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Brahms, the Berlin Philharmonic … and me

On a Thursday in May, 101 musicians gathered on the stage of the Philharmonie in Berlin to rehearse the First Symphony by Johannes Brahms and then perform the work under the direction of Simon Rattle, the Berlin Philharmonic’s conductor. For Rattle, or Sir Simon, or his preferred Simon, this would be one of his final concerts at his home for the past 16 years before taking over at the London Symphony Orchestra. Despite the imposing venue, those 101 musicians were amateurs all. They came from 30 countries, their ages ranging from 10 to 75. I was the elder bookend, one of six French hornists selected, and lending the event a special sweetness was the fact that I, like many others who play for sheer pleasure, chose not to pursue a professional career. In fact, I played virtually not at all for 37 years, and returned to my first love only 15 years ago. This was our route to Berlin: Having seen the event announced online by the Berlin Philharmonic at the start of the year, we auditioned by video for members of the orchestra. The ad hoc ensemble, known, cunningly, as the Be Phil Orchestra, offered a remarkable opportunity — to be a weeklong guest of one of the world’s great ensembles, attending its rehearsals, being coached by its musicians and performing under its music director. Of the 1,900 avocational instrumentalists who expressed interest in participating, 1,000 were auditioned online, and the Berlin Philharmonic musicians then selected the 101. The occasion was a reprise of similar events that the Philharmonic hosted twice before, though not in recent years. Whether the tradition will continue after Rattle relinquishes his post of music director and relocates to London — his successor is the Russian Kirill Petrenko — is at present unknown. Among other reasons, the event was notable for advancing a notion put forward by the British social scientist and journalist Charles Leadbeater in “The ProAm Revolution.” Leadbeater’s book, published in 2004, suggests that there is an overlap, slight but significant, between the realms of professionals and amateurs, that “Pro-Ams — people pursuing amateur activities to professional standards — are an increasingly important part of our society and economy.” It should be stressed, however, that as adept as an amateur instrumentalist might be, the skills and stamina of the professional musician are of an altogether different order. Leadbeater cites the bestknown of these manifestations, the Pro-Am sports tournaments, but he mentions, too, the various streams of expertise and interests that create open-source computer programs, that make astronomical discoveries, that lead to political engagement and change. He argues convincingly that just as professionals have much to teach amateurs, so too do amateurs have insights worth sharing with those more skilled. Should you search the open-source universe, you will find myriad programs ranging through the sciences and humanities, to mathematics and finance, to games and genealogy and hobbies. Firefox and Linux are among the most familiar names; CyberBrau perhaps less so. For those of us in the Be Phil Orchestra, proximity to the Berlin Philharmonic was thrilling. As was the opportunity to meet colleagues whose nationalities and professions were literally and figuratively all over the map. There was Alexander, a cellist from London, an attorney; Yoram, a tympanist from Israel, an engineer; and among the other hornists, Emma from the Netherlands, active in law enforcement; Tony from Canada, a luthier with guitars his specialty; Kjartan from Iceland, a lecturer at the University of Akureyri; and Cody, an administrator at the University of South Carolina’s law school. Stanley Dodds led our rehearsals for the first two days. A violinist in the Philharmonic and a conductor of formidable gifts, clarity was his keynote: clarity of musical thought, clarity of expression, clarity of technique. Rattle rehearsed us for the next two days, and the Brahms First was much on his mind. Within a week of our performance, he would conduct the same piece with his Berlin Philharmonic. Yet to our rehearsals, he brought the same energy and insights he would bring to any orchestra. Most notably, he kept urging, exhorting with words and gestures, that solo lines sing with vocal intensity, and moreover, that they be animated and infused with an operatic urgency. Brahms never composed an opera, but had he written one, its melodies might have soared like these. The performance was a kaleidoscope of pleasures: Rattle on the podium, Brahms on the music stand, 100 fellow musicians, many now friends, sharing the stage at the Philharmonie. Performing on that stage reveals a secret in the design of architect Hans Scharoun. Flanking the ensemble on either side are walls of a sort that gently taper down from the rear of the orchestra toward the front of the stage, from about 16 feet in height to 8. These structural features look like nothing architecturally and do everything acoustically. They enclose and embrace the orchestra, creating uncommon community among the musicians. You know there are 2,200 people in the audience before you, but your energies are contained in this privileged space onstage. When I discussed this singular configuration with Sarah Willis, one of the Berlin Philharmonic’s eight brilliant hornists, she suggested, correctly, that it is “a good Berlin Wall.” The Be Phil performance was the capstone of a daylong open house to which the Philharmonic invited any and all. Thousands attended and sampled a fascinating smorgasbord. On the plaza in front of the hall, guests could whack away al fresco on a jumble of percussion — xylophone, gongs, chimes, and drums large and small. Inside, there were informal performances by members of the Berlin Philharmonic and friends: chamber music, ethnic music, jazz and soul. And then there was the performance, our performance, of the Brahms, the cumulative, collective effort of 101 amateur musicians in thrall to their art. After a long and difficult gestation, the First Symphony was premiered in 1876 in Karlsruhe, Germany, with Otto Dessoff, Brahms’ colleague and confidant, conducting. Now a bedrock of the symphonic canon, it has been performed countless times by master conductors and storied ensembles. I’ve no doubt, however, that our Be Phil performance was the most stirring and impassioned ever played, and I know 100 other musicians who would agree.

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