Breaking: First female concertmaster quits the Berlin Philharmonic
NewsIn a move that has shocked the orchestra, concertmaster Vineta Sareika has told the Berlin Philharmonic she will be leaving in February. Sareika has spent three years in the orchestra and 18 months in the hot seat. The tone of her departure notice suggests they have been turbulent. But then the Berlin Phil is a demanding orchestra and, when the going gets tough, the less-tough get going.
Sareika is the first woman ever to serve on a regular basis as concertmaster of the Berlin Phil.
Sareika, who is Latvian, joined the Berlin Phil first violins in February 2022 after the break-up of the famed Artemis Quartet, in which she was leader for nine years. She was appointed concertmaster exactly a year later.
Her abrupt departure raises inevitable questions about the orchestra’s culture, as well as her own adaptability.
Here’s Sareika’s announcement on social media:
After three enriching and exciting years with the Berlin Philharmonic I have made the decision to leave the orchestra.
It has been an honor for me to serve as its first ever woman concertmaster and I am truly grateful for this unique life experience, fantastic concerts and inspiring encounters.
One of the many valuable learnings during the past years however is that being part of this particular orchestra is not the path I’d like to continue on in the future. I wish the orchestra the best of luck finding a fantastic new colleague for this position, I am at the same time looking forward to the next chapter of my personal musical journey.
My last concerts as concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic will take place in February 2025.
Sometimes the toughest thing is to walk away from a sinecure.
And it takes guts to state explicitly that being part of “this particular orchestra” was not how she wanted to continue her career. A lot less mealy-mouthed than most resignation statements.
I think the implication that she belongs to the “less-tough” is something subject to question.
Agreed. I’ve left some tough gigs in my time, when the easiest thing to do would have been to ‘stick it out’.
If she is indeed the victim of a ‘turbulent’ culture then criticising her for lacking flexibility is awful.
1st; Understand What changes are likely for the new position, (from you), – don’t assume you will automatically receive reciprocating
Consideration- until you fell accepted-work with concentration on your responsibilities never look back always stay who who are-do not change who you are to adapt! You are who you are!! Your state of mind is a very tool for success!
I agree that we shouldn’t rush to conclusions. However, it’s potentially telling that she is leaving in February 2025, which will be exactly two years after she took the job, which I’m pretty sure coincides with the end of her trial period as concertmaster. That seems awfully coincidental to me. Perhaps she simply decided she didn’t like the job long-term, but it’s also possible she didn’t want the tension of possibly not getting tenure so she’s making the move herself. Norman says the move shocked the orchestra. Did it, or was there known tension and disapproval beforehand?
It’s probably coincidental, but this announcement also comes just a couple weeks after the orchestra posted a vacancy for principal flute, after Sebastian Jacot failed his probationary period.
Sebastian Jacot failed his probation? I haven’t been keeping up. He sounded great on the DCH. That’s a tough bunch.
Probation periods cut both ways. This lady came from chamber music, which for many is the pinnacle of life for the working musician. Perhaps after a year and a half of orchestral work she felt she would prefer that world, at least to “this particular orchestra.”
She is hardly the first Berliner concertmaster to quit to pursue another path, whether that realization comes earlier or later is a matter of circumstances, but I think there is a constant tension between job security versus artistic aspirations for musicians at such a high level, but obviously, the leap from concertmaster in Berlin to concert soloist in the world is a quantum leap, it is at another level.
The paradox is that these two paths are mutually exclusive: a soloist can no more become a Berliner concertmaster than a Berliner concertmaster can become a soloist.
They in fact require very different skill sets.
But she didn’t say she was quitting in order to become a soloist. She didn’t say this, at all.
I’d say Noah Bendix-Balgley manages quite well. But then, he might be a special specimen (and he learnt his concertmaster chops under Manfred Honeck – there are certainly far worse mentors).
That being said, as ChrysanthemumFan notes, nothing says she’s going for a soloist career. Her background is in chamber music, and nothing in her statement says she’s done with orchestra playing either – just with that role, in that orchestra.
James Galway
It’s not a case of being ‘tough’ or ‘less tough’. More likely, she’s choosing her battles. There’s probably no nastier orchestra in Europe.
I’ve no idea idea why she’s leaving but I’d imagine the Berlin Phil’s perfectionism is the equivalent of being locked in a studio with Donald Fagan and Walter Becker. Exhausting.
I imagine she’s stomping down the street as I write this….
Perhaps she is planning a solo career.
Or she wants to swap the bow for a baton.
So many speculations, where one thing is certain: She is now looking for something different. This choice should be respected, and I wish her success in whatever she does next.
You have to be tough to win a Concertmaster position in any orchestra. Now, if you are a woman and this is Berlin Phil…it doesn’t get any tougher. I think that her decision says way more about the orchestra than her. And by the way, to the ones speculating that she wants to be a soloist or conductor : she never said that. To be a great quartet player and orchestra leader requires tremendous skills, and she might look for an orchestra where individual egos are not bigger than the sum of its parts.
“an orchestra where individual egos are not bigger than the sum of its parts”
But BPO and VPO still sound great, you must admit.
Joining and then leaving whatever orchestra is evidence enough that your own ego may have been unsuitable for the job.
So what? It’s her decision, and she is just one of quite a number of musicians who quit their jobs at the BPhO during the last 40 years. Not every musician feels well with every orchestra and vice versa. Doesn’t say anything about the quality or character of either the orchestra or the musician….
What a loss for the orchestra!
There also seems to be an opening for Principal Flute in the vacant section on the Berlin Phil website. Any word on who is leaving?
It’s Sebastian Jacot. Apparently he didn’t pass his probationary period.
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/6HrUa5KXne7CcAkY/
To obtain that position she is a very tough lady. As a chamber musician myself that is the best job to have, so whenever I have to go back and play with an orchestra it’s not my favorite either. She’s probably wanting to go back to her life as a chamber musician, or a soloist because it is the greatest as a musician.
MC: There’s no greater joy in Classical music-making than playing chamber music.
“the less-tough get going”
What a shitty statement. Or, this has nothing to do with lacking resilience.
He better learn to choose his words more carefully, or he could wind up on the receiving end of a libel suit.
Let’s see this September and her final concert is February. That’s six months – not sure I’d call it “abrupt”.
I have watched her lead the orchestra on the Digital Concert Hall in quite a few programs, she played all her solos wonderfully and looked very happy. Yet as associate leader during the recent Bruckner 5 (sits next to concertmaster this time, page turner etc) she looked absolutely miserable.
That’s what Bruckner does to people.
Too many tremolo
..
To the weak, maybe.
Someone said of Dick Whittington that his CV would need only five words: ‘Thrice Lord Mayor of London’.
The same could be said of Vineta Sareika: ‘Concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic’.
I hope that she enjoys every success in her future career, whatever role she prefers to adopt.
Fascinating, and of course it’s impossible for an outsider to know for sure what’s going on. The orchestra recently posted a vacancy for Principal Flute, after Sebastian Jacot apparently failed his probationary period. The standards in Berlin seem to be brutal; Jacot is no small talent. Of course there was the whole bit with David Cooper on Principal Horn several years ago. It’s possible that Sareika saw a similar fate coming for her and wanted to avoid the tension. (I’m pretty sure she was still in her probationary period in her new post; correct me if anyone knows I’m wrong.) Or maybe she was fully up to the standards but didn’t appreciate the culture. These stories convince me that playing in the orchestra can’t be good for the blood pressure, at least initially.
At the same time, I can’t criticize the orchestra too much. I know some try to level the playing field and say that Berlin is just one among a few dozen of the best international orchestras. But having heard them live multiple times along with numerous other first tier orchestras, there really is something special in Berlin. Leaving aside any “greatest in the world” title, the sound they produce is one of the wonders of the world–and Petrenko has been pushing them to levels arguably beyond anything they achieved with Abbado and Rattle. So I remain enamored and happy to allow them to sort out their own dramas. Their sound!
The BPO was the greatest orchestra in the world under Karajan. Under Abbado and Rattle, not so much.
I look forward to hearing the Berliners on tour this fall playing Bruckner 5 live. It will be interesting to compare how the orchestra sounds these days to how they were sounding during the Rattle years (underwhelming, in my opinion).
I partially agree with a caveat: I think the Berlin Phil has consistently been at or near the top in terms of sheer orchestral virtuosity. This was maintained under Abbado and Rattle. Interpretively, though, they often–although not always–failed to leave a distinctive mark. There are many recordings with peerless execution, delightful solo playing from the winds, a full-bodied string sound. With Karajan, the sound was supremely virtuosic but less individualistic, more homogenous, and of course Karajan had an incredible amount of interpretive insight. In Petrenko’s first few years, I hear the same kind of exposed world-class virtuoso playing that’s defined the orchestra over the past few decades–think Emmanuel Pahud, Albrecht Mayer, Stefan Dohr, etc. But Petrenko has a tremendous amount of ideas himself; his interpretations would be compelling with an orchestra significantly inferior to Berlin. It’s a dream coupling, I think. If anyone has any doubts, listen to Petrenko’s opera recordings on the Digital Concert Hall, not least the recent Elektra. Spine-tingling orchestral playing.
Well they certainly don’t sound like they did under Karajan.
If you live anywhere in the UK, you can access their amazing performance of Bruckner 5 at the BBC proms on the BBC iPlayer until mid October 2024. I’ve heard many performances of this work on record, CD and live … but this was truly exceptional as all the critics acknowledged. Petrenko’s conducting really transforms their performances from merely brilliant to truly outstanding!
That’s maybe because Petrenko is both a good musician and a good conductor. Unlike the other two.
I agree, and I’ve been re-enamored with them under Petrenko, the quality has become stunning.
I noticed on the DCH that Jacot had given up his beloved wooden flute quickly after joining and seemed to be fiddling around with gold flutes and starting to look miserable. He’s a phenomenal player and I still remember when I first noticed him when he won the live-streamed Nielsen competition. He won the SF Symphony job at the same time he won Berlin and while you can’t blame him for taking the Berlin job, he must be kicking himself. I’m sure he’ll easily win another big job though.
We’ve also never been given a real explanation as to why Dufour left principal flute after maybe 6-7 seasons. He obviously was given tenure, however.
I do not appreciate the baseless speculation that she was not ‘tough’ enough or ‘adaptable’ enough for this job.
“Baseless…” Hmmm.
In case that was not clear — my rumination on “baseless” is not directed at Ms. Sareika. It is directed at the tenor of the item.
Agreed.
Is there something wrong with this orchestra, there seems to have been quite a lot of friction there over the years.
They’ve always been a bit behind with regards to inclusiveness for female performers.
Perhaps she plans to form a new quartet. It’s entirely possible that she enjoys chamber music more than playing in an orchestra. In any case, I’m sure she will do well on whatever path she chooses.
It’s a top-tier orchestra, and a lot of musicians crumble under the pressure of that. Farewell, Vineta.
More than very sad news but I’m not surprised. A year ago I read with help of google translator one latvian article about her and playing with Berlin Phil I take noticed that there was many other factors which are important for her (chamber music, students in Berlin UdK etc). Despite that she had a shared principal player position which makes possible to do other things together with orchestral career, I thought that is the orchestral world propably the most suitable career for her because she had many other interests as well + being same time mother of little girl?
So I hope that she made best decision listening her heart and is better to give principal chair for player who really really want to be principal / concertmaster with world’s Top3 orchestra. She will stay in history – especially with her stellar playing with Ein Heldenleben.
But when I saw “Principal Flute” on their vacant positions and confirmed that in page of Flute Forum, I almost got a heart attack becuase I never believe that Jacot did not pass the trial period. He was (and still is) so stellar player with lot of charisma so that was make me very sad when I notice that information.
But luckily violin and flute are instrumemts with good sitution that there’s many talented plyers all around world that some day these two key positions are permantly filled / fully tenured with suitable players. But we don’t forget Mrs. Sareika and Mr. Jacot – they are super stars!
It seemed like I saw her constantly on the DCH over the past year or so. I can see it would be an incredibly stressful position; if nothing else you’re sitting in front of 30 excellent violinists, many of whom may well think they could do the job. It makes all the more remarkable Daniel Stabrawa’s 35 years.
guy Braunstein stayed
15 years.
I think what the PBO needs badly and urgently is good conductor
What are you talking about? I live in Berlin and go to many many concerts. Half of the truly memorable concerts I’ve been to in recent years are the BPO concerts with Petrenko.
“the less-tough get going”?
That’s an uncalled for implication.
The BPO has been a male club for centuries. It has only been in recent years that women have been allowed to join. Sabine Meyer, principal clarinets, is a world class musician who did not find that orchestra was a welcoming environment. Is history repeating? Probably!
Recent years? If you consider 1982 as recent you are right….
Indeed. The BPO has never been known to be comfortable for females.
There is so much more to the Sabine Meyer story than simply the orchestra being unwelcoming to women, several orchestra members who were young then and have now retired have spoken out about this. She came in at a time when there was already heated tension between Karajan and the orchestra, she became a pawn in the game between the powers. With what was going on, no person – male or female – in that situation would have gotten a permanent spot in the orchestra.
“In a move that has shocked the orchestra” says Norman. Source? Hearsay? Supposition?
BPO is looking for a Solo flute AND a second flute/piccolo (??) – that’s half of the section – – with regard to the solo position, in addition to the very high demands of this orchestra, there is also the long shadow of Pahud in relation to this position – there certainly cannot be a greater difference in quality between the two solo flutes.
I heard all three concertmasters not only once – and found the sound of Kashimoto and Bendix-Balgley better in comparison , emerging more brilliantly and confidently from the orchestra – this tiny little bit which makes the difference at this level – comparable to the situation at Vienna Symphony (Sophie Heinrich is a very good violinist – but in comparison the orchestra went with Dalibor Karvay – she was denied the position and left after being third concertmaster for some time).
This is the third year the BPO has listed auditions for 2nd flute with picc obligations, longtime 2nd flute Michael Hasel retired in 2022/23. But seems it’s been a no-hire the first two times? It’s insane to think out of the mind-boggling number of incredible flute players in the world that they can’t identify someone but the solo piccolo role was open for 10 years before they finally engaged Egorkin. The demands must be brutal.
Re: the long shadow of Pahud, we’ve never been given a full explanation of why Dufour left after only 6 or so seasons, he was a phenomenal player in his own right. And Jacot is really shocking, he’s among the best out there.
I have no idea what the deal was with Dufour, but when in Chicago he tried out LA (then decided to stay), then shortly after won the BPO audition and left. He did spend 15 or so years in Chicago so it’s not like he’s that flighty. But in any case he clearly got tenure in Berlin (or maybe had it waived, since he had no reason to leave the CSO), so somehow decided after six years it wasn’t for him.
Andreas Blau still seems to be playing pretty well, in case they want to bring him back for a spell (at age 75). I’ve always thought he was scandalously underappreciated, if you can say that about someone who had the job for 46 years (during which he was an equal principal first with Galway, then with Karlheinz Zoeller, then with Manny Pahud). And was a rock every time I heard him.
Woman quitting when it gets too rough. Quelle surprise. La Donna è mobile indeed.
Chauvinism personified!
It was clear to the orchestra since the beginning that she wasn’t the right fit, the orchestra always sounded less together when she was leading. They told her months ago that she won’t pass her trial and offered her to leave earlier to avoid embarrassment and scandal.
It has nothing to do with the fact that she is a woman; her posture is unhealthy, and leading unclear for such a big orchestra. There is no bad blood between her and the orchestra.
How about “When the bullies get tough, the bullied get going”?
Your statement is just as speculative as mine…
Exactly, what a disgusting insinuation to make based on no evidence.
Sometimes your dream job becomes a nightmare. Not sure that’s the case here, but it happens in all professions.
Go Cleveland go
Wow with the implication that she’s less tough. Rude and completely unsubstantiated. A comment based on misogyny.
Get security…show her to the door…now!
Petrenko is a good conductor and therefore a control freak. Not everybody’s taste, specially if you come from quartet playing. Besides, policy of guest conductors at BPO is erratic. That is also a reason to quit.
Given the overwhelming number of males leaving comments vs females and the fact that she was their 1st ever female concertmaster, I can only imagine the difficulties she encountered in that environment.
Let’s face it: orchestras just exude toxicity. It doesn’t matter if its the best in the world or your average small city orchestra, the underlying current is the same: toxic.
I didnt know that Rachel Maddow’s younger brother played violin!
I would LOVE to know what information you have to support your very unkind, unthoughtful, and quite honestly ridiculous phrase “But then the Berlin Phil is a demanding orchestra and, when the going gets tough, the less-tough get going.” Do you know her? Have you worked there? Do you know what the culture is at the Berlin Philharmonic? Her statement was all class while your article is nothing but speculation. Perhaps measure your words better next time and stick to the facts.
yes, to most of those
I have never quit the Berlin Philharmonic, but I’ve quit several orchestras. Because I didn’t like playing with them. From this perspective, it seems Sareika’s resignation letter is a pretty classy way of announcing that she doesn’t enjoy her current gig and is moving on.