As with so many born talents, Bernard Haitink got his first big career break when he had to fill in unexpectedly for the maestro–before he was even 30. Since then, one of Holland’s greatest 20th-century conductors can boast a seemingly endless record of achievements in music across the globe, from the Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam, Covent Garden in London to the Staatskapelle Dresden and the Boston Symphony. As Robert Chesal explains in the introduction, Radio Netherlands caught up with Haitink at a rehearsal in Amsterdam when he turned 70.
Date: May 9,1999