a mic on the podium

I was lucky enough to meet Atso Almila in person recently and knew he would be the perfect guest to interview - a warm and charming man who speaks frankly and honestly with a touch of humour!

I heard about how he and Esa Pekka Salonen passed their final exam at the Sibelius Academy in bizarre circumstances, he was very frank about how his time conducting in Joensuu came to an end, and at one point, he scares his 15-year-old dog!

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 26th May 2023 via Zoom.

Dane Lam is a conductor who has thought a lot about what we do and how we do it and was a real joy to chat with. We seem to have many common views and I enjoyed his honesty and warmth.

We talked candidly about his experiences conducting his orchestra in China, I found out who had told him that he was "a very lucky boy, and because he is a regular listener to the podcast, his answers to the ten questions at the end were very well thought-through indeed!

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 27th February 2023 via Zoom.

I knew from having met Kazuki Yamada before that chatting with him would be fun. As we are both members of the "CBSO family" now, it was doubly nice to spend some time with this very warm and giving person!

I heard how the choir conductor at his school gave him his very first chances, I found out what item he always has in the pocket of his concert tails, and I discovered why he founded his own orchestra at university and why it was given its extremely strange name

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 20th April 2023 via Zoom.

Rebecca Miller and I seemed to instantly hit it off and we tended to agree on a lot of topics - a very enjoyable interview to make.

We discussed why we both enjoy conducting youth orchestras and how important playing in orchestras is for a young person, we also chatted about the positives and negatives of preparing an orchestra for another conductor, and I heard a fabulous story about Sir Georg Solti conducting the opening of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony!

If you want to hear the bonus mini-episode attached to this episode, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 13th December 2022 via Zoom.

Jaume Santonja and I have known each other since we were both still orchestral players and I knew he would be a very good person to interview - he is always warm and friendly.

I discovered why there is a link between Amsterdam & Spain in the "percussion world", I also discovered that he learned what "topping and tailing" was from a concert conducted by myself, and I hear how he coped with a pressure situation by using a quote from his compatriot, Rafa Nadal!

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 4th April 2023 via Zoom.

Mark Stringer himself said, at the end of our chat, "Good luck editing that down to a manageable length" - well, after over a year of waiting, I have. It is the longest episode so far BUT it is full of great anecdotes, wisdom and advice for any aspiring conductor!

He talks candidly about the "Faustian bargain" he took early in his career, we have a disagreement about whether you need to play the piano to be a good conductor, and I hear why one particular oboist's scowling face was not for the reason he thought it was!

If you want to hear the bonus mini-episode about Mark's experiences teaching Daniel Harding, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 1st December 2021 via Zoom.

Sometimes you meet someone who you not only get on with immediately but you also seem to share the same beliefs with - Enrico Delamboye was one such person. A lovely chat with a very thoughtful conductor.

We had a very honest discussion about "being yourself" regardless of the outcome, we chatted about "anti-specialism" in conducting, and I discover which 90-minute opera made him age by 90 years!

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 12th December 2022 via Zoom.

Over the course of making this podcast, I have encountered conductors who just want to tell you everything and my chat with Bernard Labadie was one such encounter. It is a deeply frank, honest, and candid interview!

We discuss the perils of conducting accompanied recitatives, he was brutally honest about his career as an opera conductor, and his answer to Question 8 went down a very dark path indeed!

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 2nd January 2023 via Zoom.

It had been a very long time since I had spoken to a choral conductor and I think I made the perfect choice to interview. Nigel Short was a joy to chat with and what an interesting career journey he has had!

We talked about the difficulties of recording sessions, I discovered how a skiing trip changed his career path completely, and we have a good chuckle over one particular word that has a very different meaning on either side of the Atlantic!

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 11th November 2022 via Zoom.

Otto Tausk and I are born a few months apart but it seems that we also had a few other things in common. A lovely chat with a very warm and open person!

We discussed how important it is to do your homework when assisting Valery Gergiev, I discovered which orchestra he likens to a Ferrari, and I also discovered which particular food item has been named after him in Vancouver!

If you would like to discover a whole lot more about conductors and conducting, why not subscribe at https://www.patreon.com/amiconthepodium, and, for a monthly fee starting from just £5 a month, you can access two new series of interviews, group Zoom meetings with other fans of the podcast and myself, a monthly bulletin about the podcast and my own career as well as articles, photos, videos and even conducting lessons from myself.

If you listen via Apple podcasts, please do leave a rating and review - it really helps the podcast get noticed and attract more listeners.

If you want to get involved on social media, you can via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/amiconthepodium) or Twitter (@amiconthepodium).

This interview was recorded on 28th November 2022 via Zoom.