So Edward Gardner has been appointed Music Director of the English National Opera. He is just 32 but has a solid pedigree and has been on a line that a distinguished list of British conductors have followed. I have been out of the UK music scene since 1999 when I came to Chicago. However I have been following Ed's career with interest. A mutual friend of ours had asked me to see this then 24 year old for some advice in 1998 and we met at the Pizza Express in Baker Street. He struck me as unusually intelligent and personable with so many of the leadership attributes that make a successful conductor. Had I still been at Glyndebourne at that time I would have snapped him up so I pointed him in that direction. And they very sensibly took him on in due course.
The list of distinguished British conductors who emerged from the music staff at Glyndebourne is impressive. Sir John Pritchard and Raymond Leppard were two of the earlier alums of that department - and in my time there Jane Glover, Sir Simon Rattle, Sir Andrew Davis, Nicholas Kraemer and Ivor Bolton all cut their teeth as repetiteurs and/or assistant conductors. Harry Bicket, currently conducting Orfeo at Lyric is another, and now Edward Gardner is the latest fine example of this development path. Of course Glyndebourne is a seasonal operation, albeit a very long eight month one including the Touring company's season. But it has a great variety of activity and opportunities, and the best ones all had much other work away from the intense pressure of the summer festival period. And so it has been with Edward Gardner. Look here to see his full bio.
He has had rich experience for one so young and is excellently qualified for this next step at ENO. He is now the same age as Mark Elder was when he took on the same position. He will no doubt have a similar success. It is great to see such an auspicious appointment at the recently much troubled English National Opera. Hats off to the new regime!
And what about the long list of Glyndebourne staff director/associate director who made exciting carreers????
Posted by: Guus Mostart | March 09, 2006 at 10:08 AM