Leif Ove…it’s like Billy-Joe or Jean-Pierre…

During a recent Facebook conversation with our Ojai Music Festival friends, the question was posed “How DO you pronounce 2012 Music Director Leif Ove Andsnes‘ name?” – a very valid question, indeed. So, we went trolling on the internet to make sure we could answer this correctly, and it seems that this has been asked before… In a 1996 article for the Baltimore Sun, Andsnes explained, “It’s really not that difficult,” says the pianist, 26, speaking by telephone from California where he was performing Beethoven with the San Francisco Symphony. “It’s ‘LAYff oo-VAY ANS-ness’,” he says. “Just keep in mind that, in Scandinavian double first names, the second one is as important as the first — like ‘Billy Joe’ or ‘Jean-Pierre.’ ” So when we see him in Ojai next June we’ll be certain to welcome him confidently as Leif Ove...