Rudolph Tang writes: >I am currently doing some data work, one of which features the English >conductors who are titled Sir or any lordship that are granted by HM the >Queen/King. I get totally confused when dealing with names like such: >Honrary Knight the Most Exerllency OM.... Thus I'd like to ask for kind >help. Would any of you make a relatively complete list of the English >conductors such as Sir Solti, Sir Collin Davis, Sir Beechame and Lord >Menuhin etc. with the exact date of when they were granted a certain >lordship and what exactly the cartain lorship is to be called. I shall step forward into this one. I shall just deal with the Knighthoods. The "lesser" awards (MBE, OBE, CBE,) are harder to keep track of. I cannot give you dates when awards were given. You would need to consult "Who's Who" for that as some of them will go back many years. One final thing. As to titles, the only one that really matters is the Knighthood and that means they carry "Sir" before their name. Only two musicians have, to my knowlege, been given Life Peerages - made Lords until they die. I deal with them first. Yehudi Menhuin was given a Knighthood in the 1970s and so became Sir Yehudi, but in the 1980s was *also* given a Life Peerage and so became Lord Menuhin of ...... (whichever town he chose.) Benjamin Britten must have turned down a Knighthood at some point so was never "Sir". However, in 1975 he was given, and accepted, a Life Peerage so was Lord Britten of Aldeburgh. The rest of the Knighthoods: Sir John Barbirolli Sir Adrian Boult Sir Malcolm Sargent Sir Henry Wood Sir Charles Groves Sir Colin Davis Sir Andrew Davis Sir Neville Marriner Sir Roger Norrington Sir John Eliot Gardiner Sir Alexander Gibson Sir Simon Rattle Sir Clifford Curzon Sir Georg Solti (he had become a British citizen and so was allowed to carry the title. See below regarding foriegn recipients.) Sir William Walton Sir Michael Tippett There is an interesting exception with Sir Thomas Beecham. He was "Sir" twice over. His father, the drug company millionaire, had been made a "Baronet" This meant he could call himself "Sir" and also pass that title to his son. So, the conductor Thomas Beecham became "Sir" Thomas when his father died. Later on he was also made a Knight in his own right. Remember that when Knighthoods are awarded by the Queen to non-British citizens they cannot use the title "Sir". So Andre Previn and Bernard Haitink carry just the letters KBE after their name. You mentioned OM. That is the Order of Merit and is the highest honour that the Queen can bestow. There are only ever 50 of them alive at one time so it is not awarded very often. Benjamin Britten held it and so did Vaughan Williams. Vaughan Williams never held a Knighthood, by the way, as he turned one down, probably on two occasions. You don't have to accept any award given though they don't usually ask twice. Tony Duggan, England. Mahler recordings survey: http://www.musicweb.uk.net/Mahler/index.html