“In Bogotá, I’ll be a greenhorn”
Percussionist Raphael Haeger and violist Martin Stegner in conversation “In Bogotá, I’ll be a greenhorn”Percussionist Raphael Haeger and violist Martin Stegner in conversation

For most members of the Berliner Philharmoniker, this tour of South America will be a journey into unfamiliar territory. But two of the orchestra’s musicians already know the continent well. Percussionist Raphael Haeger is almost at home in Brazil, while violist Martin Stegner took part in the orchestra’s last South American tour under Claudio Abbado. In our interview, they talk about their experiences of the countries and their cultures, what they are most looking forward to, and the surprises such a journey may bring.

Martin Stegner, you were part of the Berliner Philharmoniker’s last tour of South America. Back in May 2000, the orchestra travelled to Buenos Aires, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro under Claudio Abbado. What do you remember about it?

Martin Stegner: I remember less about the music than about everything around it. For example, how much the seats creaked in those old theatres – they made quite a noise during the concerts. Or how, in Rio de Janeiro, we travelled into the favelas under police escort to visit a samba school. I remember Buenos Aires as quite a melancholy place at the time, because many of the traditional tango venues were closing down. Fortunately, things have improved since then.

What was Claudio Abbado like on that tour?

MS: Very relaxed. Perhaps he felt more at home in southern countries like these than he did in Berlin. Not everything was perfectly organised either – a bit like in Italy.

But you haven’t been back to South America since then?

MS: Unfortunately not. I did go to Costa Rica once, in Central America, where I gave classes with a youth orchestra, the Orquesta Juvenil Centroamericana. It was a wonderful experience, especially seeing how the young musicians helped one another, without any sense of competition.

Raphael Haeger, you have been to South America many times.

Raphael Haeger: Yes, I’m married to a Brazilian, so we’ve been going there regularly for the past 30 years. I also know Argentina well because my wife, who is a dancer, taught courses there for five years.

How do the two countries differ?

RH: The weather, for one thing. Winter in Brazil feels like summer back home – you can walk along the beach in shorts. Then you arrive in Buenos Aires and there are leaves swirling through the streets, the sun is low in the sky and you need a jacket. There’s this autumnal, wintry atmosphere that you also find reflected in the tango.

Brazil is almost a second home to you. What is it about Brazil that particularly appeals to you?

RH: Brazilians who live in the big cities often warn visitors not to go out on their own because they’re terribly worried that something might happen to them. But if you actually venture out onto the streets, you experience things that you simply don’t see back home. On my last visit, I took a taxi, and when I went to put my luggage in the boot, I found it full of food and clothes. The driver explained that he buys all these things at the beginning of every month. Whenever he sees a homeless person on a street corner, he calls them over and gives them whatever essentials they need. And this was a taxi driver who certainly wasn’t wealthy himself. It reminded me of what Martin experienced in Costa Rica: people really go out of their way to help one another. In Brazil, you simply wouldn’t find a neighbour sitting alone in her flat at Christmas.

Alongside your personal experiences, you both also have a musical connection to South America through your ensemble Bolero Berlin, in which you perform Latin American music with colleagues from the Berliner Philharmoniker and other musicians. How did your love of samba, bossa nova and the like come about?

MS: Many years ago, I played jazz rock in a group with other members of the Philharmoniker. Then I wanted to find something different, where the focus was more on sound and where we could make greater use of our strengths as classical musicians. That’s how I came to South American music, and I invited colleagues from the orchestra to join me. Raphael was a real stroke of luck because, as well as being a percussionist, he is also an excellent pianist and has this Brazilian background.

How challenging is it to immerse yourself in a musical world like this?

RH: There has always been an exchange between South American and European cultures, which makes it easier. The bandoneon, which is so central to tango, originally comes from Germany and eventually found its way to South America. With our classical background, this music is much more accessible to us than, say, jazz with its African American roots. And you can also find traces of German or Tyrolean music in Brazilian music.

MS: Styles such as choro, bossa nova and tango are also fully composed. They are less about improvisation and much more about polyphony and counterpoint. That is naturally much closer to what we know.

The Berliner Philharmoniker’s tour will take you to New York, Bogotá, São Paulo and Buenos Aires. What is it like returning to New York, where the orchestra performs regularly?

RH: I really enjoy being in cities I’ve visited many times before. I no longer feel I have to tick off all the tourist attractions. So in New York I can seek out my own little corners and, for example, see which bands are playing in which clubs.
MS: I always make a point of exploring different neighbourhoods. Last time, I went to Queens with some colleagues and discovered areas that almost have a small-town feel and have nothing at all to do with the usual New York clichés. I found that incredibly exciting.

What are you looking forward to at the other stops – Bogotá, São Paulo and Buenos Aires?
RH: Bogotá is completely unknown territory for me – I’ll be a greenhorn there. I used to go to Buenos Aires quite often, but my last visit was a long time ago, perhaps in 2001. I’m curious to see how the city has changed. Unfortunately, there have been severe economic crises since then, which are bound to have left their mark. Brazil will be completely different: I’m less interested in the cities and landscapes there than in meeting people. I have very different opportunities there than in Colombia and Argentina because I speak the language.
MS: I’m curious to see how I cope with Bogotá’s altitude of more than 2,600 metres. I’ll also arrange to go out with colleagues rather than explore on my own. In São Paulo, I’d like to pick up where I left off on my last visit with Abbado. Back then, I didn’t yet have any real connection to Brazilian music and happened to stumble across a place with live music. I was absolutely captivated, so this time I’ll be deliberately seeking that out. The same goes for Buenos Aires, where I hope to hear an authentic tango orchestra. I’m less interested in the dancing itself – it’s the music that interests me! Of course, it would be wonderful to meet and spend time with musicians like that.

It will also be interesting to encounter the audiences at the orchestra’s concerts. Their reactions may be quite different from those at home in Berlin.
MS: That’s true, but then that’s always the case. Even within Europe, audiences differ from country to country and from city to city.
RH: I know orchestras in southern Brazil where every concert is followed by a standing ovation, but the applause ends very quickly and everyone goes home. Those are the kinds of local customs that you first have to learn how to interpret.

What will be your personal highlight of the tour?
MS: For me, I think it will be the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. It’s a unique building with an extraordinary history. When we were there with Abbado, I barely took it in amid all the other impressions. This time, I want to soak up the atmosphere of the theatre – just think of everything that has happened there!
RH: For me, it will definitely be the personal encounters in Brazil. Lots of friends and acquaintances will come by simply to say hello. That’s what I’m looking forward to most. But who knows? Perhaps there will be surprises waiting for me in Bogotá that I’ll never forget.