Carlos Kleiber and British or unsung music.

Started by alberto, Thursday 16 June 2011, 10:21

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alberto

I apologize is the topic is odd and/or misplaced.
I would ask friends in the forum if C.Kleiber actually conducted "The Mikado" in Chicago (and not in early years).
An Italian monography,which I don't trust too much, states this. (According to other sources C.Kleiber is reported to have higly praised "The Mikado", but that would be another matter).
Second and last. C.Kleiber surely conducted (and more than once, and in his later years) George Butterworth's English Idyll n.1. ( Fine -and very short- piece, but odd choice in a super-restricted repertoire).
As his symphonic repertoire appears to have been always very restricted (according to Gramophone, April 2011, he conducted 96 symphonic concerts in his whole life: possible?), does anyone know if he conducted some other "unsung"?   

eschiss1

To start with (planning to look more into this) there is a biography in Italian by Mauro Balestrazzi "Carlos Kleiber: angelo o demone?" (L'epos, 2006) and another in German by Alexander Werner "Carlos Kleiber: eine Biografie" (Schott, 2008) at least one of which  might have a list of his concerts and hopefully not just a list of his recordings. 

Roots Web - no idea how reliable this is as a source - claims that Jonas, Kleiber's manager in Chicago, persuaded him to conduct Butterworth's English Idylls in 1983; and that

"When Sir Peter Jonas was manager of the Chicago
Symphony Orchestra, Kleiber told him he would like to conduct The Mikado."  hrm. so far, promising...

chill319

If Kleiber conducted The Mikado, it was not at the Lyric Opera (which has indeed mounted that work), as can be verified here:
http://www.lyricopera.org/about/performance-and-cast-archive.aspx

alberto

I thank you. The Balestrazzi's text (not a biography) appeared to me rather loose and, if I remember well, with no list.
I have read a second Italian Monography; Alessandro Zignani: "Carlos Kleiber", Zecchini ed. 2010. In the end it resulted rather disappointing. At least it contained a discography of "unofficials" (an official discography is easy): there appeared
G.Butteworth English Idyll n.1 (and only n.1). No surprises and very few works not recorded officially: for instance Borodin Second and Mahler Das Lied von Der Erde (I've got it, in very bad sound).
Nor Gramophone, April 11, solves the enigma (about C.K. earlier repertoire) speaking of a total amount of 96 concerts (and 400 stage performances) in his whole life.