HALLE may be a name more connected with cultural evenings out than raging controversy, but a new book suggests that the Manchester conductor's career was not quite as smooth as he often claimed.
Music historian and journalist Robert Beale says previous accounts of Halle's life - based largely on his posthumously published and incomplete autobiography - omit facts including the raging controversy in 1858 over his establishment of his own choir.
The Manchester Evening News music critic and lecturer at The University of Manchester's Courses For The Public programme, questions Halle's much repeated claim that his concerts never made a financial loss.
Beale has unearthed evidence that it was only through the intervention and support of Manchester's municipal and business community that Halle's concerts became fully established in the city's life.
He says: "That hoary tale - one he originated himself in his old age - almost certainly does not reflect the exact truth."
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