My first appearance in the States was in 1974 in Oakland California, across the bay from San Francisco. My friend the conductor Harold Farberman who was the Music Director there invited me to give a Heinrich Schütz Extravaganza, inspired by the composer’s Tricentenary two years earlier.

Many years later, in 1987, I was invited to conduct Haydn’s Seasons at the Boston Early Music Festival, with their period instrument band. In the delightful acoustics of the Jordan Hall the wonderful score leapt forth. I opened proceedings with a reminder that this was no oratorio, but a celebration. In the 18th century audiences applauded every movement, or even in the middle of a piece. I invited them to do the same (though maybe not in the middle) and hoped they would have a great time. They roared approval (American audiences are something else), joined in, and did indeed have a good time.

This single concert opened two wonderful doors for me. First Myron Lutske, playing first cello, went straight back to New York and told the Manager of St Lukes Chamber Orchestra to book me at once. (“He’s the real thing” he apparently said), and a year or so later I became their first ever Music Director.

The second door was to the Boston Symphony. Costa Pilavacchi, the Artistic Director, had attended the Seasons, and at once offered me a date at their summer home at Tanglewood the following Season. The history of that beautiful relationship is told in a Boston chapter.

American orchestral managements are a close group, so I soon started getting invitations from all over the States,- and this without any agent either there or in Britain. San Francisco followed, as did Chicago, Minnesota, St Paul, Los Angeles, and many others, listed below. I have given some of them chapters to themselves. It was a joy to find all these highly capable, well-paid bands available, and mostly very open and willing.

Judging from my reputation they probably expected some eccentric scholar, but what they got was simply an energetic and passionate musician, who happened to be informed about performance practice. True I never mentioned vibrato, but the tempi were often unexpected, and the seating of the players even more so. But all good orchestras prefer strong opinions to generic tradition, and I was almost always asked back. Only Cleveland I found utterly unprepared to try anything new. I never wanted to return, and was amused to hear that two other conductors had felt the same: Simon Rattle and Leonard Bernstein!

With the Boston Symphony I conducted 38 times in the 10 years at Symphony Hall and at Tanglewood.

I also appeared with the Boston Pops.

In later years in Boston I also served as Music Advisor for three years with the Handel and Haydn Society (turning down their offer to be Music Director).

And of course it all began with the Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, including a notable Idomeneo.

So Boston was very good to me.

LIST OF 22 AMERICAN ORCHESTRAS I WORKED WITH

(Stars indicate a regular association)

Orchestra of St Lukes New York*

Boston Symphony*

Boston Pops

Tanglewood Students*

Philadelphia Orchestra*

San Francisco Symphony*

Chicago Symphony

Los Angeles Philharmonic*

Cleveland Symphony

National Symphony Washington*

Atlanta Symphony

Minnesota Symphony*

St Paul Chamber Orchestra

Detroit Symphony

Cincinnati Symphony

Baltimore Symphony

Dallas Symphony

Oakland Symphony

Juilliard School

Curtis Institute

Boston Early Music Festival*

Handel and Haydn Society*