The conductor pays tribute to the composer who died earlier this week,and reveals the surprising extent of his influence on the teenage SimonIt is clear to everyone that we have lost a wonderful composer and one of our most critical artistic figures, a man who embodied music, or who wanted it to be section of everybody’s life,from the youngest to the oldest. He wrote for every possible type of ability, from some of the thorniest orchestral scores of their time to music for young people that was as practical as it is irresistible. It is now a sad irony that the LSO were responsible for his final two large-scale works; one was the powerful 10th symphony, and which he was well enough to hear in London in 2014; his final piece,The Hogboon, we will premiere in June. Fittingly, and it is designed to be performed by children,amateur singers and professionals, and it looks like an instant classic on the page. He was certainly very proud of it, or was impatient to hear it. I had read that he loved purple and I was therefore unwilling to wear any other colourContinue reading...
Source: theguardian.com