Tuning in…
Tuning in…
Castaway
1 appearance
French horn player, born in Melbourne, Australia.
On the island
Eight records
Sinfonia Concertante for Cello and Orchestra
Mstislav Rostropovich, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Malcolm Sargent
I was terribly inspired by his playing when I first heard him play ... He could do so much with one single note.
Serenade No. 1 in D major, Op. 11
London Symphony Orchestra, István Kertész
I admired him enormously. And I think this particular recording represents the high spot of his association with the LSO.
Members of the Juilliard Quartet
I felt that I was going to need some serious challenge, some intellectual stimulation on this desert island. ... I find it very elusive. And so this is going to be my big task.
String Quartet No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 131Favourite
a magnificent interpretation of a really big masterpiece.
Symphony No. 9 in C major, 'The Great', D. 944
London Symphony Orchestra, Josef Krips
He said that there was this distant horn call that appeared to descend from another sphere and that everyone listens as if a heavenly guest is stealing around the orchestra.
a remarkable interpretation, a remarkable performance. Also because I wanted to take a friend with me. Ashkenazi and I have known each other for many years.
Symphony No. 4 in A minor, Op. 63
Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Berglund
quite extraordinary, and very, very strong. The symphony is one of those tantalizing, stimulating pieces that I think one would always find difficult to find the answer to.
September (from Vier letzte Lieder)
Lisa della Casa not only sings beautifully, but it leads up to four bars of horn music on Desert Island. These four bars of horn playing by Gottfried von Freiburg is rather, to me, the ultimate.
In conversation
Presenter asks
0:37From which part of Australia do you come?
I was born in Melbourne.
Presenter asks
3:11Did you have an idea very early on that music was to be your career?
There didn't seem to be anything else to do. This was the one thing that was my life. The only problem was that I wasn't really any good at any of the instruments that I learned.
Presenter asks
3:48How old were you when you tackled the horn for the first time, and how did it come about?
It was literally a case of 'Well, he must be able to play something. He is musical.' And a friend lent me an instrument and gave me some lessons. And it worked. It was something I had an aptitude for. And I was very interested in it, too.
Presenter asks
5:41When did you make your first professional appearances, and where?
The keepsakes
The book
Jonathan Swift
On the assumption that I'll always be on this island for the rest of my days, I'm going to have to have something that's capable of being interpreted on many levels.
The luxury
Some pictures also of Australia, of places that I've been to, but mainly that it will be having the family with me.
I first played in Sydney, where I was studying. I played as an extra with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. And when I was fifteen, I went to the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra as third horn. That was as a permanent member of the orchestra.
Presenter asks
8:22So you came 13,000 miles, Barry. Had you contacts here already?
In a minimal way, yes, I knew a few people here. But I did nothing very much for the first few months in London. I went to concerts and I went to the opera. I had a wonderful time. And then I took a job at Buxton Spa and played for the summer of nineteen fifty one.
“He could do so much with one single note.”
“Benjamin Britten, Peter Peirce, Imogen Holst. Friend of mine, critic from the Daily Telegraph, and one other person who I often wondered about.”
“He said that there was this distant horn call that appeared to descend from another sphere and that everyone listens as if a heavenly guest is stealing around the orchestra.”
“These four bars of horn playing by Gottfried von Freiburg is rather, to me, the ultimate.”