Vienna Philharmonic breaks into Berlin’s playground
OrchestrasThe Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra is to play in Berlin’s Waldbühne for the first time next May.
Riccardo Muti will conduct an open-air Europe Day concert of Verdi’s overture to “La Forza del Destino”, the suite from Manuel de Falla’s ballet “The Tricorne” and the rhapsody “España” by the Frenchman Emmanuel Chabrier.
The Berlin Phil won’t be too pleased. It’s where they give summer concerts for crowds of up to 22,000.
lol, why would anyone get offended by this?
If Muti does Berliner luft at the end. maybe….
Why would that bother the BPO?
You’are right if you are living in Vienna Berlin or Armsterdam OK you are very lucky but it’s good to see other orchestras.
“Europe Day concert”
comprising of works by 1 Italian, 1 Spaniard, 1 Frenchman (writing about Spain, so just 2 countries really), pretty insulting to the hosts, the Germans (but then again, the Germans got the EU anthem, so they can’t complain too much), no Eastern European music, even though they are holding down the fort against Russia…. But I digress.
Those 3 works would make up maybe half a program. Miraculous Mandarin maybe, or Reger’s charming Valse d’Amour?
lucky Muti has good health
at his age. and all the traveling
Muti never did the Waldbühne concert contrary to the other Riccardo (the best for me with the one of Pretre) and Abbado and it’s a thing I don’t regret. Anyway it’s a good idea to play de Falla.
BPO in Schonbrunn!
So can we expect the BPO to turn up masked and with bicycle chains and knuckledusters? That might be quite amusing.
España is a good piece thats almost never programmed in the US.
We have been somewhat negligent in commenting about Muti in recent weeks. However, considering that Muti is literally falling off the radar on the international music scene and that search activities are absorbing most of our time, we humbly ask for forgiveness.
That being said, the Bill Clinton of classical music is desperate for attention, and is still huffing and puffing. With the latest edition of his Muti Opera Academy ending today in Milan in embarrassing obscurity, shunned by the international press, the Italian Stallion has not been a happy camper and has gone off on several public rants. The most pathethic was directed at the Maneskin (an unremarkable Italian rock band), guilty of capturing too large of a share of the Italian mainstream media attention (don’t believe me? Just Google Riccardo Muti and Maneskin; he also called them “Maneskot”). The Maneskin-rant has been trending online, eclipsing Muti’s trite, recycled nationalistic commentaries on Italian opera (by a factor of 20 is my sense). Most online commentators and reporters have sided with the Maneskin and expressed the view that Muti is a moron (nothing new here).
According to a dear Czech friend, a more worrysome Muti-rant (and a leading indicator of his mental health) has been quoted by Agenzia Italia: “Today, conductors spring up like mushrooms. […] an imbecile is invited who invents an anecdote and the music becomes a soundtrack […] Society is more visual than auditory. These days, conductors dress like Indians – says Muti – they change clothes during concerts and they wear rings”.
No apparent references to painted nail (yet). Now, in a pang of irrational pity, I tried to independently confirm if the reference to “Indians” was a typo, with no avail. But remember: this is the guy who nicknamed the illustrious Korean Maestro Chung “Il Cinese”. So, with the racist phrase he could have been referring to either Native Americans, or citizens of India, or both if he does not realize that they are two distinct populations (a real possibility, if his mental confusion on Koreans and Chinese is any indication). Your guess is as good as mine, but given we are talking Muti, I’d assume the most ignorant and bigoted possibility just to be safe.
Now, the Berlin program, oh that is sweet. The BPO should not be bothered if the only other world orchestra in their league will show up in loco with a subpar, sputtering, ranting conductor. The Berliners will shine more by comparison without even putting in any effort and Berlin audiences will walk away reassured that their local orchestra is indeed the very best. The program booklet should introduce the Spanish repertoire with another famous Stallion quote: “The Spanish are supposed to be lazy …” (Google the Tribune article “Riccardo Muti wants to conduct his own life”, by John von Rhein).
That is what this concert will be: lazy and good for an open-air siesta.
“conductors dress like Indians”
I think he means that conductors dress in Nehru collar style jackets.
I wonder what Zubin Mehta thinks.
I wouldn’t mind some of the hunkier young conductors dressing like Gandhi, in a loin cloth. (Let’s not give Nézet-Séguin and Lorenzo Viotti any ideas now.)
The more you rant about Muti, the more I like him. Keep up the good work. Muti though probably does not give a Chicagorat’s ass what you think.
The Berliner Phil is always away on tour for Europa Day, giving a concert in another European city. This year they’re with Barenboim in Georgia.
So why not? Not as if they were using the amphitheatre.
Methinks there is room for two great orchestras in one town on one day. Relax, dear Norman.
So, when will the Berliner Philharmoniker play at Schönbrunn? 🙂