The Sound Board

Oh, that is so sad. I loved his conducting of Ravel's Daphnis and Chloe, as well as his conducting of Stravinsky's Firebird. He had such an ear for orchestral clarity, and intonation. He made those pieces open and transparent. Rest in Peace, Boulez, may you find great music in your next journey.

Impossible to overestimate the importance and influence of Boulez in music. Not just on those who agreed with him and/or followed in his path, but just as much on those who didn't (and there's been much heated polarisation between the two over the years). But no matter in whichever camp you found yourself, there was and is no denying the unique and towering monument that was Pierre Boulez, not just as a composer, but just as much as a confrontational theoretician, a truly brilliant mind, an inspirator and a much loved (if occasionally controversial) conductor.

Suddenly, 2016 finds the world of music a much more bleak and barren place. Boulez' departure leaves a gaping void that simply can't be filled. Black day.

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Piet De Ridder wrote:Impossible to overestimate the importance and influence of Boulez in music. Not just on those who agreed with him and/or followed in his path, but just as much on those who didn't (and there's been much heated polarisation between the two over the years). But no matter in whichever camp you found yourself, there was and is no denying the unique and towering monument that was Pierre Boulez, not just as a composer, but just as much as a confrontational theoretician, a truly brilliant mind, an inspirator and a much loved (if occasionally controversial) conductor.
Suddenly, 2016 finds the world of music a much more bleak and barren place. Boulez' departure leaves a gaping void that simply can't be filled. Black day.

_

So sad. I remember watching him conduct at an open rehearsal of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Thy played an enormous dissonant aggregate chord and he turned to a trumpet player and said, "That's Db, not D natural."

Still for me, the very best conductor of Stravinsky and "Le Marteau Sand Maitre" is a great composition that helped open my mind and ears to contemporary concert hall music.

Paul Bley has also left us, requiescat in pace...

RobS wrote:Paul Bley has also left us, requiescat in pace...

Oh my. How sad.

Not too long ago, Claudio Abbado — another giant of the baton — left us as well. Makes listening to his final concert, with Martha Argerich, performing two Mozart concertos, so much more unsettling, cause apparently he was extremely ill on the evening yet still found the strength and concentration to help make it a memorable musical event and a very good recording.

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yes I know that performance... my greatest respect and love to Abbado who also was a nice and sensitive human being

Ashermusic wrote: So sad. I remember watching him conduct at an open rehearsal of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Thy played an enormous dissonant aggregate chord and he turned to a trumpet player and said, "That's Db, not D natural."

Still for me, the very best conductor of Stravinsky and "Le Marteau Sand Maitre" is a great composition that helped open my mind and ears to contemporary concert hall music.

Another story pointing to his legendary ear then, thanks for sharing.
I watched those a friend posted on FB

(talking about complex chords to a young conductor: "split it in diatonic parts, tune those, then play the whole thing" at 44:30)
(in French though)