John Pritchard (conductor)

Sir John Michael Pritchard CBE (5 February 1921 – 5 December 1989) was a English conductor. He was known for his interpretations of Mozart operas and for his support of contemporary music.

Life and career

Pritchard was born in London, to a musical family. His father, Albert Edward Pritchard, was a violinist with the London Symphony Orchestra. The young Pritchard studied violin, piano, and conducting in Italy. "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ]

Pritchard, as a conscientious objector, refused to serve in World War II, but was in any case registered unfit on medical grounds. In 1943 he took over the semi-professional Derby String Orchestra and was its principal conductor until 1951. He joined the music staff of Glyndebourne Festival Opera in 1947 and was appointed chorus master in 1949. He remained associated with Glyndebourne for most of his career, as conductor, music counsellor (from 1963), principal conductor (1968) and musical director (1969–78). "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ] Goodwin, Noel: 'John Pritchard', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 4 Nov 2007), [http://www.grovemusic.com] ]

Beyond Glyndebourne, Pritchard appeared with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, at Edinburgh in 1952 (deputising for Ernest Ansermet, who was ill). He made his début at the Royal Opera House in 1951 and at the Vienna State Opera in 1952. He appeared regularly with the Vienna Symphony Orchestra (1953–5). "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ] Goodwin, Noel: 'John Pritchard', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 4 Nov 2007), [http://www.grovemusic.com] ]

For Glyndebourne in this period he conducted Mozart's Idomeneo and Richard Strauss's Ariadne auf Naxos at the Edinburgh festivals of 1953 and 1954 and Rossini's La Cenerentola at the Berlin Festival, a performance described by the Dictionary of National Biography as 'a triumph'. "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ]

In 1957, Pritchard was appointed principal conductor of the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra where he launched the Musica Viva series showcasing contemporary music. His success in Liverpool led to his appointment as musical director of the London Philharmonic Orchestra (1962–6). Freelancing after leaving the LPO, he conducted concerts in Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Philadelphia and the Far East, and opera in Buenos Aires, Chicago, San Francisco, New York, Salzburg, Florence, and Munich. In 1973 he conducted the London Philharmonic in China—the first visit by a Western orchestra. "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ]

His later permanent posts were chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, (1982-89) and musical director of the Cologne Opera (1978), the Théâtre de la Monnaie, Brussels (1981), and the San Francisco Opera (1986). At the time of his death he was preparing Wagner's Ring cycle for San Francisco. "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ]

Pritchard was appointed CBE in 1962 and knighted in 1983. The prestigious Shakespeare prize (Hamburg) was awarded him in 1975. "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ]

He died in 1989 in Daly City, California, USA. He left a large part of his estate to his partner, Terry MacInnes. "Ponsonby Robert", ‘Pritchard, Sir John Michael (1918–1989)’, rev., Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/39914, accessed 4 Nov 2007] ]

Repertoire

John Pritchard was a champion of a wide range of new music, conducting the premières of Britten’s "Gloriana" and Tippett’s "The Midsummer Marriage" and "King Priam," all at Covent Garden, and the British première of Henze’s Elegy for Young Lovers at Glyndebourne. Of the classics of the repertoire he was noted for his Mozart and Richard Strauss. His recordings include "Idomeneo", "L'incoronazione di Poppea, Falstaff, Macbeth," Hänsel" "und Gretel", "L'elisir d'amore" (with Plácido Domingo), "Il" "segreto di Susanna" (with Renata Scotto and Renato Bruson), "Lucia di Lammermoor" and "La traviata" (the last two with Dame Joan Sutherland).Goodwin, Noel: 'John Pritchard', Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed 4 Nov 2007), [http://www.grovemusic.com] ]

Notes

References

*cite book | last=Conway | first=Helen | title=Sir John Pritchard: His Life in Music | location=London | publisher=Andre Deutsch Ltd | year=1994 | isbn=0233988459