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Thomas Beecham Quotes

1879–1961 England

Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, CH (29 April 1879 - 8 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic and the Royal Philharmonic orchestras. He was also closely associated with the Liverpool Philharmonic and Hallé orchestras.

England
Conductors
Musicians

Also known as: Beecham, Thomas

Random Thomas Beecham quote

12 quotes

A musicologist is a man who can read music but can't hear it.

Composers should write tunes the chauffeurs and errand boys can whistle.

Too much counterpoint; what is worse, Protestant counterpoint.

Great music is that which penetrates the ear with facility and leaves the memory with difficulty. Magical music never leaves the memory.

The function of music is to release us from the tyranny of conscious thought.

What can you do with it? It's like a lot of yaks jumping about."

I found it as alluring as a wayward woman and determined to tame it.

Conductors by John L. Holmes (1988)

The grand tune is the only thing in music that the great public really understands.

Conductors by John L. Holmes (1988)

If I cannot sing a work, I cannot conduct it.

Conductors by John L. Holmes (1988)

Asked if he had ever conducted any Stockhausen, he said, "No, but I once trod in some."

No composer has written as much as 100 bars of worthwhile music since 1925.

Conductors by John L. Holmes (1988)

The musical equivalent of the towers of St Pancras Station

Attribution

Quotes and notes from Wikiquote: Thomas Beecham (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0.