Sir Ian Bruce Hope Hunter (2 April 19195 September 2003) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

impresario An impresario (from the Italian ''impresa'', "an enterprise or undertaking") is a person who organizes and often finances concerts, plays, or operas, performing a role in stage arts that is similar to that of a film or television producer. His ...

of classical music. Known as 'Mr. Festival' to many in the arts world, Hunter was one of the most important figures in a post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

cultural renaissance in the United Kingdom. From the mid-1950s, following the death of Harold Holt, he headed the music management agency Harold Holt Ltd, which joined with Lies Askonas Ltd in the late 1990s to form Askonas Holt.

Biography

Born in

Hadley Wood Hadley Wood is an affluent suburb in the north of Greater London, close to the border with Hertfordshire. It appears to be a stand-alone village surrounded by Green Belt land, however, under the Local Government Act 1972 it is part of the ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

, Hunter began his career in 1947, as assistant to artistic director

Rudolf Bing Sir Rudolf Bing, KBE (January 9, 1902 – September 2, 1997) was an Austrian-born British opera impresario who worked in Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, most notably being General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera in New York ...

at the very first

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Fe ...

. He succeeded Bing as the festival's director in 1950, remaining in the position through 1955. He served as the director of numerous other festivals, including the Bath Festival from 1948 to 1968, the City of London Festival from 1962 to 1980, the Brighton Festival from 1967 to 1983, and festivals in Windsor and Hong Kong. "Festivals," he once said, "are like sudden

fireworks Fireworks are a class of low explosive pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large number of devices ...

in a dark sky."

"Characteristic of Hunter's capacity for thinking big was the Commonwealth Arts Festival of 1965. In preparing it he visited 23 countries, and it was held simultaneously, over two weeks, in London, Glasgow,
Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
and
Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
. Dance was strongly featured: Caribbean, African and
Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...
groups rubbed friendly shoulders with classical companies from Australia and Canada.
Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
jostled with the classics. Menuhin shared a platform with
Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known export of North In ...
. Balloons were released and fireworks rocketed."

Hunter was also a talent manager, celebrated as chairman of Harold Holt Ltd. (now Askonas Holt Ltd.) from 1953 to 1988. He died in

Balcombe, West Sussex Balcombe is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex District of West Sussex, England. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east north east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby towns include Crawley to the north west and H ...

at the age of 84.

References

1919 births 2003 deaths Impresarios Arts managers Talent managers Music promoters 20th-century British businesspeople Knights Bachelor Members of the Order of the British Empire People from Hadley Wood People from Balcombe, West Sussex {{UK-music-bio-stub