Various Composers - The Inimitable Sir Thomas (Thomas Beecham)

Information

1. Jean Sibelius - Tapiola, Op. 112
2. Gabriel Fauré - Pavane, Op. 50
3. Frederick Delius - 3 Small Tone Poems: No. 1, Summer Evening
4. Frederick Delius - Irmelin Prelude
5. Antonín Dvořák - Legends, Op. 59, B. 122: No. 3 in G Minor, Allegro giusto
6. Edvard Grieg - Symphonic Dances, Op. 64: No. 2, Allegretto grazioso
7. George Frideric Handel - Amaryllis Suite: VI. Gavotte - Allegretto
8. George Frideric Handel - Amaryllis Suite: VIII. Scherzo - Trio
9. Gioachino Rossini - Semiramide: Overture

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Orchestre National de la Radiodiffusion Française

Thomas Beecham, conductor

Date: 1962, 1963 / 2025

Label: Warner Classics

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Thomas Beecham (1879–1961) was a prominent English conductor and impresario who used his family’s pharmaceutical fortune to elevate orchestral and operatic standards in Britain. He founded several major ensembles, including the Beecham Symphony Orchestra (1909), London Philharmonic (1932), and Royal Philharmonic (1946). A champion of composers like Mozart, Haydn, Delius, and Sibelius, Beecham introduced British audiences to works by Richard Strauss and Russian composers. He held key roles at Covent Garden and conducted internationally, including in the U.S. during WWII. Known for his charismatic leadership and wit, he was knighted in 1916 and authored an autobiography and a biography of Delius.