Tribute to John Byrt, 1940 - 2021

It was my good fortune that I saw what he'd been doing, and how highly regarded he was in the musical world. He took me when conducted Musica Reservata on the South Bank (they wanted him to be their regular director); he took us to the Bath festival, where he left us to go to talk with Michael Tippett; he talked with me about his invitation to conduct a broadcast performance of Morales and Byrd with the BBC Singers - he wanted them to sign Morales in the more nasal Spanish style; they havered, until one of the men said 'at least Dr Byrt knows what he wants, unlike most conductors who come, so we'll try'. He told me about his famous 1973 recording of the Taverner Missa Corona Spinea with Schola Contorum, its first 'modern authentic' recording. He brought his friends Emma Kirkby, Tony Rooley, David Thomas to Tiverton. A stunning experience for us and for Tiverton. GS