Roger Norrington

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Roger Norrington

Sir Roger Arthur Carver Norrington CBE (born March 16, 1934 in Oxford ) is a British conductor.

Life

Roger Norrington learned violin and singing as a child. A concert guest appearance by the Berlin Philharmonic under Wilhelm Furtwängler , which received a lot of attention in England in 1946 , formed the basis of his decision to become a conductor.

Norrington studied at the Westminster School History and the University of Cambridge English literature , during which time he already operated as choirmaster of amateur ensembles. He studied music at the Royal College of Music .

Historical performance practice in London

He founded several ensembles that are committed to historical performance practice , such as the Schütz Choir of London and the London Classical Players . With the latter orchestra, he was one of the first to have works from the 19th century played on old instruments, with old instrumentation and arrangement, without the so-called café-house vibrato , which was not used until the 1920s and was not used at the time . Particular attention was paid to a complete recording of Beethoven's symphonies and piano concertos .

Via Salzburg to Stuttgart to the Stuttgart Sound

In 1997 Norrington took over the management of the Camerata Salzburg , and from 1998 he was chief conductor of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra . With “his” radio symphony orchestra, Norrington has developed a very individual sound image that the specialist press likes to refer to as the Stuttgart Sound . What is meant is the synthesis of historically informed music-making with the means of a modern and flexible radio sound body. In particular, Norrington makes very sparse use of vibrato , often using very brisk tempos, and varying the placement of the instruments on the stage. Symphonic cycles with works by Mozart , Beethoven , Berlioz , Mendelssohn , Schumann , Brahms , Bruckner and Mahler , which Norrington has performed with the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra in recent years, have attracted worldwide attention. However, Norrington's performance practice was not without controversy among the Stuttgart musicians. For example , in 2005 the violist of the Melos Quartet , Hermann Voss , drew two crude caricatures about Norrington's vibrato-free string sound and wrote: "Except in the Stuttgart feuilleton, the New Stuttgart Style is only scorned and ridiculed."

Zurich

At the end of July 2011, Norrington gave up his post at RSO Stuttgart. From the 2011/12 season to 2016 he was Principal Conductor of the Zurich Chamber Orchestra .

Other conducting activity

Norrington is a sought-after orchestral conductor who is in great demand around the world. On September 13, 2008, Norrington conducted the Last Night of the Proms for the first time in London . From 2006 to 2009 he was artistic advisor to the Boston Handel and Haydn Society . He was the first guest conductor of the Orchester de Chambre de Paris and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen . He has conducted over 50 world premieres and has performed regularly with the Berlin Philharmonic, the Vienna Philharmonic, and many major orchestras around the world.

honors and awards

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Literature and History Studies ( Memento from April 24, 2014 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ Volker Tarnow: He forbade violinists to use vibrato. In: Berliner Morgenpost, March 16, 2009
  3. ^ Bettina Straub: Stuttgart sound from the Liederhalle. In: Deutschlandfunk , November 25, 2005
  4. ^ ARD: Sir Roger Norrington - conductor between Stuttgart and Berkshire. In: programm.ard.de , October 24, 2010
  5. ^ Hermann Voss: Pecking orders in a square - pencil drawings by Hermann Voss. Res Novae Verlag, Aulendorf 2017, p. 80ff, ISBN 978-3981825510
  6. ^ Daniel Hope to replace Sir Roger Norrington in Zurich. Gramophone , April 28, 2015, accessed April 27, 2017 .
  7. ^ A b Grammy.com: GRAMMY Award Results for Roger Norrington. accessed on July 10, 2018
  8. ↑ Office of the Federal President
personal data
SURNAME Norrington, Roger
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Norrington, Roger Arthur Carver (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British conductor
DATE OF BIRTH March 16, 1934
PLACE OF BIRTH Oxford