Who was Georg Solti? Record-breaking conductor who made Grammys history
Beyoncé is on track to become the most decorated artist in Grammys history tonight (5 February).
The US singer has 30 Grammy Awards to her name already and is nominated for a further seven at tonight’s ceremony at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
She picked up two of those Grammys at the pre-show Premiere Ceremony, so needs just one more win to tie and two to beat the current record holder, the late Hungarian-British conductor, Sir Gorg Solti.
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Before his passing in 1997, Solti clocked up an astonishing 31 Grammy trophies.
Born in Budapest in 1912, Solti fled the country during World War II due to his Jewish background and the rise of anti-Jewish laws in Hungary.
After the war, Solti became music director of the Bavarian State Opera. From 1961 until 1971, he was music director of the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
Solti then served as music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for 22 years from 1969 to 1991, according to the orchestra’s website.
In 1972, Solti was honoured with a knighthood by Queen Elizabeth II for his outstanding contribution to music.
During his career, he recorded over 40 operas and over 250 discs.
Beyoncé is also the Grammys’ most-nominated artist to date, tied with her husband, rapper Jay-Z, with 88 nominations each. Meanwhile, U2 holds the record for most awards won by a group with 22 trophies in total.
Find the full list of nominees here, all the night’s performers here and The Independent’s Roisin O’Connor’s expert predictions here.
