The conductor Daniel Barenboim and members of the Staatskapelle Berlin performed yesterday in the empty Staatsoper Unter den Linden on the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. The concert was broadcast live by the cultural channel 3sat. “May 8th is not just a day of liberation for Germany, but for all of Europe,” said Barenboim before the concert.
At the same time, the conductor asked politics “on his knees” to enable a musical life again as soon as possible. He appreciated the efforts to curb the coronavirus pandemic, but added: “Music is created in the room, the audience has to be there.”
Because of the pandemic, there were no listeners in the solemnly lit hall. The musicians played at a distance from each other on a music stand. The program included Mozart’s “Little Night Music” and Richard Wagner’s “Siegfried Idyll”, which were performed by 14 and 13 musicians in an expanded chamber music line-up.
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