Commanding the podium with his slender figure, theatrical shock of hair and
penetrating blue eyes, Herbert von Karajan projected the hieratic image of
the conductor as officiant of some quasi-mystic rite. And anyone who ever
saw him conduct live or on his many audiovisual recordings will agree that
in his performances, music did indeed become a religion and Karajan its
high-priest. Karajan (1908-1989) embodied classical music in the general
consciousness as an epoch-making conductor, media star, opera producer,
festival director and festival founder. But in spite of his Promethean and
widely varied activities, he remained a superb conductor, with a grasp of
the standard orchestral and operatic repertory from Mozart to Schoenberg
that was unsurpassed among his peers. This recording was made in Berlin in
1975 with the Berlin Philharmonic. The soloists were Ulrich Koch (viola
solo) and Mstislav Rostropovich, arguably the most outstanding cellist in
the world today.
