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Reviews
The Jerusalem Post
Eli Karev
The setting at Tel Aviv's Mann Auditorium is a customary
one. The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, in full force
but casually dressed, is set for rehearsal. The young
conductor raises his baton, and the musicians plunge
into the sparkling score La Mer by Debussy.
"Okay, okay!" interrupts a husky voice from
within the orchestra. "You have been through two
sections already. Now rehearse them. Don't just perform."
The voice is a familiar one. The IPO's music director
and chief conductor, sitting among the players, has
crossed the lines. His expressive face, adorned with
a newly-acquired beard, projects intense interest and
a wide range of reactions: anger, disagreement, bemusement
and obvious approval. Once in a rare while, he looks
happy and shouts "bravo," and the orchestra
bursts into applause. Other times, he jumps on to the
podium and shapes the conductor's motions.
The event has, in fact, little to do with the orchestra's
daily routine. For the first time, Israel's leading
musical body is hosting an international master class
in conducting, conceived and directed by Zubin Mehta.
Five young conductors are taking part. Three are Israelis
working abroad: Gisèle Buka-Ben Dor, 27; Israel Edelson,
31, and Motti Meron. The other two are Mark Gooding,
30, from London, and Felix Kruglikov, 29, originally
from Odessa, but who now lives in New York.
During five days of intensive work - two three-hour
sessions a day - five compositions are studied with
two orchestras; the IPO and the orchestra of Tel Aviv
University's Rubin Academy of Music. Each conductor
gets a try at every work and is assigned one for the
concluding concert at Mann Auditorium tomorrow night.
The entire affair, open to the public, will be videotaped
by the Jerusalem Music Centre. The film has already
been sold to the BBC.
"There are lots of conductors in the world today,"
says Mehta. "Why is it that there are so few good
ones? This is not a rhetorical question, and I haven't
got an answer."
He views this workshop as a unique opportunity for
the young conductors, most of whom were picked by him.
In the workshop, they can work out professional problems
with a top orchestra. "To try out Stravinsky's
Rite of Spring with an orchestra of the IPO's
calibre is, for them, an invaluable experience,"
says Mehta. "They make mistakes, and under different
circumstances, a great orchestra could have shouted
them down. On the other hand dealing with a younger,
less experienced group from the academy will demand
more artistic initiative. This has its rewards, too,
for young people are easier to convince.
"I am not trying to impose my outlook on the participants,
which is impossible anyway in so short a time. "It
is more an exchange of ideas. I give them the benefit
of my experience and of my mistakes. I do not insist
when we disagree, and they are welcome to prove me wrong.
It doesn't happen too often, though," the maestro
adds with a smile.
"There are, however, many matters they absolutely
must be in control of while facing an orchestra, and
it is these points that I try to strengthen."
Although this class is a first of the kind for Mehta,
he cherishes the original meaning of the Italian word
maestro - the teacher, and he is keeping in mind
an offer of a conducting chair at the Curtis Institute
in Philadelphia.
The young conductors, tense and somewhat confused,
what with their every movement on the podium being recorded,
the hour-long closed sessions with Mehta before each
rehearsal, the endless interviews and encounters with
players and the public. They try to put up a brave front.
"Mehta's knowledge, experience - his 'octopus
ears' that catch just everything happening anywhere
in the orchestra - are overwhelming," says Gisèle
Buka-Ben Dor. After each session she feels a need to
sit quietly for a few hours in order to recall, to absorb
and to reconsider everything. "His every word is
a lesson. It is not specific places, but principles
that you take with you."
How does it feel, we ask Gisèle, who is expecting her
first baby in January, to conduct uninterrupted a long
section of the Rite of Spring and then receive
Mehta's bravo?
"It is an ambivalent feeling. You are happy, for
technically he gave his okay. You also know it was not
all that perfect. How will it be in professional life?"
Mark Gooding, a bassoon player with experience from
within the orchestra ranks, says the situation is something
like what an infant might feel were he tossed into a
swimming pool. It can crack you, but if you survive,
you are better off. Gooding feels a bit intimidated
by the limelight, the TV cameras and the need to rearrange
one's interpretations on the spot. Still, he appreciates
the experience of working with a truly great international
orchestra: "It enhances your knowledge and boosts
confidence, and if somebody sees me and likes what he
sees, well, that's an icing on the cake."
The members of the IPO, having the rather thankless
task of repeating one movement for three hours in a
row, appear supportive and patient. "When the conductor
is in any way exciting. It is fascinating to follow
the lead," says Eli Eban, a clarinet player. "And
Mehta's comments provide insights about the art of conducting
we would hardly gain otherwise."
Michal Haran, the principal cellist and an aspiring
conductor, concurs. "Sure we help the conductors,
but we also learn a great deal. In our orchestra, to
work on so few works for a while is a rare blessing."
On the second day of the class, we request some preliminary
conclusions from Zubin Mehta. "One thing I know
already: at the next such class, whenever it happens,
there will be no TV. It is sometimes awfully hard to
hold back - I get so angry. But you just can't show
it in front of a camera."
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