Richard Butt

A personal tribute from Paul Spicer, Conductor

I was deeply saddened by the death of Richard who was a close friend and mentor over some thirty years. We first met in, I think, 1980 at Ellesmere College in Shropshire where I was Director of Music at the time. We soon became good friends and discovered that we had many musical enthusiasms in common. Richard taught me everything about how Bach should be approached, prepared and conducted in the early days of our friendship. In March 1988 he brought back from Leipzig a full score of the Barenreiter edition of Bach’s B minor Mass for me as a gift. It was like being given the keys to the kingdom. I spent many happy hours going through the score with him and annotating it with comments which he made and many wise points he passed on to me from his vast experience. It informed everything I then put into preparing each Bach work I conducted for the first time.

Richard somehow persuaded the powers that be in Radio 3 that I should join his department as a junior Producer. That was such an extraordinary transition from being a school teacher and I have always been grateful for his faith in me. I was persuaded to apply for his job as head of department when he retired. I wasn’t going to as I honestly felt that I could not fill his shoes. But I did apply and got the job and spent some more happy years in that position. I also remember him phoning me when I lived in Herefordshire in, I suppose 1991, to say that he was going to retire from the Bach Choir and would I be interested in applying. Again, I felt reticent about it but decided to throw my hat in the ring and some eighteen years later I am still doing the job which he did with such distinction for some twenty five years before me. His were always huge shoes to fill and I keenly felt the power of his presence at our concerts. One of my proudest moments was when he came up to see me after our second St.Matthew Passion in Symphony Hall and told me that he felt it had been one of the best performances he had heard. Praise doesn’t get better than that from such a man.

Richard was and is an inspiration. He had absolute standards. I never honestly felt that I really measured up but I was eternally grateful for his faith in me and for his devoted friendship. I salute him, thank him and mourn him today.

A tribute from Michael Palmer,
Vice Chairman

I first met Richard at the Birmingham Art Gallery in 1965 where he was conducting a concert with Orchestra da Camera which included the Vaughan Williams Violin Concerto. This started off discussions which were to last throughout the forty five years we knew each other! Richard was appointed Conductor of the Birmingham Bach Society Choir in 1966 and commenced his work in the September. I joined the Choir three weeks later. It was in 1968 that Richard asked me to consider being Secretary of the Bach Society and of course, I could not refuse and my life was changed for ever! It was in that year that Richard introduced me to the Aldeburgh Festival (I still have the programme) and thus started my deep life long affection for Suffolk.

Working with Richard for more than twenty Bach Society years was hard work but incredibly enriching. It was a great privilege to work with him in the planning and organisation of so many concert and recitals. We soon developed our own way of working together to the extent that on certain concert days we would hardly speak to each other but everything seemed to come together and resulted in wonderful music making for the performers which in turn, always moved and delighted our audiences.

I have always very much enjoyed talking with Richard over the past forty five years right up to just before he died. I have learnt so much from him which is all very much part of who I am now. I have always respected his deep insight into music, art and literature and so many other aspects of life. There was also his unique humour and his sense of seeing the funny side of life, sometimes almost outrageous! Richard was my great mentor as he was to so many, he had so much to give and gave it so freely almost without knowing it.

Richard used to talk about the importance of the silence that music can create, for instance at the end of St. Matthew Passion. Richard's silence now, is full of all his music and his great presence that we all knew and loved. Richard's legacy of musical inspiration will undoubtedly live on in all our lives. We all have so much, through him, to be deeply grateful for.

To read other tributes to Richard Butt - click HERE

Paul Spicer, Irene Moon, Phillip Head, Nick Fisher with Richard Butt & John Jobert (seated) at the Bach Choir Dinner, January 2004

Richard Butt taken at the choir's 85th celebrations in October 2004
Photo © Pam Fisher





Richard Butt and Michael Palmer (former chairman and present Vice President) taken at the choir's 85th celebrations in October 2004
Photo © Pam Fisher