Ralph Vaughan Williams’s “Greensleeves” Conducted by Sir John Barbirolli and Some Natter Between My Beloved John Wilson and Edward Seckerson; Plus Monty Python, Round the Horne and Polari

Sorry for my shaky handwriting but while listening to this I had a fantasy that gave me the giggles: John being interviewed by my favorite ohne palones—prime purveyors of the gay-gypsy-theatrical patois called polariJulian and Sandy. Played of course by the inimitable Hugh Paddick and Kenneth Williams on Round the Horne. (This more-than-usual musical episode of Kenneth Horne’s 1967 radio show also includes Rambling Syd Rumpo, the Fraser Hayes 4 singing off-key not on purpose, and the screamingly funny takeoff skit, “Young Horne with a Man”.)

Now John, John, Glorious John, I know that you know, and I know that you know that I know, that my long-distance lovemaking to you is being observed by a few; not many, just a few. So this rundown is for them, love:

In this very-recently posted pod chat with London-based culture maven Edward Seckerson, John talks about his idol, conductor Sir John Barbirolli; von Karajan; Leonard Bernstein; French romantic music of the early 20th century; conducting Massenet at Glyndebourne; reviving the Sinfonia of London; winning that BBC thingie for his Korngold Symphony (and confirming what I surmised in my review re his “austere” sound vs “chocolate sauce”); his other Korngold recording, the violin concerto, also with son vieil ami Andrew Haveron; Richard Rodney Bennett‘s compositional journey of self-discovery; and what we’re all waiting for, what’s up with The John Wilson Orchestra (seems like that psychic flash I had in April 2020 has proven true).

Here are the main points I took away from this podcast: “What I do try to do as a conductor is carry my sound around with me… It’s almost—I don’t really feel comfortable talking about because you know music is basically a doing thing and not a talking thing… My deepest musical creed is wrapped up with how an orchestra sounds…” Which pretty much confirms what I’ve suspected these two years about him.

John, light of my life, fire of my loins, I respect your process.


Cantara's Beloved Conductor John WilsonAbove: John’s 44-minute podcast interview. Below, “Greensleeves” as we’ve all heard it on Monty Python.


Fantasia on “Greensleeves”
Ralph Vaughan Williams, composer
Barbirolli Conducts English String Music
RCA, 1963 first issue
The Sinfonia of London
John Barbirolli, conductor

23 JUNE 2020 UPDATE: Here’s Barbirolli again from that same album conducting Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia from a Theme by Thomas Tallis, which my beloved John Wilson will be conducting The Phiharmonia Orchestra in, in an online concert on 17 July.

EXTRA! Here are 2 interviews with John from BBC 2 Radio: one (8 min long) from 24 April 2016 with Michael Ball, and one (4 min long) from 4 November 2013 with Steve Wright.



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John Wilson and His Sinfonia of London Tour UK with Hollywood’s Greatest Hits, 04 – 15 November 2023

John’s pop fans in Britain have nothing to worry about—all the goodness of The John Wilson Orchestra (1994-2019) is now squeezed into his new/old/new group, the Sinfonia of London in their brand-new “Hollywood’s Greatest Hits” tour. Thank Kennedy Street Productions, who brought Barry Manilow and Gladys Knight to UK’s shores, for this shrewd spectacular run aimed at the 2023 Holiday Season. Now we’ll hear the rest of the movie music John’s been transcribing all these years.

More info to come as I find it. I understand since 2 December 2022 tickets have been flying off the box office shelves.

The SageAbove: John’s own overture, “Hooray for Hollywood” for his 2011 appearance at the Royal Albert.

Glad you asked. Here’s the Sinfonia’s jam-packed “Hollywood’s Greatest Hits” tour schedule:

Sat 4 November 2023 19:00

The Anvil Theatre
Basingstoke UK
Get Tickets Here

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Sun 5 November 2023 19:00

Brighton Dome
Brighton and Hove UK
Get Tickets Here

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Mon 6 November 2023 19:30

Royal Albert Hall
London UK
Get Tickets Here

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Tue 7 November 2023 19:00

St David’s Hall
Cardiff UK
Get Tickets Here

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Thu 9 November 2023 19:30

Symphony Hall
Birmingham UK
Get Tickets Here

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Sat 11 November 2023 19:30

Sage Gateshead
Gateshead UK
Get Tickets Here

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Sun 12 November 2023 19:30

Philharmonic Hall
Liverpool UK
Get Tickets Here

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Mon 13 November 2023 19:30

Royal Concert Hall
Glasgow UK
Get Tickets Here

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Tue 14 November 2023 19:30

Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall
Nottingham UK
Get Tickets Here

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Wed 15 November 2023 19:30

The Bridgewater Hall
Manchester UK
Get Tickets Here




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My Bonny John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London at the BBC Proms, 6 August 2023

Numerous films—such as William Dieterle‘s September Affair (1950), Charles Vidor‘s Rhapsody (1954), and Billy Wilder‘s The Seven Year Itch (1955)—have borrowed themes from Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto. Frank Borzage‘s I’ve Always Loved You (1946) features it heavily. David Lean’s romantic drama Brief Encounter (1945) utilizes the music widely in its soundtrack. Royal College of Music alumnus Benjamin Grosvenor is the soloist.


Screening Room, SF 1979Above: Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto no 2 in C minor, op 18 played by Eileen Joyce with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Erich Leinsdorf conducting, from the soundtrack of the 1945 film Brief Encounter. John you cad, you’re playing with my heart again.

The entire film Brief Encounter is available on my YT channel here




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John Wilson Conducts the Sinfonia of London at the Royal Albert Hall in a Concert of Elgar, Vaughan Williams and Others, 16 July 2022

From The Guardian, Fiona Maddocks: “The final work, Elgar’s “Enigma” Variations, was one of the best, most alert and detailed performances you could hope for. Wilson, whose gestures on the podium are so unassuming he appears to do nothing more than beat time, had scrutinised the score, and asked probing questions about every familiar phrase, making it fresh. The Sinfonia of London, mostly a recording ensemble, is made up of leading principals or chamber musicians who want to play for Wilson. You can hear their devotion.”

MY BELOVED CONDUCTOR SPEAKS!

[Proms Director] David Pickard and I had a conversation about Sinfonia Of London’s connection in the past to English music, principally John Barbirolli’s famous record of English music for strings and it is as we know Ralph Vaughan Williams’s 150th anniversary so I thought opening with the Tallis Fantasia would be (a) good thing. And built that around I guess the English romantics and a fairly recent work by a living composer, Huw Watkins, who is Welsh and one of my favorite composers and a piece which he actually happened to write for Adam Walker, who’s our principal flute. The rest of the program con-sists of things you might know and you might not know. Walton’s Partita, which is a tour de force but it’s rarely done, and I think that’s because it’s so impossibly difficult. … Very difficult! One of the first violins came up to me and he said, “This is absolutely bloody murder!” We really sweated over it, and I—I hope to pull it off.

John & SOLAbove: Partita for Orchestra by William Walton (1957) written originally for the Cleveland Orchestra.

Sat 16 July 2022 18:30
Royal Albert Hall
London, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Adam Walker (flute)

EXTRA! Available in PDF:


The entire audio of the BBC Proms 2 BRITISH CLASSICS can be downloaded here




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Hollywood Soundstage; or, John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London Play Orchestral Music from the Movies (Chandos, 2022)

Love this cover. Actually, it’s kind of sophisticated. Look! It has the magic words Hollywood and John Wilson and nothing more need be said. Now I know what to get for Christmas for my other old lady friends.

Hollywood SoundstageAbove: John conducts the Sinfonia of London in Frederick Loewe’s “Embassy Waltz” from My Fair Lady.

Actually, I think that’s Musical Director Johnny “Two-Harps” Green up there with the MGM Orchestra.




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My Beloved Conductor John Wilson’s Concert Schedule 14 September 2022 Through 25 June 2023

After wading through the unsurprising reviews of John’s 16 July concert at the Royal Albert, I thought I’d list his upcoming performances:

Above: I’m afraid nothing on this list arouses my delight except the Martin-Blane standard, “Love”, here suavely sung by the co-composer himself, Ralph Blane; kickass arrangement by Ralph Burns, who 6 years later orchestrated Richard Rodgers’s No Strings.


The dates link to the ticket sites. The other highlights link to available recordings.

Wed 14 September 2022 19:30
Göteborgs Konserthus
Gothenburg, Sweden
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra
Leonard Elschenbroich (cello)

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Thu 15 September 2022 19:00
Vara Konserthus
Vara, Sweden
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra
Leonard Elschenbroich (cello)

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Wed 21 September 2022 14:00
BBC Philharmonic Studio
MediaCityUK, Salford
BBC Philharmonic
Timothy Rideout (viola)

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Sat 08 October 2022 13:30
Duke’s Hall, RAM
London UK
Royal Academy of Music Orchestra

  • Lili Boulanger: D’un matin de printemps
  • Robert Schumann: Symphony No 3 in E flat, op 97, ‘Rhenish’

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Thu 20 October 2022 19:30
Sheldonian Theatre Oxford
Oxford UK
Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra
Louis Schwizgebel (piano)

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Sat 11 November 2022 19:30
Duke’s Hall, RAM
London UK
Royal Academy of Music Orchestra

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So speaks my beloved conductor John Wilson: ‘I am delighted beyond words to be taking Sinfonia of London on our first live tour, playing in some of the UK’s most exciting venues.  All ninety of us are looking forward to welcoming audiences who know the orchestra through our recordings, our televised appearances at the BBC Proms, as well as anyone coming to hear us for the first time. We hope our programme will thrill and inspire you!’

Sat 26 November 2022 19:30
Symphony Hall Birmingham
Birmingham, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Martin James Bartlett (piano)

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Mon 28 November 2022 19:30
St David’s Hall
Cardiff, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Martin James Bartlett (piano)

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Thu 1 December 2022 19:45
The Anvil Theatre
Basingstoke, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano)

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Fri 2 December 2022 19:30
Barbican
London, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano)

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Sun 4 December 2022 19:30
Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall
Nottingham, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Martin James Bartlett (piano)

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Sat 31 December 2022 15:00
Berlin Tempodrom
Berlin, Germany
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
Circus Roncalli

  • Nino Rota: Musik aus dem Film ›Der Pate‹
  • Leroy Anderson: ›The Typewriter‹ und ›Fiddle Faddle‹
  • Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Musik aus dem Film ›Robin Hood‹
  • Maurice Ravel: ›Boléro‹
  • Henry Mancini: Musik aus dem Film ›The Pink Panther‹
  • …und mehr…

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Sat 31 December 2022 19:00
Berlin Tempodrom
Berlin, Germany
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
Circus Roncalli

  • Nino Rota: Musik aus dem Film ›Der Pate‹
  • Leroy Anderson: ›The Typewriter‹ und ›Fiddle Faddle‹
  • Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Musik aus dem Film ›Robin Hood‹
  • Maurice Ravel: ›Boléro‹
  • Henry Mancini: Musik aus dem Film ›The Pink Panther‹
  • …und mehr…

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Thu 5 January 2023 17:00
Stockholm Concert Hall
Stockholm, Sweden
Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra
Kim Criswell (vocals)

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Thu 9 March 2023 19:30
Caird Hall
Dundee, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Timothy Orpen (clarinet)

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Fri 10 March 2023 19:30
Usher Hall
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Timothy Orpen (clarinet)

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Sun 12 March 2023 19:30
Glasgow City Halls
Glasgow, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Timothy Orpen (clarinet)

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Thu 11 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Thu 12 May 2023 11:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra

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Sat 13 May 2023 14:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Wed 17 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Thu 18 May 2023 13:30
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Fri 19 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Sat 20 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Wed 7 June 2023 19:00
Queen Elizabeth Hall
London, United Kingdom
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

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Wed 8 June 2023 19:00
Queen Elizabeth Hall
London, United Kingdom
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

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Sat 17 June 2023 19:30
Snape Maltings Concert Hall
Snape, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Roderick Williams (baritone)

  • Paul Dukas: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
  • Sally Beamish: Four Songs from Hafez (world premiere of orchestral version, Britten Pears Arts COMMISSION)
  • Ottorino Respighi: The Fountains of Rome
  • Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances

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Sat 18 June 2023 16:00
Snape Maltings Concert Hall
Snape, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Pavel Kolesnikov (piano)
Samson Tsoy (piano)

  • William Walton: Scapino
  • Frederick Delius: Summer Night on the River
  • Britten: Scottish Ballad, op 26
  • Elgar: Symphony No 2 in E flat, op 63

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Sat 24 June 2023 20:15
The Concertgebouw
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra
Howard McGill (saxophone)

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Sun 25 June 2023 14:15
The Concertgebouw
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra
Howard McGill (saxophone)




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My Beloved John Wilson’s Concert Schedule 6 March Through 16 July 2022, Plus an Update on That E-album About an English Conductor

To those of you patiently awaiting the release of my text+audiolinks album JOHN WILSON AN ENGLISH CONDUCTOR: It’s about half finished but go ahead and rummage around. I’m taking the time to refine my observations about John’s artistic path. Anyone who knows me from A POET FROM: LOVE, INSANITY, STEPHEN GYLLENHAAL, AND THE CREATIVE PROCESS knows this is my real bag.

Ah, there’s the man whose every gesture makes my heart beat faster.

Meanwhile, here’s his concert schedule—including his appearance with the Royal College—for the next few months (with links to music):

John’s schedule for 5 November 2021 to 18 February 2022 can be found on my posting here.

Sun 6 March 2022 20:00
Berliner Philharmonie
Berlin, Germany
DSO Berlin

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Thu 17 March 2022 19:30
Royal College of Music
London, UK
Royal College of Music Symphony Orchestra

(Note: John ill, replaced by Martin Andre)

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Fri 8 April 2022 19:00
Sheffield City Hall
Sheffield, United Kingdom
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Louis Lortie (piano)

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Sat 9 April 2022 19:30
The Bridgewater Hall
Manchester, United Kingdom
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra

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Thu 21 April 2022
The Bridgewater Hall
Manchester, United Kingdom
Halle Orchestra

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Fri 20 May 2022 19:30
Usher Hall
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Louis Schwizgebel (piano)

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Fri 21 May 2022 19:30
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
Glasgow, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Louis Schwizgebel (piano)

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Sat 16 July 2022 18:30
Royal Albert Hall
London, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Adam Walker (flute)




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John Wilson Conducts the Sinfonia of London, Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra in Richard Strauss’s “Metamorphosen” and Gives Me a Perfect Screenshot, 23 October 2020

I don’t know what I did to please the gods but on this 2020 October morning, somehow, I took a perfect screenshot of John conducting, while watching the (UK time) 7:30pm performance of the Royal Academy of Music (Finzi, Strauss). “Metamorphosen” is from his new album on Chandos.

Screening Room, SF 1979Above my beloved John, who I’m pleased to have captured as crisply and revealingly as Robert Elswit with his pic of Jake and Stephen Gyllenhaal (Steve’s gift to me): Himself conducting the Sinfonia of London in Strauss’s “Metamorphosen” (Chandos, 2022).


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For Valentine’s Day, 2022: My Desired and Beloved John Wilson Conducts the Sinfonia of London in Maurice Ravel’s Bolero, 1928 (Chandos, 2022)

Imagine Ida Rubenstein, who commissioned this late work from the old man, dancing to it in private…not to her lover, but to the portrait of her lover, to which she can be just as revealing as she pleases…

I can be as revealing as I please, John (remember what I used to do for a living?). Happy Valentine’s Day, mi amor.

I see you like this, John, and I’m a puddle of goo. Above: My number one stroke song. In case you missed it, you mooks, that’s Bolero up there, Maurice Ravel’s 1928 one-movement orchestral piece, played by the Sinfonia of London and conducted by the man I love, John Wilson, for Chandos records, February 2022.

Additional texts in PDF:




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Following My Beloved John Wilson’s Concertizing 5 November, 2021 Through 18 February, 2022

Including his appearance at the Royal Academy and his January tour with the National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands:


Fri 5 November 2021 19:30
National Concert Hall
Dublin, Ireland
RTE National Symphony Orchestra
Peter Moore, trombone

[full audio of this concert here and below—click any title]

[program notes here]

Sat 20 November 2021 19:30
Snape Maltings, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Pavel Kolesnikov, piano

The Arts Desk in their review of this concert described the Sinfonia as “bold John Wilson’s latest super-orchestra, an army of technicolor generals”.

Sat 21 November 2021 19:30
Snape Maltings, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London

Wed 1 December 2021 14:15
Birmingham, United Kingdom
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
Nina Feng, violin

Sat 22 January 2022 20:15
De Doelen
Rotterdam, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Sun 23 January 2022 15:00
Concertgebouw De Vereeniging
Nijmegen, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Tue 25 January 2022 21:00
Muziekgebouw Frits Philips Eindhoven
Eindhoven, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Wed 26 January 2022 20:00
Theater & Congres Orpheus
Apeldoorn, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Thu 27 January 2022 21:00
TivoliVrendenburg
Utrecht, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Fri 28 January 2022 20:15
TivoliVredenburg
Utrecht, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Sat 29 January 2022 20:00
Theater Kerkrade
Kerkrade, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Sun 30 January 2022 14:15
Amare
Den Haag, Netherlands
National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands

Wed 9 February 2022 19:30
St David’s Hall
Cardiff, United Kingdom
Philharmonia Orchestra
James Ehnes, violin

Wed 10 February 2022 19:30
Royal Festival Hall
London, United Kingdom
Philharmonia Orchestra
James Ehnes, violin

Fri 18 February 2022 19:30
Royal Academy of Music
London, United Kingdom
Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra

Click on any of the titles below to access/download the entire audio of John’s 18 Feb 2022 RAM concert. Find the compete video on YT here.




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Conductor John Wilson, the Sinfonia of London, and Classic Composer Erich Korngold: My Beloved John’s 4 September 2021 Concert at the BBC Proms, London

6 September, 2021. Labor Day. (Bosses 2 – Labor 1) I suspect a few people in the UK might lately be visiting here as part of their Monday morning getting-into-gear ritual, so apologies for the lateness of this new posting, but I had to make the potato salad. Mister Grumble likes my potato salad.

Another reason for the delay: I needed to see what John was wearing for this radio concert, because the work clothes my bonny chooses to wear for any particular program always convey a meaning to me—so I had to wait for his picture (forget the bullshit reviews) to come out in The Guardian or The Independent… As you can see below, he was attired in a simple concert tuxedo, which I truly hope was comfortable. (Still wore his lucky cufflinks, though.)


John and SinfoniaAbove: Erich Korngold’s Symphony in F, Conducted by John Wilson and played by the Sinfonia of London, BBC Proms, September 2021.

The importance of John Wilson’s white tie and concert tailcoat. This is what I couldn’t determine during the early days of my passion for John: Whenever he wore the tailcoat at the Proms conducting The JWO, his fancy showtunes orchestra, I wondered, was it because he was following in the historically deep tradition of maestros (Bernstein, Barbirolli etc) in dignified full dress…or was it just part of the show? So when John eschewed the tailcoat for his very important 4 September “Viennese” concert at the Royal Albert—where he could have so easily camped it up—this is what his choice said to me:

This music is serious. This presentation is serious. Spectacle doesn’t apply here. Sentimentality doesn’t apply here. Pay attention to the music! An assured, masterful bit of programming—not just some splashy entertainment, but a true, potentially life-changing encounter with Art. For only ten bucks a bottom-price ticket, I understand. I hope you Brits appreciate what you have.

John, dearest: It was only quite recently that I decided the satisfaction I get, devising interesting fantasies about making love to you in full dress (in my imagination we’re both in our work clothes, you in your tailcoat, me in my sarong), belongs best in a particular narrow stream of writing that has nothing to do with the way I regard you in real life: as a fellow artist I’d enjoy exchanging energies with. So, hooray for your concert blue suit, your concert tuxedo, your rehearsal T-shirt, all of which remind me that an actual human being strives and pulses behind the baton to create something beautiful.

Which brings us to the concert program. I don’t know the Berg so I’ll let that one alone, except to say the soprano has a nice strong tone. The Zemlinsky encore? You clever lad. Your Ravel waltz is as tight as when you conducted it at the Royal College, here even more ravishing coming from a fuller orchestra. I’d also get a kick reading your markings for Strauss’s Die Fledermaus Overturehave never quite heard those musical values brought out before. Very yummy.


NOTES for Korngold: Symphony in F (Chandos, 2019) can be found here.


The third movement of Erich Korngold’s Symphony in F. The Mister and I have exchanged a few strong words on this subject; however, since one cannot talk reason to a woman in love, I’m not going to include his remarks here. It’s a wonder that this single movement can bring out such contentiousness among people, even in someone like Mister Grumble, who wouldn’t’ve given a fig for Korngold if I hadn’t rediscovered Korngold through my wanton passion for conductor John Wilson and all the music that surrounds him. Even Leonard Bernstein and his protegee, John Mauceri, couldn’t agree: read my earlier post ”Leonard Bernstein Hears Korngold’s Symphony in F-sharp for the First Time”[going off to make dinner, spaghetti with chicken-tomato sauce, back asap]




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John Wilson Conducts the Sinfonia of London, 4 September 2021 at the BBC Proms in the Royal Albert Hall in a Debut of Erich Korngold’s Symphony in F-sharp

For you fans, here’s the program for the 4 September, 2021 concert:

Francesca Chiejina, vocalist

John Wilson in PicadillyAbove Mister Personality: The Big Band medley from the BBC’s Swingin’ Christmas with The John Wilson Orchestra. List of tunes in the medley can be found on my blog posting, “My Beloved John Wilson Conducts The John Wilson Orchestra in a Swingin’ Christmas on BBC2, Christmas Day 2010”.




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My Beloved Conductor John Wilson and His Hottest Recordings for Chandos, Plus a Few of His Signature Tunes Recorded with The John Wilson Orchestra

Recorded for the Chandos label:

Recorded with The John Wilson Orchestra:




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John Wilson Conducts the Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra in Barber, Delius and Ravel, July 2021

Recorded at the Duke’s Hall, Royal Academy of Music, 2 July 2021. Found the donation window, incidentally. Back in January, 2020 after we heard John conducting them in Tchaikowsky I said to Mister Grumble, ‘That was as good as any small-city orchestra in the US. I’d’ve paid cash money for this,’ and darned if the RAM didn’t just make my life a little easier. Here it is.

Chocolate kisses for my John and a promise to teach him how to make s’mores when the time is right. Above: 2 July 2021 concert at the RAM, in full.

To continue from my earlier posting, “My Beloved John Wilson Appointed to the Henry Wood Chair of Conducting at the Royal Academy of Music and Conducts the RAMSO in Arnold Schoenberg’s ‘Verklärte Nacht’ (1899) at Snape Maltings, 6 June 2021”: We talked over beers, Mister Grumble and I, about John’s energy, among other things, a couple of weeks ago. After we toasted Bloomsday, he gave me his take on John and John’s music. Mister G isn’t as enamored of John Wilson’s enormous and varied repertoire—from Broadway tunes to Rachmaninoff to Turnage—as I am, but he has many good things to say about my beloved conductor’s basic character. I described to him (my angel baby is blind) how differently John looks and acts when he’s with the RAM, or the Sinfonia of London or the Royal Northern Sinfonia. Less tense, more in control, more in his element—happier. Plus he doesn’t sweat as much as on the stage of the Royal Albert. ‘Then this is where he belongs,’ said Mister Grumble.

EXTRA! Download PDF of Feb 2020 issue of Gramophone with John’s interview that mentions the Sinfonia of London here.

Program:

Cassandra Wright, soprano




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