, commissioner of new music and a lovely friend to have a chat with. We discussed (among many topics!) why conducting at Snape Maltings can be tough, why Shostakovich is great for youth orchestras and how Sir Simon Rattle and a gamelan are linked to performing Sibelius Symphony No.5!

What a charming person Jonathon Heyward is! We discussed the importance of the correct advice after winning a competition, what being a Dudamel Fellow with the Los Angeles Philharmonic entails and how seeing a performance of Don Giovanni changed his career path forever!

I really enjoyed this chat as Ilan Volkov was fun, friendly and fascinating. We discussed what programming entails and how enjoyable it can be, what the demands of curating and producing your own festival are and we both agreed that performing Messiaen can be frightening!

  Chatting with JoAnn Falletta was a real joy - very warm, friendly and open. We discussed how rewarding it can be working with amateur musicians, how inspirational Leonard Bernstein was as a teacher and how working in Hawaii introduced her to one of her favourite pastimes!