In Tuesday’s (11/17) Boston Globe, Jeremy Eichler writes, “One of the most important unions in the orchestral world—Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic—is looking strong these days. After rumors of some marital bickering, orchestra and conductor have agreed to a partnership that will last until at least 2018. EMI Classics has also renewed their recording contract. And, most importantly, evidence of the musical chemistry between the two is incontrovertible, at least as presented in Sunday afternoon’s excellent Celebrity Series performance in Symphony Hall. On the program were Brahms’s Third and Fourth Symphonies, repertoire the orchestra has recently re-recorded, with a seldom performed work by Schoenberg tucked in between. … Rattle could be seen asserting his leadership, but for much of the afternoon he seemed content to coax the orchestra along with minimal intervention. … All orchestral musicians appreciate conductors who, when appropriate, stand back and let them do their jobs, but very few ensembles in turn step up to fill the space the way Berlin does.”
Posted November 17, 2009
