Tilson Thomas is here master of ceremonies, as much as lecturer and conductor. As Barrie Gavin remembers, "What he did very well was convey Strauss's anguish, and his terror of bad notices, in the portrayal of the mean critics." The idea of the battling musician even led Tilson Thomas to suggest coming on in a suit of armour, until the difficulties of getting out of it to conduct were pointed out. He and the orchestra had recently made two acclaimed discs of Strauss tone poems, and their account of Heldenleben was hailed as "outstanding" in the pages of Gramophone magazine. There, as in the film, a highlight was the eloquent account of the wordless recitative of the "Hero's Companion" section given by the orchestra's then leader Alexander Barantschik, a testament to the qualities that later led Tilson Thomas to invite the violinist to California to lead the San Francisco Symphony.

Kenneth Chalmers
© ICA