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 [log in to unmask]