Maestro maturity
I just stumbled across an interesting commentary on changes to expectations about conductors’ ages by Henry Fogel, former president of the League of American Orchestras:
Somehow lost [in recent decades] was the idea of superb conductors developing their careers in smaller orchestras, either in the U.S. or in Europe. An excellent conductor at the age of 45, but one who had not yet achieved ‘stardom,’ came to be seen as passé. There are probably many conductors who will reach the height of their artistry in their 40s or 50s.We do a lot of damage to our art form if we consider them ‘has beens’ before they ever were.
No surprise here – I agree with Henry that ‘we must, as a field, rethink this.’
