I was sorry to hear this. Tanglewood has sent a press release that the great Spanish conductor Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos has retired for good.
It says:
Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos has resigned his position as Chief Conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and has signaled an immediate end to his conducting career. The 80-year-old Spaniard, who has been beset with health problems in recent months wrote “After meeting with my doctors I have come to the following conclusion: I have to recognize publicly that I have cancer and that in this state of health and with deep sorrow I am not able to conduct at my standards and the moment to quit professional matters has come.”
More here.
Best wishes to him. He’s one of the best.
That explains why he wasn’t on the LA Phil’s schedule this coming season.
That is too bad to hear. A wonderful conductor and seemed to be very popular with orchestras. His many visits to LA indicated he was well liked by the orchestra. Of course, his performances were great too. I heard him do a Beethoven 8 that was just terrific and a really spectacular Pines of Rome.
He has passed away. Very sad news. He was a very fine musician.
I was lucky enough to see him conduct twice in the last year, memorable performances of The Rite of Spring and Scheherazade.