When the London Philharmonic Orchestra toured Hong Kong and Asia in 1969
The LPO performed in Singapore, Hong Kong, Manila, Seoul and Tokyo, with John Pritchard and Jerzy Semkow taking turns conducting
“The tour, which takes the Orchestra first to Singapore and on to Hongkong, Manila, Seoul and Japan, is supported by the British Council and the British Board of Trade, in conjunction with the financial support of IOS. [A] highlight of the tour will be three concerts in Tokyo, as part of the British Trade Week, commencing on September 26.”
“Last night’s programme was varied, colourful and very attractive for audiences in cities such as Hongkong where visiting orchestras come but a few times a year. There were no big classical works but instead several ‘virtuoso’ compositions which showed what exciting effects a finely trained professional orchestra of highly competent musicians can produce.”
The same day in another interview, Pritchard said, “‘Batons are peculiarly personal things […] I’ve had this one copied over and over again, I’m never happy conducting without it.’ The original one was made for him when he was first invited to be a guest conductor at the Vienna State Opera.
“‘An old man came up to me,’ Mr Pritchard remembers. ‘He was wearing a weird black suit. Instinctively he knew that I wasn’t happy with the baton I used at the time. He told me he would make me a new one. Without being told, he seemed to know just what I was looking for – it was perfect. Apparently this old man had made batons for 50 or 60 years. He had made them for all the leading conductors of the time.’”