Mahler's No. 7 is Heaven for Zander
Ed Symkus, Cambridge Tab, April 24, 2004
Posted: 2004-04-28 09:27:46
Cambridge conductor leads Boston Philharmonic through 25 anniversary season
Ben Zander, founding conductor of the Boston Philharmonic, is a whirlwind of energy. Or maybe the world is a whirlwind of energy around him. Either way, he's enjoying the ride.
Zander, 65, is in the midst of celebrating his orchestra's 25th anniversary with a series of season finale presentations of Mahler's "Symphony No. 7" which caps off a quartet of all-Mahler programs. The concerts, which also feature Jane Struss singing "I Am Lost to the World," take place at Sanders Theater on April 29 and May 2, and at Jordan Hall on May 1.
"The seventh is a very difficult one," says the British-born Zander, lounging on a couch in his Cambridge living room. "But it's a very remarkable symphony. And if any work of art is really extraordinary and gripping and original and amazing, it probably will draw people in, even though it may be difficult."
Zander certainly knows his Mahler; he's already recorded five of his symphonies - No. 3 was released to popular acclaim on Telarc in February. And though his programming of Mahler led to his dismissal as conductor of the Boston Civic Symphony 26 years ago because the board favored lighter works, Zander is always ready to defend the composer.
"Some music is written for a very limited audience, purposely," he says. "But Mahler's music is universal in its appeal. Mahler had this conception in which everybody in the world was included. He included everything he knew of life in his symphonies, all of human experience, human emotion, disappointments, tragedies. Also the great triumphs and aspirations and hopes and love and nature."
But Zander is equally excited when discussing the joys of Beethoven - his recorded interpretations of symphonies No 5 and 7 received terrific reviews - and Bach.
Ah, Bach.
Zanders says that if he ran the ideal classical music radio station, he'd create "a tape loop of the complete works of Bach, so that human beings would always be able to plug in to Bach at any time. Listening to Bach always lifts your soul, however sad, however discouraged you are."
Zander has found precious little to be sad or discouraged about in recent years. He's been flying around the world conducting all sorts of orchestras - he just returned from Australia, where he led the National Youth Orchestra - and speaking to various international organizations on leadership, creativity and team-building. He's in his 34th year of teaching an innovative course in interpretation at the New England Conservatory - "People play, and I work with them to reinterpret the music, so it works more effectively." He's also closing in on three decades of conducting the Conservatory's Youth Philharmonic.
And if he finds a spare moment, he might sit down to play the piano in his living room, or even pull his trusty old cello out of its case for a workout.
While a graduate student in literature at Harvard in the mid-1960s, he also studied cello at Brandeis. Then, while teaching cello at a summer school, he was asked if he knew of any conductors looking for work, and he convinced those running the search that he was the ideal candidate. And he's never looked back.
He believes the role of the conductor is to best interpret a piece of music as the composer had it in mind.
"In Mahler's case, he wrote down what he wanted, and was extremely specific," explains Zander. "I'm one of those people who really follows the text. I believe that the text is an invitation to a huge range of emotional expression. So while I'm being meticulous and precise about what's written, I'm being extremely emotional about it, because the music is very emotional."
The upcoming Boston Philharmonic performances will have different sounds because they have different homes, taking place in two different halls.
"They are radically different," he says of Sanders Theater and Jordan Hall. "Fortunately, they're both absolutely superb. Jordan Hall is probably the world's greatest chamber music hall. But put a big orchestra in there and it's nearly too much. You have to control the sound so it doesn't overwhelm the audience. But it's so thrilling to be in Jordan hall and hear the impact of a Mahler symphony; it's a visceral experience.
"Sanders is all about clarity, and the overall sweetness of the sound. It never overwhelms you. And what you hear is everything.
"But I don't think it matters which hall," he adds. "The halls are like instruments themselves. I know people who swear by Sanders Theater and I know people who swear by Jordan Hall - because they like the instrument. They like the Guarnerius rather than the Stradivarius."
Benjamin Zander conducts the Boston Philharmonic performing Mahler's "Symphony No. 7" and Jane Struss singing "I Am Lost to the World" on April 29 in Sanders Theater at 7:30 p.m.; May 1 in Jordan Hall at 8 p.m.; and May 2 in Sanders Theater at 3 p.m. Each program will feature a pre-concert talk by Zander. For ticket information, call 617-236-0999. Or check the Website www.benjaminzander.com.
