Aria to a Critic

It is with profound regret that I read that Martin Bernheimer is leaving his post at The Times. From Day 1 of his tenure I have been reading his reports on the local, national and international music scene, especially when it came to opera. He wrote with flair, style, insight, penetrating wit and sarcasm, the ingredients of being a superb music critic. His vocabulary was incisive and encyclopedic, which made me scurry more than once to the Oxford Dictionary for illumination.

I remember what Kurt Herbert Adler, the late general director of the San Francisco Opera, said when asked whether he ever read a music critic’s opinion. “No,” he said, “except Martin Bernheimer. He knows a lot.” His opera reviews were awaited eagerly with anticipation and impatience. It will be lonely in Los Angeles without him. Thanks for a rich learning experience and I bid him a fond farewell.

K.H. KENT., M.D.

Los Angeles