Berlin conductor Rattle brings a freshness to philharmonic

Berlin, Germany (dpa) - The star conductor from Liverpool with the mop of curly silver hair belongs to a new generation of classical musicians that aims to attract more young people to concerts.

Simon Rattle likes reminding people he's from Liverpool, an English city known not only as the hometown of the Beatles, but also as a place that takes football seriously. Rattle imagines his audiences are made up of people who place football alongside music as their favourite pastimes.

On the street he is often greeted like a pop star or a prominent football player. He's pleased by the way young people call out "hi, sir" with a wave. The 51-year-old (born January 19, 1955) head conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic, who was granted knighthood in 1994, has a direct and lively manner more typical of a pop star than a venerable maestro.

Rattle, who has been conducting one of the most famous orchestras in the world since September 2002, took Berlin by storm. The concerts he directs at the Berlin Philharmonic are always sold out. His appearances are among the high points of cultural life in the German capital. Since Sir Simon and a group of young people staged a ballet by Igor Strawinsky in the successful documentary film "Rhythm Is It," he's had a large fan base throughout Germany.

Now firmly established as one of the top conductors in the world, the man from Liverpool represents a new generation of classical music lovers who want to make concert halls attractive for young people while simultaneously dusting off the classics by Mozart, Beethoven and others. The one-time percussionist has been drumming up support for his idea.

With financial support from Deutsche Bank, Rattle founded an education project at the philharmonic that runs workshops and puts on classical music performances for school-age children. As an "orchestra of the future," the Berlin Philharmonic must be concerned today about the audience of tomorrow, Rattle says.

In his top position at the philharmonic, Rattle can rest on the shoulders of his great predecessors, a group that includes Herbert von Karajan and Italian Claudio Abbado. But he's only moderately impressed by the weight of more than 100 years of music history. He has swept away almost casually many of the symphony's venerable traditions.

"The symphony will become an orchestra of the 21st century and we will go down that path together," said Rattle with a disarming smile.

In Birmingham, England, where Rattle was associated with the symphony orchestra from 1980-98, pushing it to world-class status as director during the latter part of that 18-year period, he had to promote himself and his music loudly. But now there's no sign of any encumbrance from the promotional aspects of his job when the star conductor steps onto the director's stand.

2It's the price I have to pay," Rattle says, referring to headlines in the tabloids about the separation from his wife Candace. Rattle has two sons from his previous marriage to American soprano Elise Ross. Today he lives in Berlin with star soprano Magdalena Kozena and their son Jonas.

The high-achieving golden boy of classical music is the son of a salesman who came to the stage at a very young age. His father Denis is a passionate jazz pianist who discovered his son's talent. As a small child he was able to tap out rhythms. His first instrument was a set of drums followed by a piano.

At the age of 16 he stood before an orchestra to conduct - much to the chagrin of his father, who said he was hoping for a drummer who would accompany him in his old age.

Rattle still loves jazz and pop music. He regularly includes new works alongside classic masterpieces played by the philharmonic in an effort to continue presenting his audiences with fresh musical dimensions.

Contact: http://www.berliner-philharmoniker.de, spokesman Marc Chahin, Telephone: +49-(30)-254 88 290

Media Service: www.mediaservice.land-of-ideas.org

Copyright 2006 dpa Deutsche Presse-Agentur GmbH