I began collecting the recordings of the French conductor Pierre Monteux more than 30 years ago, first on vinyl then on CD. I have almost everything he did by now.
Monteux was a wonderful conductor, never showy or exaggerated but always crisp, vital and vibrant, even in his late recordings. (The Mozart symphony recordings above were made when he was 88.) Most or all of his stereo recordings were made in his 80s, in fact, as he turned 80 in 1955. (Stravinsky wrote his “Greeting Prelude” as a birthday gift to Monteux that year.)
Click on the photos for larger views of some of my Monteux record labels.
classical life 