“All you see are happy faces”
A conversation with General Manager Andrea Zietzschmann

The Berliner Philharmoniker’s current Asian tour is heading for its last stops – the perfect time for an interim review with General Manager Andrea Zietzschmann. Has the tour been a success so far? And what was the impact of the typhoon in Taiwan?

Andrea Zietzschmann, after performances in Seoul, Taipei and Shanghai, Japan is the final stop on this tour. What has been the most exciting moment so far?
Without question, our visit to Taipei. A typhoon had swept across the Philippines with devastating force, and was heading straight for Taiwan. Every day we reassessed the situation in crisis meetings. We had a lot planned: three concerts, one of them with a public viewing outside the hall.

What would have been the worst-case scenario from the orchestra’s perspective?
Our local presenter warned us early on: if things turn really serious, public life comes to a complete standstill. That would have affected not only the public viewing but also the concerts in the hall, because nobody would have been allowed to go outside. The decision is always made by the government the night before.

What options do you have in such a situation?
We wanted to avoid cancelling any of the concerts at all costs – especially as it was our first visit in seven years. A cancelled concert is a major financial loss for us, one that cannot be insured. If necessary, the orchestra would have had to have postponed a programme, meaning two concerts in one day – an enormous strain for the players and also for Kirill Petrenko. Fortunately, it didn’t come to that, and even the public viewing took place as planned.

Young audiences, new concert halls

In Europe, we often hear about the particular dynamism of the classical music scene in Asia. What has your experience been?
Take Korea, for example: there is probably no younger audience for classical music anywhere in the world, and they are extraordinarily enthusiastic. Nowhere else are so many concert halls being built. And the country has produced remarkable soloists – like the pianist Sunwook Kim, who appeared with us in Seoul. The composer Unsuk Chin, with whom we are closely associated, is another example of the country’s musical vitality. Developments in China are similar, even if they gathered momentum a little later. Some 80 orchestras have now been founded there, and in Shanghai, everyone eagerly awaits the opening of a new, spectacular opera house.

And Taiwan?
Here, too, the audience is wonderfully responsive – as we saw during our public viewing. So many people followed the concert with real excitement, despite the heavy rain. However, in these countries, you sometimes sense a different approach to music. That is clear from the reactions to works outside the core repertoire. And to be fair, we don’t make things particularly easy for our tour audiences when we perform pieces like Janáček’s Lachian Dances or Bartók’s Miraculous Mandarin.

Why not simply play the popular classics?
That would, of course, be the preferred option for local promoters – and it is the subject of many discussions. But we believe it is important to challenge audiences with the unfamiliar. If we don’t do it, who will? Whatever the repertoire, our concerts in Asia generally sell out in no time. Certain works are also a perfect way to showcase the orchestra’s particular strengths. Stravinsky’s Petrushka, for example, gives our outstanding soloists exceptional scope.

Aside from artistic matters, what occupies you during a tour like this?
I carry overall responsibility and have to keep an eye on everything – ensuring that all the plans made beforehand actually work in practice. Then there’s my share of media work through press conferences and interviews. And there is a great deal of relationship-building: discussions with local promoters about future tours, conversations with musicians, composers and colleagues from other cultural institutions. Meetings with sponsors are becoming increasingly important – with our exclusive partner, Deutsche Bank, as well as with local supporters who make individual events possible. Representing the orchestra, exchanging gifts – sometimes it feels almost like the diplomatic service. And after concerts or receptions, I deal with day-to-day business in Berlin – the work there, of course, continues.

Cellist Nikolaus Römisch, who also serves as the orchestra’s tour manager, has said that touring is always a form of team-building. Does that apply to your work as well?
Very much so. I use tours for in-depth conversations with the orchestra’s committees or the chair of the staff council. I also ask individual musicians what is on their mind. Questions often arise about artistic direction – where the orchestra wants to go. All kinds of topics emerge. And I also have the chance to get to know the young members of the Karajan Academy. All these things are something that the pressures of everyday life in Berlin often don’t allow.

Building bridges through music

What makes tours in Asia personally interesting for you?
There is a fascinating contrast. As often as we have travelled to these countries, they are still a different world. Take our last stop, Shanghai, with its 24 million people and skyscrapers rising half a kilometre into the sky. Everything is different – from the food to the rituals of greeting. And then you sit together quite naturally in Brahms’s First Symphony and can exchange thoughts about it. This ability of music to build bridges remains a remarkable experience.

This tour also includes many outreach projects – for children in care, for adults, for people with disabilities. Why is that important to the orchestra?
We want to build connections with people from very different backgrounds who would not usually come to our concerts. It broadens the basis of our interaction with these countries. And these outreach projects are dear to us precisely because of their interactive nature. We learn so much about life and about the people who live here.

Three of the four tour stops are behind you. Are you already able to tell whether the tour has been a success?
Absolutely – in every city. That is most evident in the audience’s enthusiasm. The queues in front of the doors; the signing sessions! It is also clear from the response in the media – and from the promoters. If you ask them when we should return, the answer is: preferably tomorrow! And there is another essential factor: the satisfaction within the orchestra and of the conductor. All you see are happy faces.

Japan now marks the final stage – traditionally the highlight of an Asian tour for the Berliner Philharmoniker. Is there something you personally look forward to – perhaps even outside the concerts?
I’ve planned an hour of quiet time for myself, and I want to visit one of my favourite places again. There are two shrines and a park where I love to go. I’m hoping to find a moment of calm there.