He dominated European classical music performance after 1947. He was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra 1955-89, artistic director of the Vienna State Opera 1957-64, and of the Salzburg Festival 1956-60. A perfectionist, he cultivated an orchestral sound of notable smoothness and transparency; he also staged operas and directed his own video recordings. He recorded the complete Beethoven symphonies three times, and had a special affinity with Mozart and Bruckner, although his repertoire extended from Bach to Schoenberg.
