Thomas Beecham
Overview
Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet CH
Order of the Companions of Honour
The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded by King George V in June 1917, as a reward for outstanding achievements in the arts, literature, music, science, politics, industry or religion....

(29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario
Impresario
An impresario is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays or operas; analogous to a film producer in filmmaking, television production and an angel investor in business...

 best known for his association with the London Philharmonic
London Philharmonic Orchestra
The London Philharmonic Orchestra , based in London, is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom, and is based in the Royal Festival Hall. In addition, the LPO is the main resident orchestra of the Glyndebourne Festival Opera...

 and the Royal Philharmonic
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra"...

 orchestras. He was also closely associated with the Liverpool Philharmonic and Hallé
The Hallé
The Hallé is a symphony orchestra based in Manchester, England. It is the UK's oldest extant symphony orchestra , supports a choir, youth choir and a youth orchestra, and releases its recordings on its own record label, though it has occasionally released recordings on Angel Records and EMI...

 orchestras. From the early 20th century until his death, Beecham was a major influence on the musical life of Britain and, according to the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

, was Britain's first international conductor.

Born to a rich industrial family, Beecham began his career as a conductor in 1899.
Quotations

Too much counterpoint; what is worse, Protestant counterpoint.

Of Johann Sebastian Bach|J. S. Bach; quoted by Neville Cardus, Guardian, 8 March 1971

A musicologist is a man who can read music but can't hear it.

Quoted by H. Proctor-Gregg, Beecham Remembered (1976), p.154

I found it as alluring as a wayward woman and determined to tame it.

Of the music of Frederick Delius|Frederick Delius

The grand tune is the only thing in music that the great public really understands.

If I cannot sing a work, I cannot conduct it.

The musical equivalent of St Pancras Station

Of Edward Elgar|Edward Elgar's 1st symphony

A city life for me!

Of Ralph Vaughan Williams|Ralph Vaughan Williams' Pastoral Symphony

No composer has written as much as 100 bars of worthwhile music since 1925.

 
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