Link to the Show / Show NotesOn December 6th, Conductor Nicolaus Harnoncourt celebrates his 80th birthday. Described by many as a musician's musician, he is one of the most profound and intriguing conductors of our time.
Considered one of the world's leading specialists of Baroque music, he has long since turned his attention to Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, and even to Jacques Offenbach and Johann Strauss. Regarded as a leading authority on "authentic" performance practice, Harnoncourt himself says, "I have always hated the word authenticity because it is so dangerous. 'Museum music' does not interest me. I have no intention of organising guided tours to visit Louis XIV or Johann Sebastian Bach!"
Nicolaus Harnoncourt and his wife Alice founded the Concentus Musicus Wien in 1953. It soon became one of the world's most respected ensembles specialising in the performance of early music and original instruments. His recordings with the Concentus Musicus have won countless prizes and met with acclaim as well as controversy.
Interview: Elizabeth Mortimer/Nicolaus Harnoncourt
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