Armin Jordan (9 April 1932 – 20 September 2006) was a Swissconductor known for his interpretations of French music,Mozart andWagner.
Armin Jordan was born inLucerne, Switzerland. "Mr. Jordan was a large man, with a slab of a face and a full mouth, often twisted in a sardonic smile, and his powerful physical presence belied the careful near-understatement of his conducting", notedThe New York Times in hisobituary.
Jordan was most unusual at a time when conductors flew about the world from one engagement to another. For the most part he stayed close to home in Switzerland and France. After leading a number of Swiss orchestras he became principal conductor of theOrchestre de la Suisse Romande, Geneva, in 1985, a position he held until 1997.
Armin Jordan did not conduct in the United States until 1985. He appeared in Seattle and New York City. Seattle scheduled him for Wagner'sRing in 2000 and 2001, but he had to withdraw after a few performances in 2000 because of illness. For the same reason, he canceled his debut at theMetropolitan Opera in New York in 2001. He was to have conducted Mozart'sCosì fan tutte. His son, the conductorPhilippe Jordan, made his own debut at the Met in 2002.
Armin Jordan died in Zürich five days after he collapsed while conducting Prokofiev'sThe Love for Three Oranges at theTheater Basel. In addition to Philippe, his survivors are his widow Kate and his daughter Pascale.
Richard Wagner: Orchestral Music - Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg Prelude, Parsifal Good Friday Music, Götterdämmerung Siegfried's Rhine Journey, Rienzi Overture. Basler Sinfonieorchester. Erato ECD 88015.
Robert Schumann'sDas Paradies und die Peri, withChristoph Prégardien,Robert Gambill, Edith Wiens, Anne Gjevang, Sylvia Herman, & Hans-Peter Scheidegger; Romand Chamber Choir, Pro Arte Chorus of Lausanne; Orchestre de la Suisse Romande. Erato 2292-45456-2.
Johann Strauss, Jr.'sDer Zigeunerbaron. Performed by Rudolf Wasserlof, Zoran Todorovic, Martin Homrich, Jeannette Fischer, Béla Perencz, Hanna Schaer, Ewa Wolak, Paul Kong,Luc Héry, Natalia Ushakova and the French National Radio Orchestra and Chorus. Naive 5002.
