Hans Knappertsbusch
Although never formally trained in music, Acton had a keen interest in the subject from an early age. As a child he played piano, bassoon and clarinet. He listened to concerts on BBC Radio and, in his early twenties, he visited Munich where he saw Richard Strauss and Hans Knappertsbusch conduct. At Rugby, he became friends with the Irish composer Brian Boydell (1917–2000).