Herbert Blomstedt is 97!

[Alan Howe]

Very moving: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mumt4Qs4-bc

On July 11, 2024, Herbert Blomstedt celebrated his 97th birthday.
A little bird told the Bamberger Symphoniker‬  that he loves and appreciates the Swedish summer psalm "I denna ljuva sommartid" ("In this Sweet Summertime"). So they played it for him as a birthday serenade in St. Florian.

[eschiss1]

As I said elsewhere, yay to the modern Stokowski

[Alan Howe]

Stokowski made it to 95 and was probably the polar opposite of Blomstedt as a conductor, but longevity-wise, yes.

[eschiss1]

Both have introduced their audiences to music rarely performed locally (Nielsen and Berwald symphonies are not often performed in the US still- though with the announcement of the 2024-25 seasons I do see some exceptions) even if Stokowski's repertoire was more wideranging. It was that, and not his mannerisms, that I was thinking of as analogy.
(Admittedly, not much Berwald happening in the US this year, though a duo of his is programmed for next month in Michigan.)

[Alan Howe]

Stokowski, of course was an inveterate tinkerer with various composers' orchestration. Blomstedt, not so much!