Power behind the baton: the conductor who prepared Cate Blanchett for Tár

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The Oscar-winning actor turned to Natalie Murray Beale to learn the conducting skills that underpin her latest film role 

Australian conductor Natalie Murray Beale, who coached Cate Blanchett for her role in Tár.Photograph: Ricardo Maldonado Rozo/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Vanessa ThorpeArts and media correspondentSun 15 Jan 2023 07.00 EST

Cate Blanchett’s new film role as an imposing orchestral conductor is earning her a shot at another top acting award. But it has already given the Oscar-winner the skills to lead a real orchestra through a score.

The actor, who plays fictional American conductor Lydia Tár in the film, Tár, mastered the complexities of the job by training with Natalie Murray Beale, an established star in the field who lives in London and who spent weeks coaching Blanchett for the part.

Cate Blanchett as Lydia Tár.Photograph: Courtesy of Focus Features/AP

Murray Beale, the hidden force behind the powerful performance, supervised the orchestral scenes after guiding Blanchett during rehearsals.

“Cate can conduct now, if she wants,” Murray Beale told the Observer. “She is very musical, sings beautifully and now she has the tools to conduct. I suggested she learn the musical lines of the pieces by heart, rather than learning the score or copying another performance.” Murray Beale, 46, conducts opera, concerts and film scores and, like Blanchett, is Australian.