A Last Word

After this last week with its various impressions, I'd like to thank  

everyone involved in this tour- on and behind the stage. It took  

everyone's efforts to make these days, in every way, a success. A lot  

of things weren't perfect, it's true: not having something to eat  

before a concert can be detrimental, but never detracted from the  

professionalism of our work. Illnesses kept some of us in bed or near  

a bathroom for a time, but Dr. Schäublin was always there when we  

needed him. Jetlag and exhaustion  which- since our schedule was very  

tightly packed- sometimes caused moments of irritation, were put aside  

as soon as we walked onto the stage.

It was great to be with a bunch of people who were willing to help  

each other through a challenging time. Even the unknown person who  

dissected and translated some of these blogs to send to the Basel  

newspaper (without my knowledge) did so, I hope, in an effort to  

promote the orchestra.

The last evening in Peking was spent with Herr Wu of Wu Promotions at  

an unforgettably beautiful farewell dinner in a lovely "hutong" house  

where we dined under a starry sky. These memories and more will keep  

us singing "Jasmin Flower" for a long time to come.

So now, over the clouds somewhere near Omsk, I sign off. There's no  

place like home.

The Final Chord (14.08.2010)

The final chord of the last concert of this tour of China has faded  

from my ears but is still echoing inside me. The emotions are strong.  

Unfortunately, my delivery of these impressions has been delayed by my  

inability to access internet services on my I-phone: could this be a  

fluke when other colleagues experienced the same? We were, after all,  

in modern China.

The concert hall in the National Center for the Performing Arts is a  

monument to elegance.  Surrounded by an ornamental lake, the building  

floats like an inverted silver lotus blossom on its surface and  

houses, besides the concert hall, an opera house and a chamber music  

hall. The theme element of water is echoed throughout: as you enter,  

you pass underneath the lake and see the rippling water through a  

glass  ceiling. Waves and movement were visible in the decoration of  

the auditorium  itself. The hall is the embodiment of noble  

simplicity, a joy to behold and and to play in. This last concert in  

China may also have been one of the best -musicians' observations of  

their concerts generally being subjective in nature- if the exuberant  

applause was any indication. On the whole, playing in different halls  

has attuned our ears and made our playing richer and more sensitive.  

I'm looking forward to bringing this particular souvenir back to the  

audience in Basel.

It will take a while before all the sights, sounds, smells and tastes  

of China have been sorted through and put in their places. One thing I  

can tell you right now: I am very  proud of this orchestra  - the  

Sinfonieorchester Basel is a great place to be at home.

Bejing (14.08.2010)

Peking has always been an imperial city. From the moment you enter its  

confines,  the wide and tree-lined boulevards, the towering and  

majestic skyscrapers announce the intentions of power and wealth. This  

is with certainty the beaming face of China that Westerners are meant  

to see. My first explorations took me to quite another quarter, to the  

hutongs - the living quarters of the working folk. This is the  modest  

but infinitely more  human side of the medallion. Families sat at  

their tables on the sidewalk preparing their meals on a table grill,  

while further on down the street men sat on the bare sidewalk slurping  

their noodles from tin bowls. Their were no other tourists on  these  

narrow and dusty lanes and no attempt at antiseptic renovation has  

been made here. The reason for this is simple: these ancient  

neighborhoods are doomed to soon make room for more shopping malls and  

hotels. I saw hutongs which had been closed off from the street with a  

wooden wall in preparation for imminent demolition. As a child I was  

horrified at the media reports of the rampant and senseless  

destruction of the "Cultural Revolution".  Today nobody is saying a  

word.

This isn't a city which can be absorbed in the two days we'll be  

spending here-but it's worth the effort to see as much as possible,  

before and after our concert. And, the way I know my colleagues, there  

will be as many impressions as there are people made in these few  

short hours to come. One memory, however, is one that I'm sure we'll  

all take home with us: wherever we go in this city, whether in the  

hotel lobby or on the subway walls: the Basel Symphony is omnipresent  

in Peking. Pictures of the orchestra, Mario and Huang Mengla greet us  

and the city wherever the eye can see. And that's when I'm sure: I'm  

not in Basel any more.

A naked man (13.08.2010)

A concert tour in China puts things into perspective. For example, a  

two to three hour bus ride to the airport is the rule and not the  

exception. Here in Suzhou, summery 38-40 degrees keep us indoors  

whenever possible. The fact that, as a guest, you cannot sit on the  

stairs in the hotel lobby (hotel employees chase you away immediately-  

one must sit on the sofa). You cannot get into the Facebook website  

because it's not accessible in this country. I bought a dress today,  

but had to take size XXL although I wear a Swiss size 36-38 -Chinese  

women are so dainty! These are all just little examples of how things  

are different here than they are in Basel. Get the picture?

After the aforesaid bus trip to Suzhou, there remained about two hours  

between hotel check-in and leaving again for the concert. If any of  

you mistake this trip for a paid vacation  I beg to differ. I also  

have to say that I experienced the hottest welcome ever when I got to  

my hotel room, and I'm talking neither Fahrenheit nor Centigrade. The  

check-in was well organized, so I took my key and scooted up to my  

room. Aha, a corner room- good. I go into the room and think, "fine- 

nice and big. But dark- were the curtains closed to keep the room  

cooler?" As soon as I turned on the lights, I knew why: in the bed -  

MY bed- a half-naked man was wrapped in the blanket and sleeping like  

a stone. He hardly moved when the lights went on. The manager was very  

reassuring when he gave me the key to my new room, saying, "I went up  

to see- there's nobody in this bed." Frieda claims that the guy in the  

bed was a welcome gift from the hotel.

After that the concert was an absolute anticlimax (sorry, I couldn't  

resist). The concert hall in Suzhou is magnificent to look at,  

situated dramatically on the waterfront. The interior, too, was also  

very satisfying- another nice place to play and incentive for a good  

concert.

This was the first time that we experienced a "typical" Chinese  

audience- the kind that sits on their hands. After the Zwicker they  

gave us polite applause, as well as after Tchaikovsky. Brahms may not  

have fared much better if Mario hadn't pulled the flower trick -  

throwing his bouquet to a selected lady-and the Strauss encore out of  

his hat. The audience started warming up just as we were getting ready  

for a cold beer. When Huang Mengla, with  his violin, joined us in an  

encore of a Chinese love song, success was garanteed.

Since we have to be on the bus again in five and a half hours for a  

three hour ride to the airport, followed by a two hour flight to our  

final port of call on this tour, Beijing, it's time to put out the  

light. Time, too, is flying.

a few words (13.08.2010)

A concert tour in China puts things into perspective. For example, a  

two to three hour bus ride to the airport is the rule and not the  

exception. Here in Suzhou, summery 38-40 degrees keep us indoors  

whenever possible. The fact that, as a guest, you cannot sit on the  

stairs in the hotel lobby (hotel employees chase you away immediately-  

one must sit on the sofa). You cannot get into the Facebook website  

because it's not accesible in this country. I bought a dress today,  

but had to take size XXL (Chinese women are very dainty). These are  

all just little examples of how things are different here than they  

are in Basel. Get the picture?

After the aforesaid bus trip to Suzhou, there remained about two hours  

between hotel check-in and leaving again for the concert. If any of  

you mistake this trip for a paid vacation  I beg to differ. I also  

have to say that I experienced the hottest welcome ever when I got to  

my hotel room, and I'm talking neither Fahrenheit nor Centigrade. The  

check-in was well organized, so I took my key and scooted up to my  

room. Aha, a corner room- good. I go into the room and think, "fine- 

nice and big. But dark- were the curtains closed to keep the room  

cooler?" As soon as I turned on the lights, I knew why: in the bed -  

MY bed- a half-naked man was wrapped in the blanket and sleeping like  

a stone. He hardly moved when the lights went on. The manager was very  

reassuring when he gave me the key to my new room, saying, "I went up  

to see- there's nobody in this bed." Frieda claims that the guy in the  

bed was a welcome gift from the hotel.

After that the concert was an absolute anticlimax (sorry, I couldn't  

resist). The concert hall in Suzhou is magnificent to look at,  

situated dramatically on the waterfront. The interior, too, was also  

very satisfying- another nice place to play and incentive for a good  

concert.

This was the first time that we experienced a "typical" Chinese  

audience- the kind that sits on their hands. After the Zwicker they  

gave us polite applause, as well as after Tchaikovsky. Brahms may not  

have fared much better if Mario hadn't pulled the flower trick -  

throwing his bouquet to a selected lady-and the Strauss encore out of  

his hat. The audience started warming up just as we were getting ready  

for a cold beer. When Huang Mengla, with  his violin, joined us in an  

encore of a Chinese love song, success was garanteed.

Since we have to be on the bus again in five and a half hours for a  

three hour ride to the airport, followed by a two hour flight to our  

final port of call on this tour, Beijing, it's time to put out the  

light. Time, too, is flying.

just a impression from Suzhou Science & Cultural Arts Centre | Grand Theatre

Pictures by Jean-Francois Taillard

A Chinese Love Story (12.08.2010)

Im Foyer des Shanghai Oriental Arts Center könnte man sich glatt verlieren. Ein Riesenposter des Sinfonieorchesters Basel weist auf das Eröffnungskonzert zum offiziellen Schweizer Tag der World ESPO 2010 hin. Bundespräsidentin Leuthard lässt es sich nicht nehmen uns vor dem Konzert persönlich zu begrüssen und Erfahrungen über Anspannung vor grossen Auftritten auszutauschen. Wir sind hingerissen.

Top motiviert eröffnen wir das Konzert mit Arthur Honeggers „Pacific 231“ und kommen dabei so richtig in Fahrt. Wu Promotion hat uns, verbunden mit der Bitte dies nicht persönlich zu nehmen, auf in China üblichen kurzen und lauwarmen Applaus vorbereitet. Zu Mr. Wus Erstaunen gibt es aber schon nach dem ersten Satz von Tschaikowskys Violinkonzert mit dem hervorragenden Lokalmatador Huang Mengla lang anhaltenden Applaus.

Nach der berückenden Canzonetta und dem furiosen Finale fordert das Publikum eine Zugabe. Huang Mengla bezaubert uns alle mit einem virtuos und makellos gespielten Paganini. Nach der Pause spielen wir die 1. Sinfonie von Johannes Brahms. Wir fühlen uns wohl in desem wunderbaren Saal und können unseren Klang voll entfalten. Es gibt Blumen für den Dirigenten und den Konzertmeister. Beide werfen ihre Sträusse ins Publikum. Begeisterte Bravi! Zugab e „Unter Donner und Blitz“  von Johann Strauss. Mitklatschen. Grenzenlose Begeisterung. Wie wird unsere zweite Zugabe, der Wettsteinmarsch von Herman Suter wohl ankommen? Beim Auftritt des orchestereigenen, in Larven und Fasnachtskostümen trommelden und pfeifenden „Schyssdräggzyglis“ gibt es kein Halten mehr. Nicht nur Doris Leuthard, Botschafter Blaise Godet, Grossratspräsidentin Annemarie von Bidder und Regierungsrat Hans-Peter Wessels Sind restlos begeistert! Der ganze Saal tobt. Als dritte Zugabe kündigt Mario Venzago „A Chinese Love Story“ an. Nach den ersten Klängen brandet warmer Zwischenapplaus auf. Das chinesische Publikum ist sichtlich gerührt. Huang Mengla spielt am letzten Pult mit. Eine  bescheidene Geste, aber eine grosse Liebeserklärung an das Sinfonieorchester Basel. Standing Ovations!

I do like doing business in China! (11.08.2010)

Business transactions in China are not just of a business nature, the  

social aspect plays an important role.  Let's take the souvenir shop  

in our hotel: from morning at eight until morning at one, a friendly  

salesperson stands at the door and invites you to visit the shop. Once  

inside, a wealthy display of silk and cashmere (okay, give and take a  

little polyester), pearls, coral, fans and jade are at first a bit  

overwhelming. But the very second your eyes rest upon one object the  

adorable young woman smells her

prey and moves in for the kill.  It may be, as in my case, pearl  

necklaces in many colors. "You wear, like this," she says, twisting  

two chains onto one- "very pretty. I make you good price." From my  

Chinese friend, I know that the foreigner generally pays four times  

the price that a Chinese would pay, so I try (apparently without  

success) to look disinterested. "Four necklaces, 600 yuan," I shake my  

head, I'm truly not interested. But then the bargaining itself starts  

to get interesting, the game begins. I think that many of us from the  

West find this part a bit embarassing- it's just not our culture. Here  

it's kind of like patting someone on the shoulder- first you pat me,  

then I pat you and at the end everybody's all smiles. That's how it  

was: the price of the necklaces went down to 480, then to 400. I moved  

away and started to look at dresses- a change of tactic easily seen  

through, but it didn't daunt my pursuer. And, honestly, I really  

didn't want to buy any of them. But at the end, I walked out of that  

shop as proud posessor of four pearl necklaces, destined to become  

presents for my sisters. Sales price: 300 yuan, about 45 Swiss francs-  

still too much, but both parties, seller and buyer, wore happy smiles  

at their parting.

I do like doing business in China!

Zhuhai Part II (10.08.2010)

I'm sitting in a Shangai Airlines plane on the tarmac at Guangzhou  

airport: since our departure time has been delayed one hour thanks to  

the control tower, I have time to describe the (free) day. Groups were  

formed according to wishes: I was fortunate enough to hook up with Yun  

Wu, our substitute violist, who is a native of southern China and a  

charmer on any continent. I heard later of fantastic excursions to the  

island in Zhuhai bay, of bike rides and shopping expedtions, but I can  

only tell you what I experienced. Three of us  visited the harbor and  

the museum with it's marvelous life-sized clay statues and later  

headed to a restaurant where we chose the ingredients for our meal.  

These were returned to us some minutes later in the form of soup. Yun  

led us through a supermarket, showing us many local specialties and  

curiosities, and later to a district of small shops where salespeople  

tried to entice us inside with their wares. This is where Yun  

displayed an amazing talent for bargaining: the leather belt which  

cost 38 yuan at the beginning of the negociations was finally sold for  

10. I should have bought more of them! As we entered a tea shop the  

employees greeted us with a song- they did the same for all the  

entering and exiting- customers. It was a great little show, but the  

following ceremony of choosing tea and sampling a cup far surpassed  

it- what a cultivated way of doing business.

Getting 99 travellers and 10 celli onto their respective planes (we  

travelled in two groups) is not a task for sissies: this takes men of  

steel, which is why I'm really happy that Frieda was there when she  

was needed. Calmly sorting through piles of passports to find my  

missing one, she helped to get me to the gate (not the church) on  

time. Boarding had started when I arrived at the gate to see a  

golfcart laden with celli and their owners zip past me- what a sight  

for sore eyes! They'd managed to get through security even though  

they'd had only tickets for their celli and not for themselves.

As soon as this plane gets off the ground I'll start thinking about  

the stories to come.

Zhuhai - second concert at People`s Great Hall (10.08.2010)

China impresses me more every day  - I have no idea how things can  

work in such a huge machinery, but somehow they do.  We had a (we  

hope) unique opportunity to test Chinese ingeniousness in Zhuhai,  

which was a gratifying experience. Our concert in Zhuhai took place in  

the People's Great Hall, "a beautiful place," Angela the hotel  

receptionist assured me. Arriving there, I was reminded of many  

cities' ciuic centers: the movie posters in the lobby were a dead  

giveaway. This is a place which is obviously meant for usage by the  

local population, not fancified and sterilized for visitors from  

abroad. By Swiss standards we'd call it basic, but the audience was,  

by any standard,  a hit. There are only about two concerts a year  

played in this city of 1.48 million inhabitants- the rest of the time  

I guess they just go to the movies. This was a very special audience:  

there were whole families, with kids running around. There were people  

coming and going and cell phones ringing. These were completely normal  

folks who are interested in classical music: the receptionist from our hotel 

was there, as she  

confirmed this morning. And, since the concert was a different kind of  

concert than the night before, the audience was also very different-  

but even more spontaneous and hearty.  It was an impression that  

remained valid with all the natives of Zhuhai whom I met- friendly,  

open. and very hospitable. Which brings me to their     ingenuity:  

when, upon returning to the hotel early this morning, Simon realized  

that he'd left his trombone in the trunk of a taxi, the hotel  

receptionist set heaven and earth in motion to retrieve it.  

Unfortunately he hadn't kept the receipt for the taxi so there was no  

way of knowing which company it was- in a city of ... how many  

millions? What to do? Mei wenti- no problem- just call the local radio  

station and have them announce a search. While you're at it, call a  

few journalists to cover the story. This is how it happened that Simon  

and his trombone were nearly miraculously reunited this morning. Isn't  

that an impressive story?

on the road to Zhuhai (09.08.2010)

Riding the Bus between Guangzho and Zhuhai, I can really believe that  

the road to the airport is more dangerous than the flight itself. Let  

me just put it this way:  I'll be very happy to get off this bus  

alive. The scenery, changing from city skyscrapers encased in bamboo  

scaffolding to banana plantations to enormous carp ponds, compensates  

somewhat for the suicidal tendencies of our driver. It reminds me of   

the abbreviation "S.A.B.E.N.A. = such a bad experience, never again!

Things, as you can see, have started to get really eventful. The  

concert last night was wonderful, the soloist much more than just a  

reliable partner- I can  say the same for the orchestra as well. We  

played chamber music with a large format- it was super. Mario had the  

audience eating out of his hand when he became "Der Rosenkavalier" and  

distributed bouquets - and not just his own- to selected ladies of the  

audience. They all went crazy with delight:  I think we'd still be  

sitting in the hall playing encores if Mario hadn't thrown us off the  

stage on time.

Unfortunately, or maybe not, I headed back to the hotel for some quiet  

time so I missed out on an extraordinary display of aquatic creatures  

( both dead and alive) at the restaurant where the orchestra was  

invited after the concert. I was soon joined at the hotel bar by some  

refugees from the same party, for whom the sight of live maggots ready- 

to-eat was just too much. It must have been a very authentic exerience.

Next stop, Zhuhai. If we survive this bus ride. This time, don't just  

cross your fingers for me- say ten "Hail Marys" too.

Guangzhou - First Concert Xinghai Concert Hall (08.08.2010)

It may be a Sunday for most of the world, but here in Guangzhou it`s a normal working day. More importantly, it`s our first concert day of the tour. So we started out with a dress rehearsal at the Xinghai Concert Hall, beautifully situated on the banks of the Pearl River, where we were met by the backstage crew. Unfortunately, there was one casualty on the trip from Basel:one of the contrabasses did not survive the journey in playable condition,so the local symphony orchestra has graciously offered to lend us an instrument for tonight`s concert.

The rehearsal began with Tchaikovsky`s violin concerto where we finally met our soloist, Huang Mengla. It didn`t take long for this charmingly unassuming young man to capture our attention with his poetic and commanding style- even with jet lag, you have to sit up and take notice. When Mario left the stage to listen from the hall, as he often does, Huang Mengla immediately took over with an instinctive and secure hand and led the orchestra until he came back. It was a pleasure to play with him-with and without conductor. My only problem was forgetting to make my entrances because I was listening to him play and forgot myself- cross your fingers for me for tonight`s concert.

I`m curious to experience the reactions of a Chinese audience, but I`m sure they`re going to get a great show. The orchestra is very concentrated and listening to itself in a way that`s almost like making chamber music- the very best way to play indeed. It may be a working day, but we` re going to just play and have fun.