Sir Simon Rattle | |
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 Rattle conducting the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in 2006 | |
| Born | Simon Denis Rattle (1955-01-19)19 January 1955 (age 70) Liverpool, England |
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| Alma mater | Royal Academy of Music, London |
| Occupation | Conductor |
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| Children | 5 |
Sir Simon Denis Rattle (born 19 January 1955) is a British conductor with German citizenship.[1] He rose to international prominence during the 1980s and 1990s, while music director of theCity of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1980–1998). Rattle was principal conductor of theBerlin Philharmonic from 2002 to 2018, and music director of theLondon Symphony Orchestra from 2017 to 2023. He has been chief conductor ofBavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra since September 2023. Among the world's leading conductors, in a 2015Bachtrack poll, he was ranked by music critics as one of the world's best living conductors.[2]
Rattle is also the patron of Birmingham Schools' Symphony Orchestra, arranged during his tenure with CBSO in the mid-1990s. The Youth Orchestra is now under the auspices of charitable business Services for Education.[3] He received theBrit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music in 2001 at theClassic Brit Awards.
Simon Rattle was born inLiverpool, England, the son of Pauline Lila Violet (née Greening) and Denis Guttridge Rattle, a lieutenant in theRoyal Naval Volunteer Reserve duringWorld War II.[4] He was educated atLiverpool College. Although Rattle studied piano and violin, his early work with orchestras was as a percussionist for the Merseyside Youth Orchestra (now theLiverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra). He entered theRoyal Academy of Music (now part of theUniversity of London) in 1971. There, his teachers includedJohn Carewe. In 1974, his graduation year, Rattle won the John Player International Conducting Competition.
After organising and conducting a performance ofMahler's Second Symphony while he was still at the academy, he was talent-spotted by the music agent Martin Campbell-White, ofHarold Holt Ltd (now Askonas Holt Ltd), who has since managed Rattle's career.[5] He spent the academic year 1980–81 atSt Anne's College, Oxford studying English Language and Literature.[6] He had been attracted to the college by the reputation of Dorothy Bednarowska,fellow and tutor in English.[7] He was elected an Honorary Fellow ofSt Anne's in 1991.[8] He was admitted to the degree ofDoctor of Musichonoris causa of the University of Oxford in 1999.[9]
In 1974, he was made assistant conductor of theBournemouth Symphony Orchestra.
He joined theGlyndebourne Festival Opera music staff at the age of 20 in 1975. He went on to conduct over 200 performances of 13 different operas at Glyndebourne and on tour during the subsequent 28 years.
His firstProm at theRoyal Albert Hall, conducting theLondon Sinfonietta, was, according to the BBC Proms Archive website, on 9 August 1976. The programme includedHarrison Birtwistle'sMeridian andArnold Schoenberg'sFirst Chamber Symphony. In 1977, he became assistant conductor of theRoyal Liverpool Philharmonic.
His time with theCity of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) from 1980 to 1998 drew him to the attention of critics and the public. In 1980, Rattle became the CBSO's principal conductor and artistic adviser, and in 1990, music director. Rattle increased both his profile and that of the orchestra over his tenure. One of his long-term concert projects was the series of concerts of20th-century music titled "Towards the Millennium". One other major achievement during his time was the move of the CBSO from its former venue,Birmingham Town Hall, to a newly built concert hall,Symphony Hall, in 1991. The BBC commissioned film directorJaine Green to follow him in his final year with the CBSO to makeSimon Rattle—Moving On.
Rattle was appointed aCBE in 1987 and made aKnight Bachelor in 1994. In 1992, Rattle was named a principal guest conductor of theOrchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (OAE), along withFrans Brüggen. Rattle now has the title of Principal Artist with the OAE. In 2001, he conducted the OAE atGlyndebourne in their first production ofFidelio with aperiod-instrument orchestra.[10]
Rattle strongly supported youth music. He led two attempts at gaining the record for the World's Largest Orchestra, both designed to raise awareness of youth music in schools. The first, in 1996, was unsuccessful. The second, in 1998, did succeed and the record held at nearly 4,000 musicians[11] until it was broken in 2000 by a group in Vancouver.[12]
In 2000, Rattle was presented with the Gold Medal of theRoyal Philharmonic Society. From 29 April to 17 May 2002, he conducted the Vienna Philharmonic orchestra, making live recordings of the completeBeethoven symphonies.[13] In May 2006, he was made an Honorary Fellow of theSociety of Arts. In 2011, theRoyal Academy of Music presented him with an honorary doctorate. He was appointed member of theOrder of Merit (OM) in the2014 New Year Honours.[14]
Rattle conducted theLondon Symphony Orchestra at theOpening of the London Olympics 2012, performing "Chariots of Fire" with guestRowan Atkinson playing hisMr. Bean character.
Rattle made his conducting debut with theBerlin Philharmonic (BPO) in 1987, in a performance ofGustav Mahler'sSymphony No. 6. In 1999, Rattle was appointed as successor toClaudio Abbado as the orchestra's principal conductor.[15] The appointment was decided on in a 23 June vote by the orchestra's members. At the time the vote was considered somewhat controversial, as several members of the orchestra were earlier reported to have preferredDaniel Barenboim for the post.[16] Nevertheless, Rattle won the post and proceeded to win over his detractors by refusing to sign the contract until he had ensured that every member of the orchestra was paid fairly, and also that the orchestra would gain artistic independence from theBerlin Senate.[17]
Before leaving for Germany and on his arrival, Rattle controversially attacked the British attitude to culture in general, and in particular the artists of theBritart movement,[18] together with the state funding of culture in the UK.[19]
Since his appointment, Rattle has reorganised the Berlin Philharmonic into a foundation, meaning its activities are more under the control of the members rather than politicians. He has also ensured that orchestra members' wages have increased quite dramatically, after falling over the previous few years.[20] He gave his first concert as principal conductor of the BPO on 7 September 2002, leading performances ofThomas Adès'Asyla and Mahler'sSymphony No. 5, performances which received rave reviews from the press worldwide[21] and were recorded for CD and DVD release by EMI. Early collaborative projects in the Berlin community with Rattle and the BPO involved a choreographed performance of Stravinsky'sThe Rite of Spring danced by school children, documented inRhythm Is It!, and a film project withMark-Anthony Turnage'sBlood on the Floor.[22] He has also continued to champion contemporary music in Berlin.[23] The orchestra has established its first education department during Rattle's tenure.[24]
Criticism of Rattle's tenure with the Berlin Philharmonic began to appear after their first season together,[25] and continued in their second season.[26] Rattle himself stated in 2005 that his relationship with the BPO musicians could sometimes be "turbulent", but also "never destructively so".[27]
In 2006, a new controversy began in the German press as to the quality of Rattle's concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic, with criticism from the German critic Manuel Brug inDie Welt.[28] One musician who wrote to the press to defend Rattle was the pianistAlfred Brendel.[29] In 2007, the BPO/Rattle recording ofBrahms'sEin deutsches Requiem received the Classic FM Gramophone best choral disc award.[30]
Rattle was originally contracted to lead the BPO until 2012, but in April 2008 the BPO musicians voted to extend his contract as chief conductor for an additional ten years past the next season, to 2018.[31] In January 2013, he announced his scheduled departure from the Berlin Philharmonic at the close of the 2017–2018 season.[32] His final Berlin Philharmonic concert as chief conductor was at theWaldbühne on 24 June 2018.[33][34]
UNICEF appointed Rattle and the BPO as Goodwill Ambassadors in November 2007.[35] He is a patron of theElton John AIDS Foundation.[36]
Rattle made his North American debut in 1976, conducting theLondon Schools Symphony Orchestra at theHollywood Bowl. He first conducted theLos Angeles Philharmonic in 1979 during the music directorship ofCarlo Maria Giulini, and was their principal guest conductor from 1981 to 1994.[37] He has also guest-conducted theCleveland Orchestra,Chicago Symphony Orchestra,San Francisco Symphony,Toronto Symphony Orchestra andBoston Symphony Orchestra. His New York City debut was with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1985. In 2000, Rattle was the music director of theOjai Music Festival.
In 1993, Rattle made his conducting debut with thePhiladelphia Orchestra.[38] He returned for guest conducting engagements in 1999[39] and 2000.[40] The musical relationship between Rattle and the Philadelphia Orchestra was reported to be such that Philadelphia wanted to hire Rattle as its next music director afterWolfgang Sawallisch, but Rattle declined.[41] Rattle has continued to guest-conduct the Philadelphia Orchestra, including appearances in 2006[42] and the Philadelphia Orchestra's first performances ofRobert Schumann's cantataDas Paradies und die Peri in November 2007.[43][44]
In March 2015, theLondon Symphony Orchestra (LSO) announced the appointment of Rattle as its next music director, effective with the 2017–2018 season, with an initial contract of five seasons.[45] He has recorded commercially for the LSO Live label.[46] In January 2021 the LSO announced an extension of his contract to 2023. Rattle stood down as music director of the LSO at the close of the 2022–2023 season,[47] and now has the title of Conductor Emeritus with the LSO for life.[48] His last LSO performance came on 27 August at theBBC Proms, conductingMahler's Symphony No. 9.[49]
In 2010, Rattle first guest-conducted theBavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (BRSO). In January 2021, the BRSO announced the appointment of Rattle as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2023–2024 season, with an initial contract of five years.[50] His inaugurual concert as the orchestra's chief conductor took place on 21 September 2023, with a performance of Haydn'sThe Creation at theHerkulessaal,Munich Residenz.[51]
In 2019, Rattle first guest-conducted theCzech Philharmonic. In February 2024, the Czech Philharmonic announced the appointment of Rattle as its next principal guest conductor, effective with the 2024-2025 season, for a period of five years, with the title of 'Rafael Kubelík Conducting Chair'.[52][53]
Rattle has conducted a wide variety of music, including some withperiod instruments (either actual surviving historicalmusical instruments or modernly made ones informed by commonly used designs and material of the time), but he is best known for his interpretations of late 19th- and early 20th-century composers such asGustav Mahler, with a recording of Mahler's Second Symphony winning several awards on its release.[62] He has also championed muchcontemporary music, an example of this being the 1996 TV seriesLeaving Home, where he presents a 7-part survey of musical styles and conductors with excerpts recorded by the CBSO.
Other recordings in Berlin have includedDvořák tone poems, Mahler'sSymphony No. 9 andClaude Debussy'sLa Mer. TheGramophone Magazine praised the latter as a "magnificent disc" and drew favourable comparisons with interpretations of the piece by Rattle's immediate predecessors,Claudio Abbado andHerbert von Karajan. He has also worked with theToronto Children's Chorus. Rattle and the BPO also recordedGustav Holst'sThe Planets (EMI), which was theBBC Music Magazine Orchestra Choice. In addition, Rattle's acclaimed[63] complete 1989 recording ofGeorge Gershwin's operaPorgy and Bess was used as the soundtrack for the equally acclaimed[64][65] 1993 television production of the work. It was the first made-for-television production ofPorgy and Bess ever presented. Rattle's 2007 recording ofJohannes Brahms'sEin deutsches Requiem received praise fromBBC Music Magazine, as "Disc of the Month" for April 2007, "as probably the best new version of theRequiem I've heard in quite some years". Rattle and the BPO have also released recordings ofAnton Bruckner'sFourth Symphony (Romantic), andJoseph Haydn's Symphonies Nos.88,89,90,91,92 andSinfonia Concertante.
Rattle's recording of Brahms'sEin deutsches Requiem with the BPO received the Choral PerformanceGrammy Award in 2008. He has won two other Grammy Awards, one Choral Performance Award for a recording ofStravinsky'sSymphony of Psalms in 2007, and another for Best Orchestral Performance for a recording of Mahler's unfinishedSymphony No. 10 in 2000.[66][67]
The French Government awarded him the honour ofChevalier de la Légion d'honneur in 2010. Rattle was elected to the inauguralGramophone Hall of Fame in 2012.[68]
Rattle's first marriage was to Elise Ross, an American soprano, with whom he had two sons: Sacha, who is a clarinettist, and Eliot, who is a painter.[69] They divorced in 1995 after 15 years of marriage. In 1996, he married his second wife,[70]Candace Allen, a US-born writer.[71] This second marriage ended in 2004, and in 2008 Rattle married theCzech mezzo-sopranoMagdalena Kožená.[72] The couple live inBerlin[73] and have two sons and a daughter.[74][75]
Rattle is a member of theIncorporated Society of Musicians and a fan ofLiverpool Football Club.[76]
Rattle announced in January 2021 that he had applied forGerman citizenship, describing it as "an absolute necessity" for him in order to continue to work freely around the EU afterBrexit.[77]
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