SPONSORED: A Seasoned Champion of New Music. Argentinian-American pianist Mirian Conti in conversation with Andrew Schartmann.
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LISTENING TO TCHAIKOVSKY: Béla Hartmann uses his knowledge of Eastern Europe to argue against the banning of all Russian culture following Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.
Born at Zurndorf in Austria on 27 January 1926, the Jewish musician, writer and wit Fritz Spiegl was a distant relative of Gustav Mahler. He moved to the UK in 1939 to escape the Nazis, learning English amazingly quickly and thoroughly.
He became (via a career as Principal Flautist with the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra) one of the UK's best-known all-round classical musicians - author, journalist, music publisher, broadcaster, conductor and organiser of April fools (and other) concerts with his Liverpool Music Group, and his interests didn't end with music - he was well-known as a wit and a commentator on language, and was an antiquarian, an antiques dealer, typographer, designer and a vintage car enthusiast.
Fritz Spiegl died on 23 March 2003, aged seventy-seven.
The Musician's Guide to Having an MRI - In an occasional series 'The Musician's Guides', Jennifer Paull offers a few tips for survival when confronted with being the square musical peg in a round musical hole
Reminiscent retrospectives - Fritzin' the Looking-Glass - On the second anniversary of Fritz Spiegl's death, Jennifer Paull looks into his witty reflection and recalls musical frustrations and fun with Fritz
Unforgettable Ifor - Jennifer Paull pays tribute to Ifor James (1931-2004)