Berlin in Bad Kissingen – A legendary city on a visit
The connections are good, and they have a history. Admittedly, there is no longer a direct train from Berlin to Bad Kissingen and back. But if you ask music lovers in the capital about the spa town on the Saale, their faces brighten: People appreciate the picturesque town in Franconia as a spa, as a town, as a cultural centre. Artists from Berlin have been performing there regularly since the Kissinger Sommer began: as soloists, in ensembles and as orchestras. This summer, Berlin itself will be a guest with an exquisite selection of what the capital has to offer culturally and what it has given and attracted throughout its history. Because no metropolis is just itself. It lives from guests, immigrants, distant lovers and rivals.
Ich hab’ noch einen Koffer in Berlin / Der bleibt auch so und das hat seinen Sinn. / Auf diese Weise lohnt sich die Reise, / Und wenn ich Sehnsucht hab, dann fahr ich wieder hin Aldo von Pinelli
The icons Marlene Dietrich and Hildegard Knef, both of whom grew up in the glamour city of Berlin and moved to the hubs of international show culture, lent the festival its motto: »I still have a suitcase in ...«. That's how it is with being away from Berlin. Homesickness underpins the urge to travel the world. Quite a few of those who were driven out of the city by political violence from 1933 onwards suffered from this dilemma. The song they both sang found the right, raw and melancholy tone for this. Dietrich and Knef - they were entertainers who struck a chord because they did not hide their own heart.
Panorama of entertainment culture
Berlin had and has many of them: Chansonettes, diseuses, actresses, singers, dancers, multi-talents; the historical greats: Blandine Ebinger, Margo Lion, Adele Sandrock, Fritzi Massary, Marika Röck, Zarah Leander and more. Together with those who, in Friedrich Hollaender's words, »buzzed around them like moths to a flame« – poets, composers, bands, directors, film pioneers – they shaped the myth of Berlin: composers such as Rudolf Nelson, the Hollaenders, Werner Richard Heymann, Mischa Spoliansky, Theo Mackeben – above all Kurt Weill. What literally exploded in the »Golden Twenties« within a compact decade had its prehistory and posthistory. The prehistory goes back to the time of the man who was probably the most frequent visitor to Kissingen among European royalty and celebrities: Otto von Bismarck. The post-history continues to this day.
Kissinger Sommer 2024 offers a panorama of Berlin's entertainment art – from Oscar Straus, the Viennese midwife of Berlin cabaret, to those who write and serve the cheeky and wicked songs of praise for the city today. The best cast is on offer: with the marvellous and versatile Dagmar Manzel in Straus' cheerfully elegant plea for the self-confident woman (equally versatile as a partner: Max Hopp), with the chanson programmes by Désirée Nick and Tim Fischer, who shine a light deep into the history and the wide-ranging family of Berlin literary chanson; with Katharine Mehrling and her Kurt Weill evening (accompanied by the orchestra of the Komische Oper Berlin); with Sharon Brauner and her team, who move with the proverbial Berlin tempo through the ages from the legendary Lunapark to the current Berghain; with the Moka Efti Orchestra, which lent the film »Babylon Berlin« its authentic sound, and with an overall artistic tour de force from 1931, the film »Berlin – Die Sinfonie der Großstadt« with the original music by the brilliant Edmund Meisel, who died young.
The high and popular arts
The pool of material that the performers draw on is inexhaustible. The Berliners' thirst for pleasure was proverbial. During the Gründerzeit, such establishments sprang up like mushrooms. It is said that the Emperor pushed for the construction of churches in order to counteract the lack of entertainment with the sword of Damocles of the Last Judgement. In vain. And why? Having fun on Saturdays and worshipping on Sundays - the combination strengthens well-being: one is good for the present and the heart, the other for the conscience and the distant future. The need for entertainment should not be played off against the hunger for culture, which led to the rapid regeneration of theatres, orchestras and radio after the Second World War and significantly promoted democratisation through education. The boundaries are permeable. The major names in the art of entertainment had classical training and experience. Werner Richard Heymann wrote expressionist songs before his cabaret songs and film hits, Kurt Weill composed two symphonies, a violin concerto and the concertante cantata "Der neue Orpheus", a fictional-surreal visit by the ancient singer-hero to the metropolitan world around 1920, before his "Dreigroschenoper". Arnold Schönberg, on the other hand, made his debut in Berlin as a short-term conductor on Ernst von Wolzogen's "Überbrettl" and with six cabaret songs. Paul Hindemith, professor at the Berlin Academy of Music since 1927, practised the genre of the time-critical revue with "Neues vom Tage". And this permeability not only benefited the light muse.
On the contrary. Official, state-sponsored culture lagged behind the latest trends for a long time. When Italian opera fell out of fashion elsewhere, Gaspare Spontini was brought to Berlin as General Music Director in 1820. The spectacular event of those years, the premiere of Weber's "Freischütz", took place in the Schinkel Theatre (now the Konzerthaus Berlin). Mozart travelled to Berlin, gave concerts and wrote three string quartets for the Prussian king, in which he paid particular attention to his instrument, the cello. Beethoven also travelled to the Spree, dedicating two cello sonatas to Frederick William II and performing them with his teacher. Both visits had no consequences. However, Beethoven did get to know the regent's nephew, the musically talented Prince Louis Ferdinand. Years later, he met him again at the home of one of his patrons, Prince Lobkowitz; the composer had his newly composed Sinfonia eroica with him, Lobkowitz had it played to the guest from Berlin, who listened to it with growing attention and requested two repetitions. Beethoven dedicated his Piano Concerto in C minor to him. Both works can be heard at the Kissinger Sommer, performed by the Konzerthausorchester Berlin and the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen.
The joys of discovery
Innovation took place on a small scale, in the (chamber) concerts of Carl Philipp Emanuel, the second eldest son of Johann Sebastian Bach and court harpsichordist to Frederick II, or in salons such as the Sunday music of the Mendelssohn family. It was there that the young Felix's strokes of genius were heard for the first time: the overture to Shakespeare's »A Midsummer Night's Dream«, which he expanded into complete theatre music years later at the request of the Prussian king, and the Octet, which remains a masterpiece of large-scale chamber music to this day. Both works can be experienced in Bad Kissingen - and much more too. Martina Gedeck leads us through the twists and turns of »A Midsummer Night's Dream«, while the BBC Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Singers provide the link to Shakespeare's homeland. The Bamberg Symphony Orchestra will perform well-known works such as the »Italian« Symphony and the Violin Concerto, while the programme also includes the Double Concerto for two pianos with the Jussen brothers – and chamber music for a wide variety of instrumentations, including some songs without words, whose poetry can still enchant audiences today. Christian Tetzlaff traces the Berlin Bach connection, to which the Mendelssohns made a decisive contribution, with his Berlin Baroque Soloists. "Berlin is the sourest apple you can bite into. But it must be bitten into," said Mendelssohn. He spoke from the hearts of many generations of artists. Berlin can be inspiring, but it can also be gruff and hostile. Like many artists, he had high hopes for the Prussian King Frederick William IV. He wanted a lot, but not too quickly. Mendelssohn suggested that he establish a music academy, but his majesty refused. The composer founded the institute in Leipzig. It was not until 22 years after his death that the Berlin initiative was realised. Joseph Joachim, who had matured from a child prodigy to an artist of international stature under Mendelssohn's wing and later became a close friend of Johannes Brahms, was appointed director. The spirit that reigned at his conservatory was Brahmsian, and it radiated throughout musical life.
Brahms was not a Berliner. He came from Hamburg and opted for Vienna. But he had a big suitcase in Berlin: his fans and his publisher, who also signed Antonín Dvořák on his recommendation. His international successes were also driven from Berlin. And Brahms was also good for his opponents: the Wagnerians were able to present themselves as an alternative, and Anton Bruckner saw it as a triumph when he was enthusiastically received by Berlin audiences, first with his Te Deum and then with his Seventh Symphony. They are all part of the image of Berlin, as are the musical greats of the early 20th century: Richard Strauss, Ferruccio Busoni, Paul Hindemith, Arnold Schönberg. None of them came from Berlin, but they all helped the city to achieve the cultural charisma by which it still measures itself today.
Artists of world renown
It is a good Kissingen tradition that the programmes are performed by internationally renowned artists. The piano is once again prominently represented with Grigory Sokolov, Hélène Grimaud, Martin Helmchen, Jan Lisiecki, Jean-Frédéric Neuburger and the duo Tal & Groethuysen, Veronika Eberle, Julia Fischer and Vilde Frang shine on the violin, Nils Mönkemeyer and Timothy Ridout on the viola and Daniel Müller-Schott on the cello. Clarinettist Sabine Meyer, a loyal friend, returns to the festival, as does mandolin virtuoso Avi Avital. Conducting greats such as Sir Simon Rattle, Edward Gardner, Vladimir Jurowski, Joana Mallwitz, Tugan Sokhiev and Trevor Pinnock will be joined by their usual excellent orchestras - from the BBC and Bamberg Symphony Orchestras, the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie, the Munich Philharmonic and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. In keeping with the theme, three of the top orchestras from the capital itself will be taking part: the Konzerthausorchester, the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester and the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester, as well as the two professional concert choirs: the Rundfunkchor and the RIAS Kammerchor, both in great demand internationally. They all promise great art: because in Berlin, the quality of the evening dress has always been and remains emphatically casual, but not the quality of the music. Everything should be of the finest quality.