BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Lorin Maazel (original) (raw)
Lorin Maazel
Sue Lawley's castaway is Lorin Maazel, director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra.
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Sue Lawley's castaway this week is the musical director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra Lorin Maazel.
He was a child prodigy whose career as a conductor has survived, and thrived, beyond his early precocity. His musical talent became apparent at the age of five, when he began playing the violin, while at seven he was discovered conducting a piece by Haydn playing on his parents' record player. He was the first American and youngest conductor, at the age of 30, to conduct Lohengrin at Bayreuth. After a career which has included prestigious posts at the Vienna State Opera and the Cleveland and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestras, he is currently Musical Director of the New York Philharmonic. In May this year, Lorin Maazel's first opera, an adaption of George Orwell's 1984, will he performed at the Royal Opera House in London.
[Taken from the original programme material for this archive edition of Desert Island Discs]
Favourite track: Quartet No 14 'Death and the Maiden' 4th Movement by Franz Schubert
Book: Pensées by Blaise Pascal
Luxury: Vermeer Painting - The Piano Lesson
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Music Played
Claude Debussy/Heifetz
Prélude (from L'enfant prodigue)
Soloist: Jascha Heifetz, Arpad Sandor
- Jascha Heifetz - Recital.
- EMI Classics.
Giuseppe Verdi
Ave Maria (from Otello)
Soloist: Herva Nelli Orchestra: NBC Symphony Orchestra Conductor: Arturo Toscanini
- Otello - Toscanini Broadcast Legacy.
- Guild Historical.
Alexander Scriabin
Prelude in E major, Op. 11/9
Soloist: Vladimir Horowitz
- Horowitz plays Scriabin.
- RCA Victor Gold Seal.
Sergey Rachmaninov
Piano Concerto No. 4 In G minor
Soloist: Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli Orchestra: Philharmonia Orchestra Conductor: Ettore Gracis
- Ravel/Rachmaninov Piano Concertos, Benedetti Michelangeli.
- EMI.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 3 in E flat major 'Eroica'
Orchestra: Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra Conductor: Wilhelm Furtwängler
- Beethoven Symphonies Nos 1 + 3 'Eroica' Furtwangler.
- EMI.
Castaway's Favourite
Franz Schubert
String Quartet No. 14 in D minor 'Death and the Maiden' - 4th movement
Orchestra: Budapest String Quartet
* Budapest Quartet - Schubert/Dvorak.
* Novello Records.
Johann Sebastian Bach
Suite for Solo Cello No. 3 in C major - 4th movement
Soloist: Janos Starker
- Bach Suites for Solo Cello.
- Mercury Living Presence.
Gabriel Fauré
Nocturne in D flat major, Op. 63
Soloist: Wilhelm Kempff
- Great Pianists of 20th Century Wilhelm Kempff Vol 3.
- Steinway and Sons.
Book Choice
Pensées - Blaise Pascal
Luxury Choice
Vermeer Painting - The Piano Lesson.
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Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Presenter | Sue Lawley |
| Interviewed Guest | Lorin Maazel |
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