Klaus Tennstedt interview, December 1981 This lovely relaxed interview was filmed to mark the 1982 centenary of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. Included are two brief excerpts from the December 1981 performance of Bruckner 4. The interviewer is thought to be Klaus Geitel, co-producer of the 'Karajan Era' documentary from which this interview is taken.
Note: Below is my attempt at a transcript of the far-from-perfect audio: -
"Herr Tennstedt, all young musicians here in the Federal Republic, and especially the would-be conductors amongst them, dream of one day conducting the Berlin Philharmonic Is it the same for young musicians in the GDR? "
KT: Yes, I think so. I lived for many years in the GDR, right up to 1971, and naturally the dream of every conductor is that one day he might conduct this wonderful orchestra. Since moving to the Federal Republic I've been lucky enough to establish a connection with the orchestra, and not only conduct concerts but also record with them. That's quite uncommon among conductors.
"The two parts of Germany have apparently not grown apart musically, then?”
KT: No, not at all. The GDR also has some great conductors and excellent orchestras, for example the Gewandhaus orchestra [Leipzig], the Dresden Staatskapelle and the Berlin Staatskapelle. Those are all outstanding orchestras.
"But as a youngster living in the GDR, surely you could only experience the Berlin Philharmonic at second hand, via records or the radio?"
KT: Naturally, but we listened intensively and were well aware of the quality of the Berlin Philharmonic.
"As a conductor, how dependent are you on the quality of an orchestra?"
KT: That's a difficult question. You are always dependent to some extent. You have only one baton, and sitting in front of you are one hundred individualists. A conductor must be able to bring something completely fresh to the orchestra, and that's what we try to do…
(Bruckner 4 excerpt)
KT:… I'm now in the fortunate position of knowing almost all the world-class orchestras, and I must say (and not just because it's an anniversary) it's my honest opinion that - without exaggeration, because one must be wary of superlatives - at the present time the Berlin Philharmonic is the best orchestra in the world.
" The Berlin Philharmonic would certainly be pleased to hear that!"
KT: But that's not just a compliment, it's an honest opinion and I can explain it. There are ten or twelve fantastic orchestras in the world. I know them all. But it's perfectly natural that somewhere in every orchestra there is a weak point.Perhaps the viola section isn't great, or the second oboe, or the third bassoon, or possibly even the concert-master.That can happen.But with the Berlin Philharmonic there are absolutely no weak points at all.
"What do you put that down to? To its form of self-government?"
KT: I don't know. It's really difficult to pin down. Looking back at the Furtwangler era, this was an outstanding orchestra with many individual strong points. And during his time as a conductor, Karajan has moved the orchestra on and made sure to appoint only the very top musicians. And so it has become - in the opinion of many people, and also in mine - the best orchestra.
"Then they're not, as is often said, above all a Karajan orchestra, and all other conductors must comply with their way of working?"
KT: Oh no, no, no. No way! This orchestra is very flexible. They adapt immediately to any conductor who has something original to offer them. And in addition they're incredibly flexible as to style. By now I've done a wide range of works with them. You couldn't imagine any greater contrast than between Dvorak and Bruckner. So, you schedule Dvorak 8 and they produce the very essence of Bohemia. And then you turn to Bruckner, and they move you to tears…
(Bruckner 4 excerpt to close).
Apologies for the abrupt ending to the video; the 1982 film moved smartly on to an interview with a member of the orchestra.