Thomas Beecham

All conductors share the same problem. Other musicians can rehearse on their instruments at their leisure. A conductor can't. He has to have a group of live musicians in front of him, and, especially at the start of his career, he's strictly a beginner trying to get his ideas across. Composer Hans Pfitzner gives an idea of how complex the situation is.

All conductors share the same problem. Other musicians can rehearse on their instruments at their leisure. A conductor can't. He has to have a group of live musicians in front of him, and, especially at the start of his career, he's strictly a beginner trying to get his ideas across. Composer Hans Pfitzner gives an idea of how complex the situation is.

Norman Del Mar, 74, British conductor and author who focused on works of Sir Edward Elgar, Gustav Mahler and Richard Strauss. Del Mar began his career as a horn player with the Royal Philharmonic and became an assistant to conductor Sir Thomas Beecham. He made his debut as a conductor in 1947. He led many foreign tours for the philharmonic, the English Chamber Orchestra and Northern Sinfonia and the BBC Symphony Orchestra.

Years ago in a production of Verdi's "Aida," the story goes, a nervous elephant relieved itself onstage, prompting conductor Sir Thomas Beecham to remark, "Gad, what a critic!" I never thought so much excrement would again be presented on the stage of a major opera house--that is, until the MTV Video Music Awards ("Opera House Turns Hip-Hop Stage for MTV Awards," by Elysa Gardner, Sept. 11). It was appalling when host Chris Rock began by exclaiming, "I may be the first black man in history to take the stage of the Met without a mop."

They say that Frederick Delius (1862-1934) is an acquired taste, and the British, so far, are mainly the ones who have acquired it, thanks largely to the efforts of conductor Thomas Beecham. The present disc goes down easy enough, though, and it has some claims on American interest.

MOZART: "Die Zauberflote." Tiana Lemnitz, Erna Berger, Helge Roswaenge, Gerhard Husch, Wilhelm Strienz, others; Berlin Philharmonic, conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham. Nimbus NI 7827/8. MOZART: "Die Zauberflote." Barbara Hendricks, June Anderson, Jerry Hadley, Thomas Allen, Robert Lloyd, others; Scottish Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Sir Charles Mackerras. Telarc CD 80302. MOZART: "Die Zauberflote."

More than a few orchestras in the last couple decades have discovered a particular equation: the addition of Gary Karr as soloist equals a sure-fire success almost regardless of what else goes on. Saturday night at St. Andrew's Auditorium, conductor Ami Porat hedged his bets, sandwiching the renowned double bassist's appearance with the Mozart Camerata between a Mozart overture and a Beethoven symphony.

Margaret Sagarese's reflections on Chris Rock at MTV include the invitation to call her "crazy" or "old-fashioned" ("Put Between Rock and a Hard Place," Counterpunch, Sept. 20). She is neither. She is just out of touch with theater. Way out. Has she forgotten Don Rickles? Joan Rivers? Does she remember Lenny Bruce? Does she have any notion of the traditions of social criticism in theater, sometimes the only places where criticism is tolerated? She can look all the way back to England and France and Germany, not to mention Greece and Rome.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London covered a lot of ground in Royce Hall on Tuesday night. It started by paying tribute to Aaron Copland, turned into a father-and-son act with Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 4, tried desperately to make something of Tchaikovsky's "Pathetique" Symphony and ended as a pop concert with three ultra-pop encores. The Royal Philharmonic, founded by Sir Thomas Beecham in 1946, was last heard here in Royce Hall in 1969, Antal Dorati conducting.

Mechanical instruments have a long and fabled history. One remembers the musical clocks for which Mozart composed, the "Panharmonicon" of Beethoven's "Wellington's Victory" and the elaborate musical boxes--disguised as hat racks and umbrella stands, performing tunes from "William Tell" and "Fra Diavolo"--of Thomas Beecham's youth. Trimpin--he goes by the single name--has invented a complex device, controlled by computer, which fits onto, and plays, the grand piano.