Felix Weingartner, Conductor

Felix Weingartner (1863–1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist, and one of the most influential conductors of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Zara, Dalmatia, then part of the Austrian Empire, he studied in Leipzig and became a pupil of Franz Liszt in Weimar.

Weingartner held important conducting positions in Berlin, Munich and Vienna. In 1908 he succeeded Gustav Mahler as director of the Vienna Philharmonic concerts.

He was especially celebrated for his interpretations of Beethoven, Brahms and Berlioz, favouring clarity, structural balance and fidelity to the score rather than excessive interpretative freedom.

A pioneer of recording, Weingartner became the first conductor to record all nine Beethoven symphonies. He was also a prolific composer and influential writer on conducting. He died in Winterthur, Switzerland, on 7 May 1942, leaving an important legacy in the history of modern orchestral interpretation.