Tuning in…
Tuning in…
Castaway
1 appearance
International star, pianist and entertainer known for flamboyant performances and showmanship.
On the island
Eight records
18th Variation from Rhapsody on a Theme of PaganiniFavourite
Well, the first is the eighteenth variation from the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, played by Rachmaninoff. I've chosen it because I heard Rachmaninov perform this in the Hollywood Bowl some years ago. And it's a number that I've played many times. And I associate it with some of the best piano music that has ever been written.
Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35 (first movement)
I like it because it reminds me of all the violin playing that surrounded me as a child. My brother George was studying violin at the time and later taught violin. This was one of the numbers he played and in all fairness to my brother he didn't play it as well as Heifetz. But nevertheless I loved the music.
Scheherazade, Op. 35 (fourth movement)
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Thomas Beecham (conductor)
As a child I think Scheherazade opened up a whole new world for me. I remember hearing it at a concert in which my father was one of the members of the Symphony Orchestra.
Glenn Miller and His Orchestra
Record number four is reminiscent of some of my starting days in show business back in the late thirties and the early forties when the name band was the thing and certainly the biggest name band of the time was Glenn Miller. And I have always loved his music. It's so expressive of the era that I lived and grew in.
I like this number for several reasons. First, because it's very beautifully done by Mantovani. And secondly, I knew Walter Huston. He told me it was about an elderly gentleman who was seeking happiness in the winter of life, who falls in love with a very young lady just in the spring of life. And he describes his love as something rare like vintage wine.
Death and Transfiguration, Op. 24
Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of New York, Bruno Walter (conductor)
I associate this with something very holy, with a wonderful, wonderful painting which is displayed in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Los Angeles. This painting of the crucifixion of Christ is 120 feet long. During the narrator's description of this painting, the music that is interpolated is the Death and Transfiguration of Richard Strauss. I love the music because of its very descriptive power, and I associate it with that beautiful painting.
La bohème (finale, Mimi's death)
My next choice is from La Bohème, the first opera I ever saw. This particular scene is Mimi's death scene. I always hear this music with a sort of tear within. I think if I had to select one particular scene, this would be the most touching and most moving scene of all.
I've chosen this record because I like the song, I like the memory of Todd Duncan doing it in the original Broadway play and also because I like Sinatra. I think he's one of the finest exponents of popular singing that our generation has to offer. I also like the song because it's written by Kurt Weill, who also wrote the September song.
In conversation
Presenter asks
5:38What part of the United States are you from?
I'm from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I was born there and lived there for twenty one years.
Presenter asks
6:16How early in life did you decide that music was going to be your career?
Well, actually, I can't remember a time when I didn't play the piano.
Presenter asks
9:40Whose idea was it to adopt the glittering suits, the candelabra, and so forth?
Well, actually, those trademarks didn't come about until much later. Each time I did a television appearance, it seemed my audience and my following grew, and with it, everything else became exaggerated. I had to sort of top myself at each one of my performances. And one way I could do that was in an exterior fashion, by dressing up more flamboyantly, and the white suit of tails replaced the black suit of tails, and then that soon was studded with brilliance, and finally with diamonds.
Presenter asks
The keepsakes
The book
Claude Bristol
It's called The Magic of Believing by Claude Bristol. It greatly influenced my career and my life. And it's a book that helps you to find happiness. And I think this is the kind of book that I could pick up many, many times.
The luxury
In the last ten years you've become a very rich and successful man. Have you also become a happier man?
Well, I am very happy with my success, but I also look back at some former times when I enjoyed simple pleasures that I can't seem to enjoy now. Yes, indeed. You pay the price.
Presenter asks
12:50You've run into a lot of wrath in musical circles from your habit of abbreviating works like Tchaikovsky's first piano concerto in four minutes. Do you think potted versions of the classics are justified?
Well, I certainly do because I feel that half a loaf of bread is better than none. This is a practice that's employed by many artists and one of them is a dear friend of mine, Mantovani.
Presenter asks
14:36Is there any major ambition you have that's still unfulfilled?
Well, the longer I stay in show business, the less I realize I've accomplished. I've never done a Broadway play or a Broadway show. I would like to do that. I'd like to make my name in films. I would like to fulfill the desire to become an actor. It takes just as much imagination to portray an acting role as it does to portray a musical composition.
“Well, I've often thought that if I could have my music I would never really be lonely.”
“I think I'm mostly afraid of bugs. Much more so than wild animals. I hate spiders and flies and mosquitoes. And I think one reason I do hate them so much is because I do a lot of outdoor concerts.”
“I don't know where I'm going next.”
“This is the kind of book that I could pick up many, many times. It's called The Magic of Believing by Claude Bristol. It greatly influenced my career and my life. And it's a book that helps you to find happiness.”