November 3 Berlin

Berlin has never attracted me. Today as we drove in on the bus dark clouds hung low and a light rain fell. Forests, parks and waterways softened the landscape of modern high rises and wide streets, but it was grim. Berlin was as depressing as I feared.

Our destination was the Berlin Philharmonic, one of three major symphony halls in this city of three and a half million people. The “Phil” was completed in 1963. As far as a mid-century modern public building goes, it is magnificent outside and in. My first impression as we walked in was how huge it is; under asymmetrical roofs, two wings spread across the area the size of at least two football fields. The interior felt light and airy in contrast to the darkening sky.

We checked my coat (required), found the restroom and bought a €2 program. We walked up a couple of wide staircases to our Section A. As I waited for Mike who was checking our the on-site record store, I peeked in the door. It looked like we would walk in very close to the stage.

When the usher let us in, we did walk right in front of the stage. Our seats were in Row 2, right next to the first violins! While we waited for the show to start, I looked around the hall. I’ve never seen anything like it. Seating sections for almost 2,500 patrons surrounded the stage in an irregular pattern. The balconies did not jut out over other sections, but sort of spiraled up and around the stage. The sold out concert hall rapidly filled.

The lights darkened and a choir began to fill the risers behind the orchestra area. They kept coming and coming! The program opened with two lovely a cappella pieces from 1619. Then the orchestra and more choir members moved onto the stage. Someone counted 180 in the choir and I’ll bet there were a hundred in the full orchestra. I counted eight double basses, two harps, an organist, and a very full wind section including a contra bassoon and tubas. The door right next to where we walked in opened and in walked two soloists and the conductor, Vladimir Jurowski. Once all were settled, Vladimir delicately raised up a long baton and set off with Brahms’ German Requiem opus 45.

I can honestly say I’ve never in my life been as captivated by a symphony as this one. I know that the Berlin Radio Orchestra is the highest caliber, and the sheer number of performers was staggering but I was not familiar with this piece, so I didn’t have melodies to follow or sections to expect.

Only about twenty feet from our seats, the conductor mesmerized me. He had a big job keeping it all together. Dressed casually in a black shirt and slacks, he had long hair and very long arms and fingers. While he delicately kept time with his baton, his left hand would gesture. Sometimes with a “come to me motion” and other times like a magician, I thought of abracadabra. All the while he sang with the chorus.

I loved watching the chorus. The moved freely as they sang, and packed together reminded me of wind blowing through a field of ripe wheat. The male soloist was older, in a rumpled jacket. His face turned red as he sang, and sometimes he held on to the podium, but boy, could he sing the bass! The soprano, a beautiful blonde, had a lovely voice. She wore a very low cut black lace dress that was a bit incongruous with the sacred nature of the music. She would reach way forward, music in hand, in the stronger sections of her solo.

I was especially excited to hear the organ. The massive pipes were high above the stage to the right but the organist was near us just behind the violins. He only played when the orchestra was in full force so I did not hear a blast. I wondered about the audience members seated in front of the pipes, if they felt vibrations.

The seven movement Requiem lasted at least seventy minutes. I was totally engaged the whole time. At the end, the audience applauded enthusiastically. Ushers brought flowers to the soloists and conductors. Vladimir walked back and handed his flowers to someone in the chorus. The applause and bows lasted maybe ten minutes. No standing ovation and no encore.

I realize I’m writing here more about what I saw and felt, and not much about what we heard. I wish I had better knowledge to be able to describe the music itself, but I suggest you just go on YouTube or an app and have a listen.

Ct