Music Matters - Simon Rattle

In a candid interview recorded in the German capital, Tom Service talks to Simon Rattle, principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. Almost seven years into his tenure at the helm of probably the most famous orchestra in the world, Rattle chats openly about his relationship with the orchestra and about renewing its tradition with the help of players united in purpose, yet coming from very different backgrounds and nationalities. Rattle also talks about a crucial role he sees for the orchestra today - catering for Berlin, an increasingly multi-cultural and renewed city - as well as pondering the question of what the attraction is to him of conducting. This week on Music Matters Tom Service travels to Berlin for an exclusive interview with Sir Simon Rattle. As Principal Conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic, Rattle has arguably the best job in classical music. His association with the Berliners goes back to 1987, when he conducted them during his enormously successful 18 years at the helm of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. He was appointed to his current role in 2002. Critical acclaim and controversy have both played a part during Rattle’s time in Berlin, perhaps no surprise considering what he is trying to achieve. His vision has been for maintaining the orchestra’s traditions in the music of Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner and Mahler, whilst breaking new ground: contemporary music features prominently on his agenda, and since he arrived the orchestra has embarked on its first ever community projects. Over the last few years there have been reports that Rattle has been losing touch with the Berliners’ trademark rich and warm sound, and that he has been dragging the orchestra unwillingly into the new territories. However he seems now to be winning the musical and institutional battles, with the players now enthusiastic about their outreach work and having recently granted him – through their traditional balloting process – an extension to his contract to 2018. Tom met Rattle in the conductor’s room at the modernist Philharmonie concert hall on the borders of West and East Berlin – a room previously inhabited only by his predecessors Claudio Abbado and Herbert von Karajan. In a frank interview, they talked about Rattle the conductor and the Berliner.