Madam, - Arminta Wallace's interview with the conductor Benjamin Zander in The Irish Times (Arts, January 20th) notes that Friday night's concert in the NCH will be one of the unmissable events of 2004. I believe that every Friday night at the NCH represents an unmissable event! It is interesting to note how some people get in such a flurry over the appearance of conductors - whose role is still not clearly defined in music. I am reminded of the famous discussion between two violinists strolling home after performing when one asks the other "Who conducted you tonight?" His friend replies: "I don't know. I wasn't watching."
I find it astonishing that it apparently took Maestro Zander 20 years to realise that conductors don't make a sound (though he may be familiar with recordings by Bernstein, Barbirolli and even Simon Rattle where the conductors make plenty of noise not called for in the score). I also find his nebulous comments such as "inviting the orchestra to the edge", "Don't take yourself so seriously" and "there are no rules" rather irritating.
The chances are that the orchestral players are far more familiar with the music they are playing than is their conductor.
In addition, in my view, Zander's frisky adagietto from Mahler's Fifth and his thundering finale to the Rite of Spring do not represent anything new. Many conductors observe the true intention of the adagietto (e.g. Rattle, BPO) while I've heard far more exhilarating Rites (e.g. Davis, LSO).
The particular philosophy that Zander adopts - harnessing the theories of contemporary management "gurus" for musical purposes - is equally vague. As one of the most famous "gurus" of them all, Peter Drucker puts it: "People use the word 'guru' only because they do not want to say 'charlatan'". The writer Norman Lebrecht, in The Maestro Myth, suggests there is no easier career for frauds to enter than conducting. While this is perhaps too cynical, it does make a good point.
The NSO will go on making wonderful music under their hard-working regular conductor in spite of occasional appearances by transatlantic superstars. - Yours, etc.,
KEVIN WOODS, Greenhills, Drogheda, Co Louth.