If you visited this page before March 10, 2017, you will notice that there have been a few stylistic changes.
I hope this new format will make it easier to use in all aspects.

Please be kind... if you spot any errors (on this page or in any of my interviews), DO let me know so they can be fixed.
Thank you.  BD [duffie@voyager.net]  Sometimes my inbox is over-full, so if your message bounces back to you, or
if I do not reply within a few days, please re-send your message.  If I receive it, I will respond.

BTW, I am my own webmaster, but aside from this website, I do NOT do any other Social Media: NO Facebook, NO Twitter,
NO Instagram, NOR do I text.  I am quite comfortable living in the 1990s.... (!)    Oh, did we survive Y2K? *tee hee*

Just so there is no mistake, the artwork by Kathy Cunningham which is shown on this page, and linked to further webpages,
is for display only.  Nothing is for sale, and no commercial use is implied.




Interviews  by  Bruce  Duffie

(This page was updated on January 16, 2026)
NOTE: All of the interviews presented on this website have been transcribed,
and are only posted in text form.  There are NO audio files (yet).


To read my thoughts about doing and transcribing these conversations,
(as well as a few other personal observations on related topics), click HERE.


The most recent postings are placed at the end of each section,
except for ones which have appeared in printed magazines, in which
case they are inserted into their correct chronological sequence.

Most photos included have been found on various sites.
If any should not be displayed on these webpages,
let me know and they will be removed immediately.
If any need credits, tell me and they will be added.



Joseph Pulitzer (1847-1911) bequeathed $2 million in his will to establish a graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University (currently the site where the Pulitzer announcements are made each April). The Pulitzer Prizes were created with part of this money and were first awarded in 1917.

The first Pulitzer Prize in music was awarded in 1943. Although he had a passion for music, his will did not call for a prize in that area, but only a scholarship for a music student. Instead, he bequeathed $500,000 to the New York Philharmonic Society--an amount equal to the entire Pulitzer Prize bequest. In 1943 the Pulitzer Board converted the scholarship to a prize. The requirements were stated:

"For distinguished musical composition in the larger forms of chamber, orchestral, or choral work, or for an operatic work (including ballet), first performed or published by a composer of established residence in the United States, Five hundred dollars ($500)."

The first recipient was William Schuman for his "Secular Cantata No. 2: A Free Song" for full chorus of mixed voices, with accompaniment of orchestra. Beginning in 1980, the list of Finalists for each year was also made public.







These interviews have been published in
New Music Connoisseur

The hard-copy issues of the magazine (which are snail-mailed to subscribers) contain a portion of each interview.
This website presents the complete interviews with photographs.

[You are invited to visit the NMC website]



Composer Joan Tower   (Spring, 2001)   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1993]
Composer/Pianist Easley Blackwood   (Summer, 2001)
Composer Brian Fennelly   (Fall, 2001)
Composer Karel Husa   (Winter, 2001)   [Second of Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 1969]
Composer Robert Carl   (Spring, 2002)
Composer/Critic Virgil Thomson   (Summer, 2002)   [Pulitzer Prize, 1949]
Composer Elizabeth Austin   (Fall, 2002)
Pianist David Holzman   (Summer, 2003)
Composer Ruth Schonthal   (Fall/Winter, 2003)
Composer/Pianist George Walker   (Spring, 2004)   [Pulitzer Prize, 1996]
Composer Alan Hovhaness   (Spring/Summer, 2005)
Composer William Mayer   (Summer/Fall, 2006)
Soprano Elsa Charlston   (Fall/Winter, 2006)
Composer Leo Kraft   (Spring/Summer, 2008)
Composer Elliott Carter   (Winter/Spring, 2008-09)   [Pulitzer Prize, 1960 & 1973]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1996 & 2005]



These interviews have been posted on the
Classical Connect Website.
That site has been given permission to publish selected interviews in part or in full.
This website presents the complete interviews with photographs.
[You are invited to visit the Classical Connect website]




Composer George Flynn
Violinist Jennifer Koh
Composer Aaron Jay Kernis   [Pulitzer Prize, 1998]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1994, 2013]
Pianist Jorge Federico Osorio
Composer Lowell Liebermann
Oboist Alex Klein   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Conductor Carlos Kalmar
Pianist Ursula Oppens
Composer John Corigliano   [Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 2001]



In 1993, The Instrumentalist Magazine requested my interviews with
Sir Georg Solti, to be used as the cover article in their October issue.
[You are invited to visit The Instrumentalist website]


 Conductor Sir Georg Solti    [Two Interviews]   [October, 1993]







These interviews have been posted exclusively on this website

Group One - COMPOSERS (American)


Composer Pozzi Escot
Composer/Author Paul Bowles
Composer Arnold Rosner
Composer/Pianist John La Montaine   [Pulitzer Prize, 1959]
Composer Eric Ewazen
Composer Lou Harrison    [Second of Two Interviews]
Composer/Conductor/Pianist/Administrator Morton Gould    [Second of Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 1995]
Composer/Pianist Robert Helps
Composer/Pianist/Technician David Tudor
Composer Chou Wen-Chung
Composer/Conductor Carlos Surinach
Composer Johan Franco
Composer Conlon Nancarrow
Composer Romeo Cascarino
Composer Hayden Wayne
Composer Gian Carlo Menotti   [Three Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 1950 & 1955]
Composer Elie Siegmeister
Composer David Raksin
Composer/Conductor Alfred Reed
Composer/Pianist Frederic Rzewski
Composer Irwin Bazelon
Composer Morten Lauridsen
Composer Marga Richter
Composer Otto Luening
Composer George Crumb   [Pulitzer Prize, 1968]
Composer Andrew Imbrie   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1995]
Composer Stephen Albert   [Pulitzer Prize, 1985]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1987]
Composer Miriam Gideon
Composer Richard Wernick   [Pulitzer Prize, 1977]
Composer Ursula Mamlok
Composer Vincent Persichetti
Composer Robert Starer
Composer Ulysses Kay
Composer/Administrator Francis Thorne
Composer Leslie Bassett   [Pulitzer Prize, 1966]
Composer John Lessard
Composer Donald Martino   [Pulitzer Prize, 1974]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 2000]
Composer Christopher Rouse   [Pulitzer Prize, 1993]
Composer Louise Talma
Composer Alexei Haieff
Composer/Percussionist William Kraft
Composer Gardner Read
Composer Benjamin Lees
Microtonal Composer Ezra Sims
Composer Roger Reynolds   [Pulitzer Prize, 1989]
Composer Gloria Coates
Composer James Cohn
Composer Steve Reich   [Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 2009]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 2003, 2004, 2005]
Composer Wayne Barlow
Composer Maurice Wright
Composer/Conductor Lalo Schifrin   [Two Interviews]
Composer John Harbison   [Pulitzer Prize, 1987]
Composer/Inventor Cecil Effinger   [Inventor of the Musicwriter and the Tempowatch]
Composer Robert Erickson
Composer/Conductor Lukas Foss   [Pulitzer Scholarship Award, 1942]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1980]
Composer/Pianist David Del Tredici   [Pulitzer Prize, 1980]
Composer Norman Dello Joio   [Pulitzer Prize, 1957]
Composer/Conductor Gunther Schuller   [Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 1994]  [Pulitzer Finalist, 1988]
Composer/Pianist Yehudi Wyner   [Pulitzer Prize, 2006]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1998]
Composer Vaclav Nelhybel
Composer/Administrator William Schuman   [*First Pulitzer Prize in Music*, 1943; Pulitzer Special Citation, 1985]
Composer Vivian Fine   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1983]
Composer/Conductor David Van Vactor
Composer Daniel Pinkham
Composer Julia Smith
Composer Charles Wuorinen   [Pulitzer Prize, 1970]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1994]
partch Composer Samuel Adler
Microtonal Composer Ben Johnston
Composer Pauline Oliveros
Composer Ernst Krenek
Composer/Humorist Peter Schickele   [P.D.Q. Bach]
Composer Ned Rorem   [Pulitzer Prize, 1976]
Composer John Cage
Composer Ron Nelson
Composer Richard Wilson
Composer Normand Lockwood
Composer Paul Fetler
Composer Earl Kim
Composer David Diamond    [Second of Two Interviews]
Composer Olly Wilson
Composer Chen Yi   [Pulitzer Finalist, 2006]
Composer Mel Powell   [Pulitzer Prize, 1990]
Composer Monroe Couper
Composer Dika Newlin
Composer Bernard Rands   [Pulitzer Prize, 1984]
Composer/Pianist Sam Raphling
Composer/Pianist Leo Smit   [Includes letter to BD from Dmitri Kabalevsky]
Composer Milton Babbitt   [Pulitzer Special Citation, 1982]
Composer Bernhard Heiden
Composer/Pianist Robert Muczynski
Composer Carlisle Floyd
Composer Frank Wigglesworth
Composer Paul Pisk
Composer Ellen Taaffe Zwilich   [Pulitzer Prize, 1983]
Composer/Conductor David Amram
Composer Jacob Druckman   [Pulitzer Prize, 1972]
Composer Mary Jeanne van Appledorn
Composer Harold Shapero
Composer/Bassist Frank Proto
Composer/Critic Lester Trimble
Composer Jennifer Higdon   [Pulitzer Prize, 2010]
Composer Alan Stout
Composer/Musicologist George Perle   [Pulitzer Prize, 1986]
Composer Kenneth Gaburo
Composer Leonardo Balada
Composer Miklós Rózsa
Composer Joseph Schwantner   [Pulitzer Prize, 1979]
Composer Kamran Ince
Composer C. Curtis-Smith
Composer/Flutist/Conductor Harvey Sollberger
Composer William Bergsma   [Two Interviews]
Composer Earle Brown
Composer/Conductor Ray Luke
Composer Juli Nunlist
Composer/Pianist Richard Cumming
Composer/Educator Hunter Johnson
Composer/Psychotherapist Paul Ramsier
Composer/Clarinetist William O. Smith
Composer Emma Lou Diemer
Composer Robert Moffat Palmer
Composer Jean Berger
Composer Burrill Phillips
Composer Leonard Kastle
Composer/Performer Philip Glass   [Two Interviews]
Composer Jack Gallagher
Composer/Pianist Joseph Fennimore
Composer/Pianist Ernst Bacon   [Pulitzer Scholarship Award, 1932]
Composer/Publisher Ray Green
Composer/Author George Heussenstamm
Composer/Author Marilyn J. Ziffrin
Composer/Pianist Leo Ornstein
Composer/Teacher Ross Lee Finney   [Pulitzer Scholarship Award, 1937]
Composer Frank Campo
Composer George Rochberg   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1986]
Composer Robert Linn
Composer/Pianist Lee Hoiby   [Two Interviews; the first also includes the participation of conductor Robert Frisbie]
Composer and Mezzo-Soprano William Bolcom and Joan Morris   [Two Interviews with Bolcom]   [Pulitzer Prize, 1988]
Composer John Downey
Composer/Pianist Elinor Remick Warren
Composer Marcel Dick
Composer Nancy Laird Chance
Composer/Pianist John Verrall
Composers Hale Smith and T.J. Anderson
Composer/Pianist Leon Kirchner   [Pulitzer Prize, 1967]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1993]
Composer Roger Goeb
Composer Joseph Goodman
Composer/Conductor Edwin London
Composer/Educator Donald Harris
Composer Rolv Yttrehus
'Tape Music' Composer Vladimir Ussachevsky
Composer/Pianist Robert Parris
Composer Harold Blumenfeld
Composer Melinda Wagner   [Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 1999]
Composer Robert Moevs
partch Composer/Conductor Jacob Avshalomov
Composer/Author Elliott Schwartz
Composer Jean Eichelberger Ivey
Composer Vittorio Rieti
Composer/Pianist Josef Alexander
Microtonal Composer John Eaton
Composer/Author Kent Kennan
Composer Robert Hall Lewis
Composer Grant Fletcher
Composer/Critic Arthur Berger
Composer Dominick Argento   [Pulitzer Prize, 1975]
Composer Donald Grantham
Composer Kirke Mechem
Composer/Pianist Max Lifchitz
Composer Phillip Rhodes
Composer Dorothy Rudd Moore
Composer/Cellist Seymour Barab
Composer Steven R. Gerber
Composer William Schmidt
Composer/Conductor Anthony Iannaccone
Composer Juan Orrego-Salas
Composer Jerré Tanner
Composer/Teacher/Administrator Stanley Wolfe
Composer Richard Moryl
Composer/Professor Robert Stern
Composer/Conductor Gerhard Samuel
Composer Paul Lansky
Composer Robert Beaser
Composer/Conductor David Stock
Composer Ezra Laderman
Composer David Hollister
Composer Stephen Paulus
Composer Shulamit Ran    [Two Interviews]    [Pulitzer Prize, 1991]
Composer Steven Stucky   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1989]   [Pulitzer Prize, 2005]
Composer Judith Shatin
Computer Music Composer James Dashow
Composer/Clarinetist Meyer Kupferman
Composer Roger Nixon
Composer/Administrator John Duffy
Composer/Organist Rayner Brown
Composer Carter Pann   [Pulitzer Finalist, 2016]
Composer Robert Kelly
Composer/Administrator Leon Stein
Composer John Luther Adams   [Pulitzer Prize, 2014]
Composer/Pianist Douglas Allanbrook
Composer Paul Cooper
Composer/Clarinetist Evan Ziporyn    [Two Interviews]
Composer/Pianist/Quiz Kid Lawson Lunde
Composer/Conductor William Ferris    [Two Interviews]
Composer Charmian Tashjian
Composer Augusta Read Thomas   [Pulitzer Finalist, 2007]
Composer Jan Bach
Composer Aurelio de la Vega    [Two Interviews]
Composer/Organist Frank Ferko
Composer Dan Tucker
Composer/Author Ellis B. Kohs
Composer M. William Karlins    [Two Interviews; the second is recollections of his teacher, Stefan Wolpe]
Composer Simon Sargon
Composer Gene Gutchë
Composer Robert Lombardo
Composer Lawrence Moss
Composer Howard Sandroff
Composer/Pianist Gardner Jencks
Composer/Pianist Marilyn Shrude
Composer Jeffrey Mumford
Composer William Neil
Composer/Conductor Ralph Shapey   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1990, 1992]
Composer/Flutist/Conductor Stephen Dembski
Composer Mario Davidovsky   [Pulitzer Prize, 1971]
Composer Paul Moravec   [Pulitzer Prize, 2004]
Composer/Conductor Bright Sheng    [Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1989, 1991]
Composer/Pianist Anthony Davis   [Pulitzer Prize, 2020]
Electronic Composer Morton Subotnick   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1980]
Composer Peter Lieberson   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1984, 1996, 2002, 2004, 2006]
Composer/Conductor John Adams   [Two Interviews]   [Pulitzer Prize, 2003]   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1998, 2014]
Composer/Conductor Tania León   [Pulitzer Prize, 2021]
Composer Bruce Saylor
Composer Michael Torke   [Pulitzer Finalist, 2020]
Composer/Theorist Fred Lerdahl   [Pulitzer Finalist, 2001, 2010, 2011]
Spatial Music Composer Henry Brant   [Pulitzer Prize, 2002]
Composer David Rakowski   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1999]
Composer Jon Polifrone
Composer Maurice Weddington
Composer Janice Misurell-Mitchell
Composer Stephen Syverud
Composer Frank Abbinanti
Composer/Conductor Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson
Composer Charles Dodge
Composer Frank E. Warren
Composer Amnon Wolman
Composer Katherine Hoover
Composer/Record Producer Nancy Van de Vate    [Two Interviews]
Composer/Administrator John Donald Robb
Composer/Pianist Amy Williams
Composer Gordon Binkerd
Composer Richard Hervig
Composer Henri Lazarof
Composer Jay Alan Yim
Composer Walter Mourant
Composer David Baker
Composer Paul Chihara
Composer Tobias Picker
Composer Daron Aric Hagen
Composer Alva Henderson
Composer/Pianist James Primosch
Composer/Conductor/Administrator Michael Ching
Composer/Arranger Ed Bland
Composer Ruth Shaw Wylie
Composer Charles Jones
Composer Mark Adamo
Composer Lora Aborn
Composer/Pianist Lionel Nowak
Composer/Jazz Trumpeter Hannibal Lokumbe
Composer Kenton Coe
Composer/Conductor John Bavicchi
Composer/Performer James "Kimo" Williams
Composer Ivana Themmen
mic Composer David Ward-Steinman
mic Composer David DeBoor Canfield
mic Composer Robert  Kritz
mic Composer Barney Childs
mic Composer Rober Xavier Rodríguez
mic Composer Philip Hagemann
mic Composer Martin Bresnick
mic Composer Daniel Asia
mic Composer Irwin Swack
mic Composer Forrest Goodenough
mic Composer/Administrator Allen Sapp
mic Composer/Author Bruce Adolphe
mic Composer for the "Bowed Piano" Stephen Scott






Group Two - COMPOSERS (Other Countries)


Composer/Conductor/Master of the Queen's Music Sir Peter Maxwell Davies
Composer Isang Yun
Composer/Radio Producer Robert Simpson
Composer Henryk-Mikołaj Górecki
Composer Karlheinz Essl
Composer Krzysztof Penderecki
Composer/Master of the Queen's Music Malcolm Williamson
partch Composer Arne Nordheim
Composer Rodion Shchedrin
Composer William Mathias
Composer Sir Malcolm Arnold
Composer Giya Kancheli
Composer Iain Hamilton
Composer/Conductor Leif Segerstam
Composer Betsy Jolas
Composer Antanas Rekašius
Composer Iannis Xenakis
Composer Geoffrey Bush
Composer Peter Sculthorpe
Composer Alun Hoddinott
Composer Sofia Gubaidulina
Composer Luciano Berio
Composer Thea Musgrave
Composer Edison Denisov
Composer György Ránki
Composer Einojuhani Rautavaara
Composer Mauricio Kagel
Composer Tera de Marez Oyens
Composer George Lloyd
Composer Mikis Theodorakis
Composer/Trombonist Vinko Globokar
Composer/Pianist Sir Richard Rodney Bennett
Composer Michael Colgrass   [Pulitzer Prize, 1978]
Composer Ruth Lomon
Composer Hans Werner Henze
Composer Joanna Bruzdowicz
Composer/Conductor Pierre Boulez   [Two Interviews]
Composer Ulf Grahn
Composer/Pianist John McCabe   [Two Interviews]
Composer/Conductor Oliver Knussen   [Two Interviews]
Composer Nicholas Maw
Composer/Percussionist Marta Ptaszyńska   [Two interviews]
Composer/Pianist Aribert Reimann
Composer Anders Hillborg
Composer Harrison Birtwistle
Composer Gerhard Stäbler
Composer Carl Vine
Composer/Conductor John Rutter
Composer/Conductor/Pianist George Benjamin
Composer Roque Cordero
Composer Tōru Takemitsu
Composer Anthony Payne
Composer Wilfred Josephs
Composer Tzvi Avni
mic Composer/Record Producer Colin Matthews



Group Three - CONDUCTORS




Conductor James DePreist
Conductor Charles Dutoit
Conductor Antal Doráti
Conductor Giuseppe Sinopoli
Conductor Leonard Slatkin   [Two Interviews]
Conductor Raymond Leppard
Conductor Frederick Fennell
Conductor Jane Glover
Conductor Bernard Haitink
Conductor Jorge Mester
Conductor Capt. William J. Phillips   [Director of the Navy Band]
Conductor JoAnn Falletta
Conductor Robert Spano
Conductor John Nelson
Conductor Nicholas McGegan
Conductor Neeme Järvi
Conductor Margaret Hillis   [Founder of the Chicago Symphony Chorus]
Conductor Kurt Masur
Conductor Jesús López-Cobos
Conductor Maxim Shostakovich
Conductor Christian Thielemann
Conductor/Composer Stanisław Skrowaczewski   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1997]
Conductor Zubin Mehta   [Two Interviews]
Conductor Herbert Blomstedt
Conductor Wolfgang Sawallisch
Conductor Vittorio Negri
Conductor Sir Charles Mackerras
Conductor Andrew Schenck
Conductor Kenneth Jennings   [Director of the St. Olaf Choir, 1968-1990]
Conductor Marin Alsop
Conductor Eduardo Mata
Conductor Donato Renzetti
Conductor Günter Wand
Conductor Leopold Hager
Conductor John Pritchard   [First of three interviews; links to the others are included]
Conductor Fiora Contino
Conductor William Revelli   [Director of Bands, University of Michigan, 1935-1971]
Conductor Matthias Bamert
Conductor George Guest   [Director, Choir of St. John's College, Cambridge, 1951-1991]
Conductor/Harpsichordist William Christie   [Founder of Les Arts Florissants]
Conductor Sir David Willcocks   [Director of Music, King's College, Cambridge, 1957-1974;
                                                                Director of the Royal College of Music, London, 1974-1984]
Conductor/Trumpeter Gerard Schwarz
Conductor Robert Shaw
Conductor Zdenek Macal
Conductor Paul Strauss
Conductor/Composer Jack Stamp   [Founder of the Keystone Wind Ensemble]
Conductor Sergiu Comissiona
Conductor Gary Bertini
Conductor Helmuth Rilling
Conductor Sian Edwards
Conductor/Pianist Dennis Russell Davies   [Two Interviews]
Conductor Claudio Abbado
Conductor Carlo Felice Cillario
Conductor Andrew Parrott
Conductor/Arranger John P. Paynter   [Director of Bands, Northwestern University, 1951-1996]
Conductor/Pianist Mario Bernardi
Conductor/Composer Werner Janssen
Conductor/Composer/Pianist André Previn
Conductor Robert Frisbie   [Participant during first interview with composer Lee Hoiby]
Conductor Richard Buckley
Conductor Miguel A. Gómez-Martínez
Conductor John Mauceri
Conductor Edmond de Stoutz   [Founder of the Zurich Chamber Orchestra]
Conductor Sir Mark Elder   [Two Interviews]
Conductor Markus Stenz
Conductor Martin Pearlman   [Founder of Boston Baroque (originally called Banchetto Musicale)]
Conductor James Conlon
Conductor Donald Runnicles
Conductor David Atherton
Conductor Gary Garner   [Director of Bands, West Texas State University, 1963-2002]
Conductor Jeffrey Tate
kcjewelry Conductor Christoph von Dohnányi
Conductor/Composer Michael Gielen
Conductor/Composer José Serebrier
Conductor Geoffrey Simon
Conductor Peter Maag
Conductor Steven Richman
Conductor Mariss Jansons
Conductor/Pianist Andrew Litton
Conductor Sylvain Cambreling
Conductor Hugh Wolff
Conductor Yuri Temirkanov
Conductor Sir Andrew Davis   [Two Interviews]
Conductor Sir Roger Norrington
Conductor Henry Holt   [Two Interviews]
Conductor Paolo Olmi
Conductor Ádám Fischer
Conductor/Organist/Harpsichordist Ton Koopman
Conductor James Judd
Conductor Catherine Comet
Conductor Gordon Wright
Conductor Laszlo Halasz
Conductor David Zinman
Conductor Yoel Levi
Conductor Semyon Bychkov
Conductor David Robertson
Conductor Kate Tamarkin
Conductor Steven Larsen
Conductor Michael Tilson Thomas   [Second of two interviews; link to the first is included]
Conductor George Manahan
Conductor Paul Freeman    [Three Interviews]
Conductor/Composer Harold Bauer    [Founder of the New Philharmonic, and the DuPage Opera Theatre]
Conductor/Composer David Epstein
Conductor Dieter Kober    [Founder of the Chicago Chamber Orchestra]
Conductor Michael Morgan
Conductor Kenneth Jean
Conductor/Organist Thomas Wikman   [Founder of Music of the Baroque]
Conductor John Fiore
Conductor/Organist James O'Donnell   [Master of the Choristers, Westminster Cathedral]
Conductor Eve Queler    [Founder of the Opera Orchestra of New York]
Conductor Kay George Roberts
Conductor Lawrence Leighton Smith
Conductor/Pianist William Eddins
Conductor Franz Welser-Möst
Conductor Alexander Platt
Conductor Carlo Rizzi
Conductor Pier Giorgio Calabria
Conductor Hal France
Conductor Gustav Kuhn
Conductor Robert Carter Austin
Conductor John DeMain
Conductor Duain Wolfe    [Chicago Symphony Chorus]
Conductor Stuart Challender
Conductor James Paul
mic Conductor Christof Perick
mic Conductor Lawrence Foster
mic Conductor David Stahl
mic Conductor James Sedares
Conductor/Pianist Joshua Rifkin
Conductor/Pianist Richard Woitach
Conductor/Pianist/Composer Rudolph Palmer
Conductor/Violinist/Composer Frederic Balazs
Conductor/Producer/Translator Walter Ducloux
Conductor and Director Ted Taylor and Carl Ratner    [Second of three interviews with Ratner; links to the others are included]
Conductor and Director Mark Flint and David Gately    [Two Interviews with Gately]
Conductor/Composer and Director Lawrence Rapchak and Carl Ratner
          [First two of four interviews with Rapchak, and first of three interviews with Ratner; links to the others are included]



Group Four - KEYBOARDISTS




Pianist Maurizio Pollini
Pianist John Browning
Pianist/Composer Noël Lee
Pianist/Conductor Mikhail Pletnev
Pianist Alfred Brendel
Pianist Rudolf Firkušný
Pianist Gilbert Kalish
Pianist Paul Badura-Skoda
Pianist György Sándor
Pianist Leif Ove Andsnes
Pianist Murray Perahia
Pianist Cristina Ortiz
Pianist Ruth Laredo
Pianist Abbey Simon
partch Pianist Stephen Hough
Pianist Richard Goode
Pianist Tatiana Nikolayeva
Pianist Misha Dichter
Pianist Janina Fialkowska
Pianist/Conductor/Composer Ralf Gothóni
Pianist/Composer/Conductor Olli Mustonen
Pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet
Pianist Earl Wild
Pianist/Conductor Justus Frantz
Pianist/Conductor Christoph Eschenbach
Pianist Menahem Pressler
Pianist Tzimon Barto
Pianist David Owen Norris
Pianist Till Fellner
Pianist/Conductor/Teacher Leon Fleisher
Pianist Van Cliburn
Pianist Ivo Pogorelich
Pianist Peter Donohoe
Pianist Pierre-Laurent Aimard
Pianist Barbara Nissman
Pianist Maria João Pires
Pianist Mūza Rubackytė
Pianist/Conductor Philippe Entremont
Pianist Emanuel Ax
Pianist Lang Lang
Pianist Leonard Hokanson
Pianist Ramon Salvatore
Pianist Helge Antoni
Pianist Dmitry Paperno
Pianist Gail Quillman   [Includes material about her teacher, Leo Sowerby (Pulitzer Prize, 1946)]
Pianist Leon Bates
Pianist Philip Sabransky
Pianist Mitsuko Uchida
Pianist Alan Feinberg
mic Pianist Alan Mandel
mic Pianist Garrick Ohlsson
mic Pianist Justin Kolb
Pianist/Conductor Ian Hobson
Pianist and Cellist Carol Honigberg and Steven Honigberg

Harpsichordist Igor Kipnis
Harpsichordist/Organist David Schrader
Organist Peter Hurford
Organist/Conductor Simon Preston
mic Organist/Conductor Richard Webster
Keyboardist/Composer Anthony Newman

Piano Technician Franz Mohr   [Chief Concert Technician, Steinway & Sons, 1968-1992]



Group Five - OTHER INSTRUMENTALISTS (Strings, Woodwinds, Brass, Percussion, Etc.)


partch Violinist Isaac Stern
Violinist Gidon Kremer
Violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter
Violinist Sergiu Luca
Violinist Midori
Violinist Rachel Barton Pine
Violinist Robert McDuffie
Violinist Vincent P. Skowronski
Violinist Victor Aitay   [Concertmaster, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Violinists Irvine Arditti and David Alberman   [Arditti Quartet]
Violinist/Conductor Yehudi Menuhin
Violinist/Conductor Jeanne Lamon   [Tafelmusik]
Violinist/Conductor Lawrence Golan
Violinist/Composer Rubén D’Artagnan González   [Co-concertmaster, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Violinist/Violist Irving Ilmer   [Fine Arts Quartet]
Violinist and Violist Shmuel Ashkenasi and Richard Young   [Vermeer Quartet]
Violinist and Bassoonist Adrian Da Prato and Wilbur Simpson   [Senior members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
during its Centennial Season (1990-91)]

Violist Kim Kashkashian
Violist Marcus Thompson
Violist/Conductor Yuri Bashmet
Violist/Violinist Charles Pikler   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Cellist János Starker
Cellist Anner Bylsma
Cellist Julian Lloyd Webber
Cellist Lynn Harrell
Cellist Steven Isserlis
Cellist/Conductor Mstislav Rostropovich   [Includes letter to BD from Herbert von Karajan]
Cellist/Conductor Heinrich Schiff
Gambist Mary Springfels
Contrabassist Bertram Turetzky
Double Bassist Gary Karr
mic Double Bassist/Composer François Rabbath
Performer and Scholar of the Double Bass and Violone Jerry Fuller

Harpist Yolanda Kondonassis
Harpist Sarah Bullen   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Guitarist Angel Romero
Guitarist David Russell
Guitarist Oscar Ghiglia
Lutenist Paul O'Dette
Lutenist Hopkinson Smith

Flutist Samuel Baron
Flutist Carol Wincenc
Flutist James Galway
Flutist Mary Stolper   [Principal, Grant Park Symphony]
Flutist Donald Peck   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Recorder Player Michala Petri
Oboist Ingo Goritzki
Oboist Ray Still   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Clarinetist Richard Stoltzman
Clarinetists Sabine Meyer and Reiner Wehle
Clarinetist John Bruce Yeh   [Assistant Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]   [Two interviews -- #1 is about the basset horn]
Clarinetist Larry Combs   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Saxophonist David Pituch
Saxophonist Frederick Hemke
Bassoonist Milan Turkovic
Bassoonist/Conductor/Composer Arthur Weisberg
Contrabassoonist Susan Nigro

Trumpeter Crispian Steele-Perkins
Trumpeter Timofei Dokshizer
Trumpeter Rolf Smedvig   [Empire Brass]
Trumpeter Ross Beacraft   [Chicago Brass Quintet]
Trumpeter/Conductor Stephen Burns   [Founder, Fulcrum Point New Music Project]
Horn Player Dale Clevenger   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Trombonist Christian Lindberg
Trombonist Charles Vernon  [Bass Trombone, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Trombonist/Conductor Jay Friedman  [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]
Tubist Harvey Phillips
Tubist Samuel Pilafian   [Empire Brass]
Tubist Gene Pokorny   [Principal, Chicago Symphony Orchestra]

Percussionist Evelyn Glennie

Accordionist Robert Davine

Concert Manager Henry Fogel    [Chicago Symphony Orchestra]



Group Six - SINGERS, Etc.

Note: Many more singers and other operatic personnel
can be found in the various publications which
are listed farther down on this webpage.

While ALL interviews which have been transcribed are
listed on this webpage, those who have appeared with
Lyric Opera of Chicago have also been gathered HERE.


Soprano Evelyn Lear
Soprano Phyllis Curtin
partch Soprano Phyllis Bryn-Julson
Soprano Kari Lövaas
Soprano Neva Pilgrim
Soprano Cristina Deutekom
Soprano Dame Margaret Price
Soprano Helen Donath
Soprano Dame Eva Turner
Soprano Martina Arroyo
Soprano Isobel Buchanan
Soprano Dame Felicity Lott
Soprano Bethany Beardslee
Soprano Marni Nixon
Soprano Ileana Cotrubaș
Soprano Roberta Peters   [Two Interviews]
Soprano Lorna Haywood
Soprano Norma Burrowes
Soprano Judith Blegen
Soprano Elly Ameling
Soprano Benita Valente
Soprano Eleanor Steber
Soprano Carol Vaness
Soprano Gwyneth Jones
Soprano Elisabeth Söderström
Soprano Cecilia Gasdia
Soprano Eva Mei
Soprano Ghena Dimitrova
Soprano Arleen Augér
Soprano Karita Mattila
Soprano Mariella Devia
Soprano Renée Fleming
Soprano Nadine Secunde
Soprano Tina Kiberg
Soprano Susan Dunn
Soprano Judith Nelson
Soprano Marie McLaughlin
Soprano Brenda Roberts
Soprano Lucy Shelton
Soprano Anna Moffo
Soprano Barbara Ann Martin
Soprano Linda Zoghby
Soprano Lella Cuberli
Soprano Christine Brandes
Soprano Ellen Hargis
Soprano Edith Mathis
Soprano Reri Grist
Soprano Wilhelmenia Fernandez
Soprano Deborah Voigt
Soprano Mary Beth Peil
Soprano Sylvia McNair
Soprano Nancy Gustafson
Soprano Helen Boatwright
Soprano Angelina Réaux
Soprano Julianne Baird
Soprano Elizabeth Hynes
Soprano Emily Magee
Soprano Constance Hauman
Soprano Jane Eaglen
Soprano Daniela Dessì
Soprano Ashley Putnam
Soprano Luciana Serra
mic Soprano Carol Neblett
mic Soprano Barbara Daniels
mic Soprano Carole Farley
mic Soprano Sharon Sweet
Soprano/Mezzo-Soprano Regina Resnik
Soprano/Mezzo-Soprano Anja Silja
Soprano/Mezzo-Soprano Felicity Palmer
Soprano/Composer Joan La Barbara
Soprano/Conductor Anne Marie Ketchum
mic Soprano/Conductor Susan Davenny Wyner
Soprano/Director Graziella Sciutti
Soprano and Conductor Kiri Te Kanawa and Sir John Pritchard
          [Third of three interviews with Pritchard; links to the others are included]
Soprano and Tenor Judith Raddue and Carl Tanner
          [Plus fourth of four interviews with Lawrence Rapchak; links to the others are included]
Mezzo-Soprano Risë Stevens
Mezzo-Soprano Dolora Zajick
Mezzo-Soprano Brigitte Fassbaender
Mezzo-Soprano Herta Glaz
Mezzo-Soprano Anna Reynolds
Mezzo-Soprano Tatiana Troyanos
Mezzo-Soprano Patricia Kern
Mezzo-Soprano Sonia Sharnova
Mezzo-Soprano Giulietta Simionato
Mezzo-Soprano Elena Zilio
Mezzo-Soprano Florence Quivar
Mezzo-Soprano Ann Murray
Mezzo-Soprano Sandra Warfield
Mezzo-Soprano Janice Taylor
Mezzo-Soprano Martha Lipton
Mezzo-Soprano Jennifer Larmore    [Two Interviews]
Mezzo-Soprano Nancy Maultsby
Mezzo-Soprano Hilda Harris
Mezzo-Soprano Denyce Graves
Mezzo-Soprano Diane Curry
Mezzo-Soprano Robynne Redmon
Mezzo-Soprano Anita Berry
Mezzo-Soprano Cynthia Munzer
Mezzo-Soprano Constance Beavon
Mezzo-Soprano Frederica von Stade    [Two Interviews]
Mezzo-Soprano Sandra Walker
Mezzo-Soprano Delores Ziegler
Mezzo-Soprano Stefania Toczyska
mic Mezzo-Soprano Carol Madalin
mic Mezzo-Soprano Janice Felty
Mezzo-Soprano/Soprano Shirley Verrett
Mezzo-Soprano/Soprano Kay Griffel
Mezzo-Soprano and Bass-Baritone Mimi Lerner and Monte Jaffe
Mezzo-Soprano and Bass Fiorenza Cossotto and Ivo Vinco
Mezzo-Soprano and Conductor Melanie Sonnenberg and Bradley Vieth
Contralto Bernadette Manca di Nissa

Counter-tenor Christopher Robson
Counter-tenor Derek Lee Ragin
partch Tenor Carlo Bergonzi
Tenor Rockwell Blake
Tenor Wiesław Ochman
Tenor Graham Clark
Tenor Ryland Davies
Tenor Ragnar Ulfung
Tenor Anthony Rolfe Johnson
Tenor Émile Belcourt
Tenor Gösta Winbergh   [Two Interviews]
Tenor Neil Shicoff
Tenor Peter Dvorský
Tenor Michael Schade
Tenor Paul Sperry
Tenor Ernst Haefliger
Tenor Poul Elming
Tenor Kurt Streit
Tenor Vyacheslav Polozov
Tenor Vladimir Galouzine
Tenor Chris Merritt   [Two Interviews]
Tenor Bruce Ford
Tenor Thomas Young
Tenor Vinson Cole
Tenor Richard Leech   [Two Interviews]
Tenor Jonathan Welch
Tenor Gregory Kunde
Tenor Michael Ballam
Tenor Michael Sylvester
Comprimario Tenor Piero De Palma
Tenor/Administrator Frank Little
Tenor/Administrator John Vorrasi
Tenor/Administrator David Lloyd
Tenor/Conductor Peter Schreier
Tenor/Director Laurence Dale
Baritone Hermann Prey
Baritone Nikolai Putilin
Baritone Richard Stilwell
Baritone Frank Guarrera
Baritone Sir Thomas Allen
Baritone Renato Capecchi
Baritone Thomas Hampson
Baritone and Oboist John Shirley-Quirk and Sara Watkins
Baritone Pablo Elvira
Baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky
Baritone/Author Marko Rothmüller
Baritone Rolando Panerai
Baritone Donnie Ray Albert
Baritone Max van Egmond
Baritone David Pittman-Jennings
kc Baritone Robert Merrill
Baritone Brent Ellis
Baritone Robert Orth
Baritone William Stone
Baritone William Sharp
Baritone Brian Davis
Baritone Norman Mittelmann
Baritone Jubilant Sykes
mic Baritone Claudio Desderi
mic Baritone Wolfgang Schöne
mic Baritone Alessandro Corbelli
mic Baritone Timothy Nolen
mic Baritone Ingvar Wixell
mic Baritone Roberto Scaltriti
mic Baritone Lucio Gallo
mic Baritone Alan Titus
Heldenbariton Hartmut Welker
Baritone/Director/Administrator Philip Kraus
Bass-Baritone Walter Berry
Bass-Baritone Norman Bailey
Bass-Baritone Heinz Rehfuss
Bass-Baritone José van Dam
Bass-Baritone Arnold Voketaitis   [Two Interviews]
Bass-Baritone Ruggero Raimondi
Bass-Baritone William Powers
mic Bass-Baritone James Morris
Bass Nicola Zaccaria
Bass Robert Lloyd
Bass Michael Langdon
Bass John Macurdy
Bass Martti Talvela
Bass Nicola Rossi-Lemeni
Bass Sir John Tomlinson
Bass Gwynne Howell
Bass Richard Van Allan
Bass Lorenzo Alvary
Bass Spiro Malas
Bass Samuel Ramey
Bass Jan-Hendrik Rootering
mic Bass Nicola Ghiuselev
mic Bass Ferruccio Furlanetto
mic Bass Bonaldo Giaiotti
mic Bass Andrea Silvestrelli
mic Bass Roberto Scandiuzzi
Bass/Director Italo Tajo
Bass and Mezzo-Soprano Stafford Dean and Anne Howells

Chorus Master Michael Lepore   [Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1954-74]

Actor/Narrator Werner Klemperer
Actor/Director Sam Wanamaker
Actor/Director Frank Galati
Director Sir Peter Hall
Director John Copley
Director Harry Silverstein
Director Dominic Missimi
Director Arthur Masella
Director Robert Tannenbaum
Director Rhoda Levine
mic Director Giulio Chazalettes
mic Director Elijah Moshinsky
Director/Translator Richard Pearlman
Director and Soprano Patrick Bakman and Gloria Capone
Director and Conductor Marc Verzatt and Lawrence Rapchak   [Third of four interviews with Rapchak; links to the others are included]
Director and Conductor Linda Brovsky and Joseph De Rugeriis    [Second interview with De Rugeriis; link to the first is included]
Director and Administrator Mary Zimmerman and Carl Ratner    [Third of three interviews with Ratner; links to the others are included]
Designer/Director Pier Luigi Samaritani
Designer/Director John Pascoe
Technical Director (later Deputy General Director and COO) Drew Landmesser    [Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1987-2006, 2010-2024]
Costume Director (Wardrobe Master) Hugh Pruett    [Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1959-2000]
Wigmaster and Makeup Designer Stan Dufford    [San Francisco Opera, 1956-1968; Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1972-2000]
mic Stage Managers Caroline Moores and John Coleman    [Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1994-2015 (Moores);
                                                       and 1991-2021, then Metropolitan Opera, New York, 2021- (Coleman)]
mic Production Administrator and Artistic Services Coordinator Marina Vecci and Josie Campbell
                                                               [Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1975-2013 (Vecci); and 1983-2018 (Campbell)]
Boy Soprano, later Administrator, and General Director William Mason    [Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1954-2011]
Publicist Danny Newman    [Second of Two Interviews]



Group Seven - WRITERS, TECHNICIANS, PATRONS, Etc.


Critic/Professor Thomas Willis    [Chicago Tribune]
Critic/Author Robert C. Marsh    [Chicago Sun-Times]
Critic/Author Bernard Jacobson    [Chicago Daily News]
Critic/Translator Andrew Porter   [The New Yorker, and various British publications]
Radio Host Karl Haas   [Host of Adventures in Good Music]
Musicologist Stanley Sadie   [Editor of The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians]
Publisher Hans Heinsheimer   [Universal Edition; Boosey & Hawkes; G. Schirmer]
Lexicographer Nicolas Slonimsky   [Editor of Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians]
Editor/Broadcaster/Soporano Ruby Mercer    [Founder and Editor of Opera Canada]
Radio Commentator/Author George Jellinek    [Host of The Vocal Scene]   [Two Interviews]

Recording Producer Wilma Cozart Fine    [Mercury Records]
Recording Producer Edward (Ted) Perry    [Hyperion Records]
Recording Producer James Ginsburg    [Cedille Records]
Recording Producer Robert von Bahr    [BIS Records]
Replica Builder J. Paul Barnett   [Cannons and mechanism used in the 1812 Overture]

Patron Paul Fromm    [Fromm Music Foundation]






These articles have been linked to other websites
or given to various musical organizations
(All have interview material)


CSO Brass Buddies Concert
           (Linked to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Website in March, 2001)
           (Includes brief portions of interview with Trombonist/Conductor Jay Friedman; the complete interview is HERE)

COT Good Soldier Schweik

           (Linked to the Chicago Opera Theater Website in March, 2001)
           (Includes brief portions of interview with Director Harry Silverstein; the complete interview is HERE)

Interview with Conductor Nicholas Cleobury
           (Linked to the Chicago Opera Theater Website in June, 2001)

Woodstock Mozart Festival
           (Given to the Woodstock Festival in July, 2001)
           (Includes brief portions of interviews with Manager Anita Whalen and Violinist/Conductor Mark Peskanov)

Interview with Violinist Maxim Vengerov
           (Given to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in September, 2001)

Interview with Pianist Alexander Toradze
           (Given to the Northbrook Symphony Orchestra in January, 2002)

Interview with Mezzo-Soprano Vesselina Kasarova
           (Given to the Opera Orchestra of New York in October, 2006)

Interview with Tenor Ramón Vargas
           (Given to the Opera Orchestra of New York in October, 2006)





These are my interviews which were
published in The Opera Journal,
the quarterly magazine of the
National Opera Association.
They appeared regularly between September, 1985, and December, 2021.
Those posted here are as submitted, except for a few as published* .
Most of them now include photographs.


Mezzo-Soprano Teresa Berganza    [September, 1985]
Bass Terry Cook    [December, 1985]
Soprano Marilyn Zschau    [March, 1986]
Director Nathaniel Merrill    [June, 1986]*
Quizmaster Edward Downes    [September, 1986]
Mezzo-Soprano Sharon Graham    [December, 1986]
Tenor Vasile Moldoveanu    [March, 1987]*
Conductor Max Rudolf    [June, 1987]*
Prompter Jane Klaviter    [December, 1987]*
Opera Manager/Author The Earl of Harewood    [March, 1988]
Opera Producer Boris Goldovsky    [June, 1988]
Soprano Ellen Shade    [September, 1988]
Opera Producer Robert Gay    [December, 1988]
Baritone Lenus Carlson    [March, 1989]*
Opera Manager Marc Belfort    [June, 1989]
Opera Manager Ardis Krainik    [September, 1989]
Opera Manager Glynn Ross    [December, 1989]
Bass William Warfield    [March, 1990]
Composer and Librettist/Director Lee Goldstein and Charles Kondek    [June, 1990]
Chorus Master David Stivender    [September, 1990]
Director Frank Corsaro    [December, 1990]
Opera Manager Martin Feinstein    [March, 1991]
Conductor Emerson Buckley    [June, 1991]
Historian/Scholar Philip Gossett    [September, 1991]
Director Robert Wilson    [December, 1991]
Mezzo-Soprano Jean Kraft    [March, 1992]*
Director Peter Sellars    [June, 1992]*
Composer Marvin David Levy    [September, 1992]
Soprano Sheri Greenawald    [December, 1992]
Tenor Neil Rosenshein    [March, 1993]
Baritone Peter Glossop    [June, 1993]*
Soprano Alpha Floyd    [September, 1993]
Director Sandro Sequi    [December, 1993]
Conductor/Director Sarah Caldwell    [March, 1994]
Librettist Harvey Hess    [June, 1994]*
Bass Jerome Hines    [September, 1994]
Captain of Supers Ken Recu    [December, 1994]
Director Bodo Igesz    [March, 1995]
Soprano Gianna Rolandi    [June, 1995]
Countertenor Jeffrey Gall    [September, 1995]
Soprano Kathryn Harries    [March, 1996]
Bass Eric Halfvarson    [September, 1996]
Tenor Paul Groves    [June/September, 1998]
Lighting Designer Duane Schuler    [December, 1998]
Soprano Laura Aikin    [March, 1999]
Bass Mark S. Doss    [June, 1999]
Tenor Thomas Moser    [September, 2000]
Composer Robert Ward    [December, 2000]   [Pulitzer Prize, 1962]
           (Note: This was my second interview with Robert Ward. The first one, from 1985, can be seen here.)
Soprano Patricia Racette    [March, 2001]
Mezzo-Soprano Susan Graham    [June, 2001]
Chorus Master Donald Palumbo    [September, 2001]
Baritone Alexandru Agache    [December, 2001]
Tenor George Shirley    [March, 2002]
Conductor Yakov Kreizberg    [June, 2002]
Soprano Leontina Vaduva    [September, 2002]
Baritone Rodney Gilfry    [June, 2003]
Tenor David Cangelosi    [September/December, 2003]
Soprano Sheryl Woods    [March, 2004]
Mezzo-Soprano Gillian Knight    [June, 2004]
Bass-Baritone John Del Carlo    [December, 2005]
Tenor Robin Leggate    [June, 2006]
Ballet Master Maria Tallchief    [September, 2006]
Soprano Andrea Gruber    [March, 2007]
Conductor Emmanuel Villaume    [June, 2007]
Designer John Conklin    [September, 2007]
Bass Franz Hawlata    [March, 2008]
Conductor Antonio Pappano    [June, 2008]
Director Harold Prince    [September, 2008]
Mezzo-Soprano Michelle DeYoung    [December, 2008]

       Due to delays in production, no issues of The Opera Journal were dated 2009.

Soprano June Anderson    [2010 #1 & #2 (Double Issue)]
Tenor Donald Kaasch    [2010 #3 & #4 (Double Issue)]
Soprano Barbara Bonney    [2011 #1 & #2 (Double Issue)]
Soprano Régine Crespin    (Also in 2011 #1 & #2)
Basso Buffo Paolo Montarsolo    (Also in 2011 #1 & #2)
Conductor Lorin Maazel    [2011 #3 & #4 (Double Issue)]
Baritone/Director Tito Gobbi    [2012 #1]
Mezzo-Soprano/Soprano Margaret Harshaw    [2012 #2]
Composer Hugo Weisgall    [2012 #3]
Soprano Leonie Rysanek    [2012 #4]
Baritone Theodor Uppman    [2013 #1]
Mezzo-Soprano/Soprano Grace Bumbry    (Also Opera Scene March, 1983)   [2013 #2]
Tenor James King    [2013 #3]
Tenor James McCracken    [2013 #4]
Mezzo-Soprano Marilyn Horne    [2014 #1]
Soprano Licia Albanese    (Also Massenet Newsletter July, 1989)   [2014 #2]
Soprano and Tenor Pierrette Alarie and Léopold Simoneau    [Two Interviews with both singers together]
[2014 #3 & #4 (Two parts)]
Actor/Director Sir Peter Ustinov    [2015 #1]
Tenor John Aler    [2015 #2]
Bass-Baritone Donald Gramm    (Also Massenet Newsletter July, 1985)   [2015 #3]
Composer Jack Beeson    [2015 #4]
Conductor Stewart Robertson    [2016 #1]
Soprano Mattiwilda Dobbs    [2016 #2]
Director John Cox    [2016 #3]
Baritone Cornell MacNeil    [2016 #4]
Composer Libby Larsen    [2017 #1]
Tenor Ian Bostridge    [2017 #2]
Conductor Riccardo Chailly    [2017 #3]
Baritone Piero Cappuccilli    [2017 #4]

       Beginning in 2018, The Opera Journal was published twice each year - in June and December.

Contralto Maureen Forrester    [2018 #1]
Vocal Coach Janine Reiss    [2018 #2]
Actor/Director Charles Nelson Reilly    [2019 #1]
Soprano Dawn Upshaw    [2019 #2]
Conductor/Composer Esa-Pekka Salonen    [2020 #1]
Tenor William Brown    [2020 #2]
Property Master Thomas Gilbert    [Lyric Opera of Chicago, 1973-2011]    [2021 #1]
Bass-Baritone/Director Andrew Foldi    [2021 #2]


                     This concludes my series in The Opera Journal.



These articles have been published in CityTalk Magazine.
The originals, as submitted to the editor, are posted here.
(Some have interview material)


All Mozart, All the Time    (January 26, 2001)
The Heifetz Centennial    (February 2, 2001)
           (Includes brief portions of interview with Violinist Elizabeth Matesky)
The Trojans at Orchestra Hall    (February 9, 2001)
Love & Music    (February 16, 2001)
           (Considered by the editor, but not used)
Schubert Celebration on WFMT    (February 23, 2001)
           (Requested by the editor, but not used)
Presenting Lawrence Rapchak    (March 2, 2001)
           (Considered by the editor, but not used)
           (Full interviews with Rapchak are HERE, HERE, HERE, and very briefly HERE)
The Death of WNIB    (March 9, 2001)
Alfred Brendel at Orchestra Hall    (April 13, 2001)
           (Scheduled to run, but dropped for space)
           (Includes brief portions of interview with Brendel; the full interview is HERE)
mic  Verdi Requiem at Orchestra Hall    (April 20, 2001)
           (Includes brief portions of interview with Chorus Master Duain Wolfe; the full interview is HERE)
Boulez and Uchida at Orchestra Hall    (April 27, 2001)
           (Includes brief portions of interview with pianist Mitsuko Uchida; the full interview is HERE)
           (The two full interviews with Boulez are HERE)
Bach Week in Evanston    (May 4, 2001)
           (Includes brief portions of interview with Conductor Richard Webster; the full interview is HERE)
Nothing further of mine will be given to this publication




Note that in the following three publications,
Wagner News, Massenet Newsletter, and Nit & Wit,
in all cases where I eventually did two interviews with a guest or guests,
both are posted in their entirety on this website, but only
the first one was printed in the magazine on the date indicated.
Also, though they were published in magazines devoted to Wagner or
Massenet, my interviews usually covered a wide range of musical topics.




For a very special music joke about Mary Had a Little Lamb, click HERE.
From 1980 until 1992, forty-five of my interviews (plus five articles)
were published in Wagner News, the newsletter of the
Wagner Society of America. (LIST)
Here are most of those interviews.
Heldenbariton Noel Tyl    [October, 1980]
Mezzo-Soprano Ruža Baldani    [December, 1980]
Conductor Marek Janowski     [Two Interviews]   [January & March, 1981 (Two Parts)]
Mezzo-Soprano/Soprano Janis Martin    [April, 1981]   (Also Opera Scene, October, 1982)
Bass Hans Sotin    [June, 1981]   (Also Opera Scene, October, 1982)
Mezzo-Contralto Geraldine Decker    [Summer, 1981]
Article about Producer Gian Carlo Menotti (with quotes from my interview)    [Summer, 1981]
Tenor Hermann Winkler    [September, 1981]
Tenor William Johns    [November, 1981]
Conductor James Levine    [December, 1981]   (Also Opera Scene, July, 1982)

"The First Digital Tristan; A Talk with the Maestro, the Hero and the Boss"    [February, 1982]
                          (Interviews with Conductor Sir Reginald Goodall, Tenor John Mitchinson,
                          and Brian McMaster, General Administrator of the Welsh National Opera)

Baritone Thomas Stewart      [Two Interviews]   [March, 1982]
Mezzo-Soprano Yvonne Minton      [Two Interviews]   [May, 1982]
Tenor David Gordon    [May, 1982]   (Also Opera Scene, November, 1982)
Soprano Johanna Meier    [Summer, 1982]
Bass-Baritone Tom Krause    [December, 1982]
Conductor Ferdinand Leitner    [January, 1983]
Bass-Baritone Simon Estes    [April, 1983]
Bass-Baritone Siegmund Nimsgern    [July, 1983]   (Also Opera Scene, April, 1983)
Mezzo-Soprano Blanche Thebom    [August, 1983]
Conductor Erich Leinsdorf     [Two Interviews]   [June, 1984]
Soprano Eva Marton     [Two Interviews]   [November, 1984]

"Wagner in Chicago Before Lyric -- The Resident Companies at Home and on Tour 1910-1946"   [March, 1985]

Soprano/Mezzo-Soprano Helga Dernesch    [July, 1985]
Mezzo-Soprano Nadine Denize    [October, 1985]
Bass Don Garrard    [March, 1986]
Soprano/Mezzo-Soprano Rose Bampton    [April, 1986]

"Seattle and the New Ring"    [Summer, 1986]
             (Interviews with Conductor Armin Jordan, Director François Rochaix, and Designer Robert Israel)

Tenor Jon Vickers    [October, 1986]
Conductor Sir John Pritchard    [February, 1987]   [Second of three interviews; links to the others are included]
Soprano/Mezzo-Soprano Martha Mödl    [March, 1987]
Baritone Julian Patrick    [July, 1987]
Conductor Edwin McArthur    [September, 1987]
Soprano Anna Tomowa-Sintow    [December, 1987]
Conductor Maurice Abravanel    [January, 1988]   (Also Massenet Newsletter, July, 1986)
Bass Giorgio Tozzi    [March, 1988]
Bass Kurt Moll    [May, 1988]
Conductor Christopher Keene    [September, 1988]
Director August Everding    [October, 1988]
Baritone Roger Roloff    [February, 1989]
Soprano Birgit Nilsson    [Summer, 1989]
Bass William Wildermann    [December, 1989]
Bass-Baritone Archie Drake    [April, 1990]
Administrator/Conductor Kurt Herbert Adler    [September, 1990]
Conductor Hermann Michael    [May, 1991]
Tenor Jean Cox    [January, 1992]






From 1982 until 1993, thirty-two of my interviews (plus one article)
were published in The Massenet Newsletter, the semi-annual journal
of The Massenet Society. (LIST)  Here are those interviews.

 Conductor Michel Plasson    [January, 1982]
Tenor Alfredo Kraus    [July, 1982]   (Also Opera Scene, August, 1982)
Conductor Jean Fournet    [January, 1983]
Conductor Julius Rudel    [July, 1983]

Massenet, Mary Garden, and the Chicago Opera 1910-1932    [January, 1984]

Tenor André Jobin    [June, 1984]
Soprano Valerie Masterson    [January, 1985]
Mezzo-Soprano Alicia Nafé    [July, 1985]
Bass-Baritone Donald Gramm    [July, 1985]    (Also The Opera Journal, 2015, #3)
Soprano Bidú Sayão    [January, 1986]
Baritone Martial Singher    [January, 1986]
Mezzo-Soprano Lucia Valentini Terrani    [January, 1986]
Soprano Helen Jepson    [July, 1986]
Conductor Maurice Abravanel    [July, 1986]   (Also Wagner News, January, 1988)
Conductor/Composer Manuel Rosenthal    [January, 1987]
Mezzo-Soprano Kathleen Kuhlmann    [January, 1987]
Soprano Dorothy Kirsten    [July, 1987]
Tenor Barry McCauley    [July, 1987]
Historian Anne Bessand-Massenet    [January, 1988]
Mezzo-Soprano Susanne Mentzer      [Two Interviews]   [January, 1988]
Tenor Jerry Hadley      [Two Interviews]   [July, 1988]
Mezzo-Soprano Wendy White    [January, 1989]
Baritone William Parker    [January, 1989]
Soprano Licia Albanese    [July 1989]   (Also The Opera Journal, 2014, #2)
Baritone Sherrill Milnes      [Two Interviews]    [January, 1990]
Soprano Sunny Joy Langton    [January, 1990]
Soprano and Conductor Joan Sutherland and Richard Bonynge    [July, 1990]
Soprano Catherine Malfitano    [January, 1991]
Soprano Renata Scotto    [July, 1991]
Baritone Dale Duesing    [January, 1992]
Soprano Jarmila Novotná    [June, 1992]
Tenor Jacque Trussel    [January, 1993]
Soprano Faith Esham    [July, 1993]





From 1984 until 1987, nine of my interviews were published
in Nit & Wit, a bi-monthly literary arts magazine. (LIST)
Here are those interviews, as well as a couple that did not get published . . .

 Soprano and Bass Mirella Freni and Nicolai Ghiaurov   [Two Interviews with both singers together]   [September, 1984]
Baritone J. Patrick Raftery   [November, 1984]
Baritone Benjamin Luxon   [January, 1986]
Conductor/Pianist Daniel Barenboim   [Two Interviews]   [March, 1986]
Mezzo-Soprano Mignon Dunn   [May, 1986]
Composer Steve Reich   [Two Interviews]   [July, 1986]
Tenor Francisco Araiza   [Two Interviews]   [September, 1986]
Director/Manager Lotfi Mansouri   [November, 1986]
Conductor Michael Tilson Thomas    [First of Two Interviews; link to the second is included]   [March, 1987]
Composer Donald Erb   [Pulitzer Finalist, 1995]  [1987, but unpublished due to the demise of this magazine]
Director Sonja Frisell   [1987, but unpublished due to the demise of this magazine]



From May of 1982 until June of 1983, a business partner
and I published Opera Scene magazine.
The eleven issues included twenty-one of my interviews
(plus six articles). (LIST) As noted above, a few had been
previously published in Wagner News or the Massenet Newsletter.
Here are those interviews.

 Soprano Ruth Welting    [May, 1982]
Conductor Bruno Bartoletti   [Three Interivews]   [May, 1982]
Tenor William Eichorn    [July, 1982]**
Conductor James Levine    [July, 1982]   (Also Wagner News, December, 1981)
Bass Paul Plishka   [Two Interviews]    [August, 1982]
Tenor Alfredo Kraus    [August, 1982]   (Also Massenet Newsletter, July, 1982)
Mezzo-Soprano/Soprano Janis Martin    [October, 1982]   (Also Wagner News, April, 1981)
Bass Hans Sotin    [October, 1982]   (Also Wagner News, July, 1981)
Soprano Josephine Barstow    [November, 1982]
Tenor David Gordon    [November, 1982]**   (Also Wagner News, May, 1982)
Baritone Sesto Bruscantini    [December, 1982]
Comprimario Tenor Florindo Andreolli    [December, 1982]
Soprano Elena Mauti-Nunziata    [January, 1983]
Tenor Giuliano Ciannella    [January, 1983]
Artistic Director Alan Stone    [Founder of the Chicago Opera Theater]   [Four Interviews]    [February, 1983]
Mezzo-Soprano/Soprano Grace Bumbry    [March, 1983]   (Also The Opera Journal, 2013 #2)
Tenor Gualtiero Negrini    [March, 1983]**
Bass-Baritone Siegmund Nimsgern    [April, 1983]   (Also Wagner News, July, 1983)
Conductor Joseph De Rugeriis    [April, 1983]**   (First of two interviews; link to the other is included)
Mezzo-Soprano Claudine Carlson    [May, 1983]
Soprano Michelle Harman Gulick    [May, 1983]**

               **Denotes my series on the Young Performer



In June of 1990, I was asked by Northwestern University
to deliver the Address to the Graduates at the
School of Music Commencement Convocation.
To read that address and see pictures of the event,
click HERE



To see the full list of my interview guests
click HERE
[This list is being kept up to date]



To see the list of my published interviews
click HERE













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