Kurt Masur initially studied the organ, piano and cello, attending the Landesmusikschule in Breslau between 1942 and 1944. At the age of sixteen he heard a symphony orchestra for the first time and decided to become a conductor. He studied conducting at the Leipzig Conservatory from 1946 to 1948, a period during which concerts conducted by Furtwängler which he attended had a major impact upon him. As he later recalled, ‘He could play with the orchestra as he would play a piano. They followed him into every corner. Every transition just was an event. And every introduction of a new theme was outstanding.’ After completing his studies Masur joined the Halle Landestheater as a répétiteur and then gradually worked his way up the operatic career ladder of the...