Beethovenfest 2014 - a score card
October 5, 2014
The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie (German Chamber Philharmonic) Bremen, orchestra in residence at the Beethovenfest since 2004, had the honor of playing the final bars of the 2014 Beethovenfest on October 3 this year. In years past, the orchestra worked on exclusive projects in Ludwig van Beethoven‘s home town and - according to its principal conductor Paavo Järvi - even developed a specific sound there.
This year the Bremen musicians played only a supporting role, as the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra was charged with performing the cycle of Beethoven’s symphonies. They delivered a top-notch rendition, but non-exclusive, as the cycle was repeated shortly thereafter in Paris and Birmingham.
Altogether German orchestras were in the minority at the most important Beethoven festival in Germany, perhaps in the world. Two orchestras came from Great Britain, one from the Netherlands, and another from Norway. A youth orchestra traveled to Bonn from Turkey, and two others - the Baltic Sea Youth Philharmonic and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra - made a point of being notably international. The only big name orchestra from Germany to make an appearance was the Munich Philharmonic.
Moments in memory
There were a number of moments that honored the festival's motto: "Götterfunken" (Divine Sparks). It began with a light and airy Mendelssohn rendition with the London Symphony Orchestra under John Eliot Gardiner. That was closely followed by the beginning of the symphony cycle led by a conductor who is as much fun to watch as his renditions are a delight to hear. To judge from his flowing gestures, Latvian Andris Nelsons seems not to have a bone in his body. Some 3,000 viewers had a close up at the public viewing screen on Bonn’s Market Square. The "crescendo conductor" (to quote festival director Nike Wagner) gave a singular tension and excitement to familiar bars, particularly the transition from the third to the fourth movement in the Fifth Symphony. Such moments strike at the essence of Beethoven.
On four different evenings, listeners could discover why the Russian Borodin Quartet is often called "legendary." The Ensemble Sarband presented an interesting mix of Bach, early Christian and Sufi Islamic music - with a spectacular addition: white-clad whirling dervishes. A daringly original approach with breathtaking results. Stefan Cassomeneos, a winner in the Beethoven Telekom Competition in December 2013, gave, among other things, an exciting rendition of Beethoven‘s "Waldstein" Sonata.
Giving an example of just what a conductor is capable of was Yannick Nézet-Séguin, leading the Rotterdam Philharmonic. From the most subtle detail to the grand arch, the French Canadian bundle of energy elicited a wide range of colors, as though hugging the orchestra, and with it, the entire world. The Munich Philharmonic, in contrast, were powerful, virtuosic and a bit too clamorous - all the things this orchestra is normally said not to be.
In musical terms, 2014 was perhaps the finest in the fourteen years of the Orchestra Campus, with a riveting world premiere and an ambitious rendition of Beethoven’s Ninth. With his Baltic Sea Youth Philharmonic, conductor Kristjan Järvi put together an evening of classical music that "rocks" - classical music with elements of rock - without pandering to the public. Final mention goes to a light but sinewy rendition of Beethoven und Stravinsky under the hands of Norwegian Leif Ove Andsnes - in his dual function as both pianist and conductor.
A fest searching for its soul
The fest once again gave concert-goers in Bonn the chance to take in a cross-section of the current classical music scene. They snapped up 87 percent of the 39,000 available tickets to the sixty events over four weeks. More than half of the concerts were sold out. Visitors came from Great Britain, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Israel, Belgium, Turkey, Australia, Japan, Spain, and Italy. Events for young people, lectures, exhibitions and art happenings rounded out the lineup.
While acknowledging special enterprises such as the performance of Beethoven's complete symphonies, piano concertos, violin sonatas, and string quartets, the program also had some more gratuitous features and concerts that can be heard elsewhere as well. Beethoven on the cover, but not always in the content - noting that this composer influenced everyone who came after him is not a programmatic concept in itself.
Music of the future
The fest comes with a price tag of 4.7 million euros ($5.9 million), roughly 40 percent of which comes from public funding. But what should a Beethovenfest of this caliber offer? A cross-section of the classical music world? Reservations have been voiced by festival director Nike Wagner, whose personal stamp will only become clear in the coming season. Wagner has said she would favor a somewhat smaller festival that draws more heavily on the local and regional arts scenes. She can also be expected to design intelligent programs with a motto that is clear and evident in every program.
Will a more precise conceptional outfit generate more "divine sparks," and will the high caliber of performances be maintained? Those questions loom large as the 2014 season draws to a close.