John Neschling (born May 13 1947, Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian orchestral and operatic conductor. He was the musical director and the chief conductor of the Orquestra Sinfônica do Estado de São Paulo (São Paulo State Symphony) from 1997 to 2008.

John Neschling
John Neschling in 2010
Artistic Director of the Municipal Theatre of São Paulo
In office
January 2013-September 2016
Musical Director and Chief Conductor of the São Paulo State Symphony
In office
1997-2008
Personal details
Born (1947-05-13) May 13, 1947 (age 76)
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
OccupationConductor

A member of the Brazilian Academy of Music since 2003, he was appointed artistic director of the Municipal Theatre of São Paulo from January 2013 until September 2016,[1] when he was dismissed under accusations of fiscal mismanagement.[2]

Early career edit

He studied conducting under Hans Swarowsky and Reinhold Schmid in Vienna and under Leonard Bernstein and Seiji Ozawa in Tanglewood.[citation needed] Later, he won several international conducting competitions.[citation needed]

European positions edit

Neschling has been music director of Teatro Nacional de São Carlos in Lisbon, Sankt Gallen Theater in Switzerland, Teatro Massimo in Palermo and the Bordeaux Opera, and assistant conductor at the Vienna Opera. He has also been invited conductor at the London Symphony, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Tonhalle Orchestra in Zurich, and the BBC Symphony Orchestra in London.[citation needed]

He came back to Brazil in 1973 to assume the position of music director of the municipal theaters of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.[citation needed]

São Paulo State Symphony edit

During the twelve years under his leadership, the OSESP became a first rate international orchestra, and recorded a series of CDs with Brazilian and international music, winning five Diapason d'Or[3] and one Latin Grammy.[4] He also organized tournées that took the orchestra to play at several concert halls around the world, including the Avery Fisher Hall[5] in New York City and at the Musikverein[6] in Vienna.

Under his request, the great hall of the old Júlio Prestes train station was renovated and turned into Sala São Paulo, the home of OSESP and one of the best concert halls in the world.[7][8] It opened in 1999.

Municipal Theater of the City of São Paulo edit

In 2013 Neschling was appointed as the artistic director of Theatro Municipal de São Paulo, where he served until September 2016, when he was dismissed under accusations of fiscal misconduct.[9][10] An investigative inquiry was started by a São Paulo state appointed panel, but Neschling refused to answer the officials' questions, and then fled Brazil.[11]

References edit

  • Neschling, J. "Música Mundana", Rocco 2009, 192pp ISBN 85-325-2485-0 ISBN 978-8532524850
  • John Neschling Biography, West German Concert Directorate Cologne (in German)
  • John Neschling é afastado da direção artística do Theatro Municipal de SP (transl. John Neschling is removed from the artistic direction of Theatro Municipal de SP) on G1 (in Portuguese)
  • CPI do Theatro Municipal: maestro John Neschling fica em silêncio em acareação (transl. CPI of Theatro Municipal: maestro John Neschling remains silent in confrontation) on the Municipal Chamber of São Paulo website (in Portuguese)

Notes edit

  1. ^ "Folha de S.Paulo". Folha online. 1 January 2013.
  2. ^ "O Globo". Globo online. 24 August 2016.
  3. ^ ""BIS Records". Archived from the original on 2014-11-08. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
  4. ^ "Latin Grammy winners". The Seattle Times.
  5. ^ "LAMúsiCa Vol.4 No. 11: OSESP". Archived from the original on 2010-06-29. Retrieved 2010-01-03.
  6. ^ "Der Musikverein - Zugaben". Archived from the original on 2011-06-11. Retrieved 2010-01-03.
  7. ^ Rohter, Larry (24 August 1999). "ARTS ABROAD; from Homeless to House-Proud: Brazil's 'Other' Music". The New York Times.
  8. ^ Cox, Trevor (2015-03-05). "10 of the world's best concert halls". the Guardian. Retrieved 2016-06-28.
  9. ^ "John Neschling é afastado da direção artística do Theatro Municipal de SP". G1 Globo São Paulo. 5 September 2016.
  10. ^ Batista Jr., João (26 February 2017). "Teatro Municipal dá calote de 900 000 reais". Veja São Paulo.
  11. ^ "CPI do Theatro Municipal: maestro John Neschling fica em silêncio em acareação?". Câmara Municipal de São Paulo. 14 September 2016.

Further reading edit

External links edit