Roger Norrington
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sir Roger Norrington | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Roger Arthur Carver Norrington |
| Born | March 16, 1934  Oxford, Oxfordshire, England |
| Genre(s) | Classical |
| Occupation(s) | Conductor |
| Years active | 1962-present |
Sir Roger Arthur Carver Norrington (born March 16, 1934) is a British conductor. He is the son of Sir Arthur Norrington and the brother of Humphrey Thomas Norrington, vice-chairman of Barclays Bank from 1991 to 1993.
Contents |
[edit] Background
Norrington studied at the Dragon School, Westminster School, Clare College, Cambridge and the Royal College of Music under Adrian Boult among others.
[edit] Career
Norrington worked as a tenor through the 1960s, and in 1962 founded the Schütz Choir (later the Schütz Choir of London). From 1969 to 1984, he was music director of Kent Opera. In 1978 he founded the London Classical Players (led by baroque violinist John Holloway) and remained their musical director until 1997. From 1990 to 1994, he was music director of the Orchestra of St. Luke's. In 1998, he became principal conductor of the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra. He became Artistic Advisor of the Handel and Haydn Society in 2006.
Norrington is best known for performances of Baroque, Classical and Romantic music using period instruments and period style. He is a member of the historically informed performance movement. Norrington has advocated a limited use of vibrato in orchestral performances[1], which has brought him both acclaim and criticism[2]. He has followed Ludwig van Beethoven's metronome markings in his symphonies[2], some of which are thought by most conductors to be too quick to be practicable throughout the whole length of movements. He has conducted recordings of Beethoven, Mozart, Schubert and Brahms on period instruments.[3].
With his wife, the choreographer Kay Lawrence, he formed in 1984 the Early Opera Project to complement his concert work in period-style performance, beginning with Monteverdi’s Orfeo at the Maggio Musicale in Florence that year, and touring Britain in 1986
In August 2008 Norrington is scheduled to appear in the reality tv talent show-themed television series, Maestro on BBC Two, when he will lead the judging panel.[4] He is scheduled to conduct the Last Night of The Proms for the first time on 13 September 2008.
[edit] Personal life
Norrington was created an OBE in 1980, a CBE in 1990 and a Knight Bachelor in 1997.
[edit] References
- ^ Roger Norrington. "Time to Rid Orchestras of the Shakes", The New York Times, 16 February 2003. Retrieved on 2008-04-17.
- ^ a b Allan Kozinn. "Reading a Score, and Beethoven's Mind", The New York Times, 6 August 2003. Retrieved on 2008-04-17.
- ^ John Rockwell. "Norrington's Historical Trek Gathers Fresh Momentum", The New York Times, 2 January 1994. Retrieved on 2008-04-17.
- ^ BBC (2008-05-23). "Eight passionate amateurs bid to become BBC Two's Maestro". Press release. Retrieved on 2008-05-24.
[edit] External links
- EMI Classics biography of Norrington
- A Norrington discography from the Japanese website "kanzaki.com"
| Preceded by no predecessor |
Music Director, Orchestra of St. Luke's 1990–1994 |
Succeeded by Sir Charles Mackerras |
| Preceded by Gianluigi Gelmetti |
Principal Conductor, Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra 1998– |
Succeeded by incumbent |
