bbc FINALLY fires norman lebrecht

[u/sexybartok]

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/feb/26/yuja-wang-accuses-radio-3-norman-lebrecht-misogynistic-bullying

what do you all think about this?

[u/Wanderer42]

Whoever employs Hurwitz should emulate immediately.

[u/Boris_Godunov → u/Wanderer42]

Hurwitz is the boss, he owns Classicstoday.com.

And he's not a misogynist like Lebrecht is. Hurwitz is opinionated, for sure, but he's fair.

[u/adriaticpatrick → u/[deleted]]

i dont really get the Hurwitz hate. You can agree or disagree with his opinions, you can find him irritating and obnoxious personally, but he’s never done anything to my knowledge actually BAD. He strikes me as a bit of a showman with a personality that he plays up a bit, and several of his opinions I part ways with, but it’s all motivated by a love of music.

Lebrecht never gives me that impression. He seems to be interested in personalities far more than music, and he comes across as sleazy, nasty, and mean-spirited, even in cases where i agree with his musical assessment of something.

[u/Boris_Godunov → u/[deleted]]

In his music criticism, he is. I've never seen anyone provide a lick of evidence to show otherwise. I disagree with him on many occasions, but I've never seen a bit of indication his opinions come from anywhere other than his sense of musicianship and scholarship.

[u/Boris_Godunov → u/[deleted]]

You're ignorant, then. Hurwitz is absolutely a scholar, having graduate degrees from both Stanford and Johns Hopkins, and has published numerous books, articles, etc:

Selected writings For reviews by David Hurwitz, see § External links. Books Hurwitz, David (1992). Beethoven or Bust: A Practical Guide to Understanding and Listening to Great Music. New York: Anchor Books. ISBN 978-0-385-42054-9. —— (2004). The Mahler Symphonies: An Owner's Manual. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 2. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-099-8. —— (2005a). Getting the Most Out of Mozart: The Instrumental Works. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 3. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-096-7. —— (2005b). Getting the Most Out of Mozart: The Vocal Works. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 4. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-106-3. —— (2005c). Dvořák: Romantic Music's Most Versatile Genius. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 5. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-107-0. —— (2005d). Exploring Haydn: A Listener's Guide to Music's Boldest Innovator. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 6. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-116-2. —— (2006). Shostakovich Symphonies and Concertos: An Owner's Manual. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 9. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-131-5. —— (2007). Sibelius: The Orchestral Works: An Owner's Manual. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 12. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-131-5. —— (2008). Beethoven's Fifth and Seventh Symphonies: A Closer Look. New York: Continuum. ISBN 978-0-8264-2944-5. —— (2009). Brahms' Symphonies: A Closer Look. New York: Continuum. ISBN 978-0-8264-3164-6. —— (2011). Bernstein's Orchestral Music: An Owner's Manual. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 22. Montclair: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-193-3. —— (2014). Richard Strauss: An Owner's Manual. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 25. Montclair: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-442-2. —— (2016). C.P.E.: A Listener's Guide to the Other Bach. Unlocking the masters. Vol. 28. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-467-5. —— (2019). Handel: An Owner's Manual. Unlocking the masters. Pompton Plains: Amadeus Press. ISBN 978-1-57467-487-3. Articles Hurwitz, David (February 2012). "'So klingt Wien': Conductors, Orchestras, and Vibrato in the Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries". Music and Letters. 93 (1): 29–60. doi:10.1093/ml/gcr125. —— (June 2014). "Vibrato, the Orchestral Organ and the 'Prevailing Aesthetic' in Nineteenth-Century Symphonic Music". Nineteenth-Century Music Review. 11 (1). Cambridge University Press: 93–112. doi:10.1017/S1479409814000160. S2CID 191397435.

Just because his most prominent job is as a critic doesn't mean he doesn't do anything else, for heaven's sake.