Stravinsky conducts Stravinsky — dangerousminds.net

Igor Stravinsky, drawn by Picasso on New Year’s Eve, 1920 The great Russian composer Igor Stravinsky felt that if one was going to become a great composer, one also had to be a great conductor. Stravinsky recorded many of his works more than once, improving as a conductor over time. Unlike most of the greats of classical music, with Stravinsky, whose career spanned much of the 20th century, we have audio and visual documentation of him actually conducting and playing his own music. The various Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky albums released by Columbia Records are an essential part of any decent music collection. This performance was taped in Spring of 1959 when Stravinsky was visiting Japan. The maestro is seen here conducting “The Firebird” (the 1945 “Symphonic Suite” version, not the 1910 ballet) with the NHK Orchestra:

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