CLASSIC CD magazine (a British publication, as may become clear from
the following) has published its list of 100 greatest conductors of the
century.  As with last month's list of 100 greatest singers, the procedure
was to ask two dozen of their critics to vote on their top 25; votes were
then tallied.  Thus "Number 1" does not mean that anyone necessarily
thought him the best conductor of the century, only that he appeared on
more lists than any other.

100.    Zubin Mehta
 99.    Malcolm Sargent
 98.    Christopher Hogwood
 97.    Paul Kletzki
 96.    Desire-Emile Inghelbrecht
 95.    Hans Rosbaud
 94.    Michael Tilson Thomas
 93.    Artur Bodanzky
 92.    Bryden Thomson
 91.    Carl Schuricht
 90.    Joseph Keilberth
 89.    Marc Minkowski
 88.    Frederic Stock
 87.    David Willcocks
 86.    Bruno Maderna
 85.    Anthony Collins
 84.    Oskar Fried
 83.    Artur Rodzinski
 82.    Edward Downes
 81.    Paul McCreesh
 80.    Roger Desormiere
 79.    Reginal Goodall
 78.    Evgeny Svetlanov
 77.    Vernon Handley
 76.    Alexander Gibson
 75.    Paul Paray
 74.    Lorin Maazel
 73.    Rinaldo Alessandrini
 72.    Hans Richter
 71.    Constantin Silvestri
 70.    Igor Stravinsky
 69.    Sir Neville Marriner
 68.    Kurt Masur
 67.    Tullio Serafin
 66.    Karel Ancerl
 65.    Mariss Jansons
 64.    Vladimir Ashkenazy
 63.    Benjamin Britten
 62.    Albert Coates
 61.    Riccardo Chailly
 60.    Philippe Herreweghe
 59.    Kiril Kondrashin
 58.    Guido Cantelli
 57.    Karl Muck
 56.    Andre Cluytens
 55.    Henry Wood
 54.    Erich Leinsdorf
 53.    William Christie
 52.    Hermann Scherchen
 51.    Vaclav Talich
 50.    Felix Weingartner
 49.    Guenter Wand
 48.    Igor Markevitch
 47.    Jascha Horenstein
 46.    Andre Previn
 45.    Charles Mackerras
 44.    Michael Gielen
 43.    John Eliot Gardiner
 42.    Sergiu Celibidache
 41.    Nikolau Harnoncourt
 40.    Ernest Ansermet
 39.    Ferenc Fricsay
 38.    Fritz Busch
 37.    Claudio Abbado
 36.    Clemens Krauss
 35.    Georg Solti
 34.    Eugen Jochum
 33.    Carlo Maria Giulini
 32.    Bernard Haitink
 31.    Hans Knappertsbusch
 30.    Victor de Sabata
 29.    Eugene Ormandy
 28.    Yevgeni Mravinsky
 27.    Charles Munch
 26.    Rudolf Kempe
 25.    Valery Gergiev
 24.    Antal Dorati
 23.    Dmitri Mitropoulos
 22.    Rafael Kubelik
 21.    Willem Mengelberg
 20.    Pierre Boulez
 19.    Erich Kleiber
 18.    Karl Boehm
 17.    Colin Davis
 16.    Simon Rattle
 15.    Leopold Stokowski
 14.    George Szell
 13.    Serge Koussevitsky
 12.    Carlos Kleiber
 11.    Pierre Monteux
 10.    Adrian Boult
  9.    Fritz Reiner
  8.    Leonard Bernstein
  7.    Bruno Walter
  6.    Arturo Toscanini
  5.    Otto Klemperer
  4.    Thomas Beecham
  3.    Wilhelm Furtwaengler
  2.    Sir John Barbirolli
  1.    Herbert von Karajan

Lack of recordings doesn't prevent Hans Richter from making the list, but
Nikisch is not on it.  And of course one is glad that Richard Strauss's
absence makes room for the likes of Malcolm Sargent.  21 British conductors
by my count . . . but I suppose everyone has acknowledged the dominance
enjoyed by British conductors this century.

Nick
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