Berlin Philharmonic to perform at Hill

The acoustics of Hill Auditorium will be put to the test tonight when The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra graces its stage for the first time since 1965. Ann Arbor is one of the few stops the ensemble, which is considered one of the finest in the world, will make in the United States this year.

The Orchestra's history in this town has not always been a pleasant one. In 1955, many student groups called for a boycott of their performance at Hill because of still-lingering anti-German sentiments on campus, and in the United States following the second World War.

Courtesy of University Musical Society Claudio Abbado conducts the Berlin Philharmonic.

The group was founded by 50 musicians in Berlin in 1882 who left their own orchestra because they were dissatisfied with their conductor's dictator-like methods of control. The orchestra struggled through the early years, but began to grow towards the end of the 19th Century and saw great composers like Tchaikovsky, Malher and Strauss perform as guest conductors.

In the 20th Century, the orchestra has been fronted by numerous masters including Arthur Nikisch, Wilhem Furtwängler and Herbert von Karajan. Beyond his influence as conductor, one of Karajan's main achievements was the founding of the Berlin Philharmonic Academy in 1972. Since then, the school has educated young professional musicians in the rigors of musical life in the symphony.

In 1989, Claudio Abaddo began wielding the orchestra's baton. Abaddo made his musical debut in 1960 at the Teatro alla Scalla in his home town of Milan, Italy. In 1968, he was appointed musical director of that ensemble. He has held that post for other groups as well including the Vienna Philharmonic, the Vienna State Opera, and the London Symphony Orchestra. For his endeavors, he has garnered numerous honorary degrees and many national awards throughout Europe.

Another of the ensemble's achievements has been in the realm of recorded music. From behind the sales desk of SKR Classical on Liberty St. in Ann Arbor, owner Jim Leonard discussed with great zeal some of the orchestras recording masterpieces. During World War II, at the peak of the Nazi's dominance, the Orchestra with Furtwängler as conductor recorded Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in Berlin. Leonard said, it is one of the "greatest performances of anything ever made." And it was on the subject of the group's present conductor that Leonard stated with little hesitation, "Abaddo is the greatest living, working conductor."

Tonight, the first piece will be Beethoven's Fourth Symphony in B-Flat Major, a piece composed in 1805. The second will be Schoenburg's "Pelleas and Melisande," a tone poem based on Maurice Masterlink's 1893 drama. This work requires an orchestra of over 100 and has never been performed in Ann Arbor.

The University Musical Society is dubbing this event "the concert event of the century." Such a label is highly debatable, but with such an alluring program with a legendary conductor at the podium, tonight's world-class orchestral performance is indeed a highlight of this year's UMS schedule.

10-20-99