Current:Home > Contact-usGrammy-winning British conductor steps away from performing after allegedly hitting a singer-LoTradeCoin
Grammy-winning British conductor steps away from performing after allegedly hitting a singer
View Date:2024-12-23 22:55:13
LONDON — Prominent classical music conductor John Eliot Gardiner is pulling out of all engagements until next year after allegedly hitting a singer backstage following a concert.
The British conductor said in a statement Thursday that he was stepping back to get "the specialist help I recognize that I have needed for some time." His agency, Intermusica, said he "deeply regrets his behavior" and intends to get counseling.
"I want to apologize to colleagues who have felt badly treated and anyone who may feel let down by my decision to take time out to address my issues. I am heartbroken to have caused so much distress, and I am determined to learn from my mistakes," he said.
Gardiner, 80, allegedly hit William Thomas after the bass singer left the podium on the wrong side after a performance of Berlioz's opera "Les Troyens" at the Festival Berlioz in La Cote-Saint-Andre, southeastern France.
Thomas' management company, Askonas Holt, confirmed last week that "an incident" took place.
"All musicians deserve the right to practice their art in an environment free from abuse or physical harm," it said in a statement.
Gardiner is a Grammy-winning baroque music conductor who led his Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque oloists in a performance for guests at King Charles III's coronation ceremony at Westminster Abbey in May. He was knighted for his services to music in 1998.
He has made more than 60 appearances at the BBC Proms, an annual summer classical music extravaganza. It was announced last week that Gardiner will be replaced at a Proms performance on Sept. 3.
veryGood! (8)
Related
- Watch out, Temu: Amazon Haul, Amazon's new discount store, is coming for the holidays
- Wayward 450-pound pig named Kevin Bacon hams it up for home security camera
- Police continue search for missing 3-year-old boy Elijah Vue in Wisconsin: Update
- Kid Cudi announces INSANO World Tour: Here's how to get tickets
- Skai Jackson announces pregnancy with first child: 'My heart is so full!'
- Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips ends Democratic primary challenge and endorses President Joe Biden
- American Express card data exposed in third-party breach
- Fumes in cabin cause Alaska Airlines flight to Phoenix to return to Portland, Oregon
- Horoscopes Today, November 10, 2024
- Report: Peyton Manning, Omaha Productions 'pursuing' Bill Belichick for on-camera role
Ranking
- Veterans Day restaurant deals 2024: More than 80 discounts, including free meals
- Super Tuesday exit polls and analysis for the 2024 California Senate primary
- Top Virginia Senate negotiator vows to keep Alexandria arena out of the budget
- Video shows Tesla Cybertruck crashed into Beverly Hills Hotel sign; Elon Musk responds
- New York nursing home operator accused of neglect settles with state for $45M
- Kentucky man says lottery win helped pull him out of debt 'for the first time in my life'
- Virginia man arrested after DNA links him to 2 women's cold case murders from 80s
- Kansas could soon make doctors ask patients why they want abortions and report the answers
Recommendation
-
Ranked voting will decide a pivotal congressional race. How does that work?
-
Ex-Virginia lawmaker acquitted of hit-and-run charges
-
Nick Saban's candid thoughts on the state of college football are truly worth listening to
-
Did the moose have to die? Dog-sledding risk comes to light after musher's act of self-defense
-
Early Week 11 fantasy football rankings: 30 risers and fallers
-
Gangs in Haiti try to seize control of main airport as thousands escape prisons: Massacring people indiscriminately
-
Kentucky GOP lawmakers override governor and undo efforts to prevent renter discrimination
-
Court order permanently blocks Florida gun retailer from selling certain gun parts in New York