In resisting the present tendency among conductors to leave a post at the first attractive opportunity, Simon Denis Rattle (born 1955) transformed England's City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra from second-rate to world-class status. His imaginative...

"Die Walkuere" holds the raw material of Wagner caricature: horned helmets, spears, endless scenes and "Ride of the Valkyries." But Sir Simon Rattle and the Berlin Philharmonic swept past all that Monday with a cleanly staged, beautifully played performance at the Aix-en-Provence Festival.The production, the...

It was hardly Carnegie Hall.The Berlin Philharmonic flew into town, and one of the first stops by some of its musicians was the gritty streets of the Bowery rather than upscale 57th Street.A five-member wind ensemble played an hour-long program that included Mozart and American...

Simon Rattle stood in front of the Berlin Philharmonic, stretched across in front of the United Palace Theater's stage, and he towered above as if he were a mop-topped giraffe.Instead of playing at Carnegie Hall, their usual New York home, the famous musicians trekked to...

Has classical music become hip? From the looks of this fall, some of the city’s most traditional venues will be competing with clubs for the downtown crow. Check out The Berlin in Lights festival (Nov.2 to Nov. 18), which will celebrate Berlin (perhaps the coolest...