Mr. Hope, you’re in North Germany at the moment as “artistic partner” of the Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Festival. What exactly does this entail?
I’ve been closely associated with this festival for a long time, but this year I have the chance to add my own musical signature. One and a half years ago, the festival’s artistic director asked whether I would like not only to play, but also to create my own series by inviting musicians and developing a concept. On the last weekend in August we staged the first climate-friendly classical concert in Germany entitled “Tu was” (Do something!) together with musicians such as the baritone Thomas Quasthoff and clarinettist David Orlowsky. We really did everything we could to be climate-friendly, ranging from clean electricity to hybrid buses. It went down incredibly well. And we managed to collect enough money to plant 1,000 trees in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
In your book Wann darf ich klatschen? (When do I clap?), you present 13 of the world’s famous concert halls, including four in Germany. Is this a coincidence?
Not really. Germany is extremely important and well-established in terms of music. The country’s cultural life is almost unique. The wealth of experience that Germany has in music is fantastic. That’s why many of my favourite concert halls are in Germany, and not just those I mention in my book.
But you also often play in unusual places. For instance, this year you were the first violinist ever to perform in the German Bundestag, during a remembrance ceremony for the victims of National Socialism. What did that invitation mean to you?
It was a very emotional experience, being there on this day at this place and listening to the speech given by Israel’s President Shimon Peres. The experience was heightened, because my great-grandparents were very proud Berliners who were exiled by the Nazis. They would certainly have been very happy to see me there. But I had mixed feelings. It was a great honour, but it was a very sad occasion, too.
You do a great deal for music by playing works by composers who were murdered in concentration camps. What can this music achieve?
I believe it can help by preventing us from forgetting. We have to look ahead, that’s the most important thing. But we should not allow ourselves to forget these people. Through their music they gave some final comfort to thousands, although they knew that they themselves would not survive. It’s an eternal message and an inspiration to everyone. And it’s a message I want to pass on to others.
Germany, the music of German composers, has repeatedly shaped your biography. How close is your relationship with Germany today?
I feel very close to Germany. I have an apartment in Hamburg, and when I’m out and about in Germany I feel very good. I like the language and love the culture. Beethoven, Brahms, Goethe, Heine – German culture is an amazing treasure trove, open and available to all of us as artists.
In your book Familienstücke (Family Album: Following the Trail) you write that your mentor, Yehudi Menuhin, saw “his Germany” in Beethoven. In which composer do you see “your” Germany?
Maybe not entirely, but also in Beethoven. To me he embodies the German essence, free thinking, energy, independence. I think his music is very German. But the same goes for Brahms as well. In my eyes, he stands atop the same Everest as Beethoven.
You once said Bach is the “most profound and most modern composer”. How can 300-year-old music be modern?
Even today’s composers will find it hard to match Bach’s inventiveness. We don’t know how he managed to do it, but he was 300 or 400 years ahead of his time. The ideas he had, the tonal qualities he used, his brilliant ability to convey his emotions through notes – in my opinion his skills were simply unique. That’s why he’s one of the few composers whose music can be interpreted in every conceivable way and variation. You can play Bach as jazz, fuse it with Cuban music, but you can’t ruin Bach. Bach always sounds good, because the music is so brilliant, so ingenious.
You often commission compositions by contemporary composers. Does this include Germany?
Yes, I’ve commissioned some works in Germany as well, for instance by Jan Müller-Wieland, a wonderful composer. We’ve performed his violin concerto at the Konzerthaus Berlin. My eyes and ears are always open for young composers.
But contemporary music often has a hard time with audiences...
That’s true, and sometimes justifiably. A lot of composers say, we don’t need the audience, we’re writing for ourselves. I can’t really relate to that way of thinking. Of course, you can’t write exclusively for the public. But if you push certain concepts so far that there’s no longer any relationship between what is familiar and unfamiliar to our ears, it also makes it hard for the interpreter to put it across. On the other hand, I think that contemporary music in the 21st century has a great new dynamic returning in the direction of melody. I’m really pleased about that. There are a number of young composers, who think very freely but still integrate melody into their music. I’m convinced this is the kind of contemporary music that will survive.
When you look at the music landscape in Germany, what are the positive aspects, and what could be improved?
Almost every city has a kind of musical centre, be it a state orchestra, an opera house or a music academy. This is almost unique in the European music landscape. Music really is everywhere. Germany should definitely preserve this admirable quality. The trouble is that in schools music classes are often cancelled. The result is that many children and young people lose the opportunity to experience music.
Do you think there’s a crisis in classical music? There seem to be more concerts and more festivals than ever before, or is this impression deceptive?
The impression is correct. Even so, we have to take steps to avoid a crisis. When I look at my tour schedule or those of my colleagues, we’re booked up for years at hundreds of festivals. But we still have to be careful, because the audiences are starting to age. We need to introduce more young people to classical music.
Which approaches do you think have been most successful here?
The work at the Konzerthaus Berlin is excellent in this respect. It has a Sunday matinee series, to which parents can bring their children. The children are look after free of charge and have their own music programme. Then there’s the Rhapsody in School project introduced by the pianist Lars Vogt in which several hundred well-known musicians are now participating. We visit schools and come into direct contact with children and young people. The effect is impressive. We musicians do all this on a voluntary basis, which is quite right. Despite this, the project could do with a greater level of official support which is still too low at the moment.
What do you think about German audiences? How open are they to innovation?
Classical music is taken seriously in Germany and it has a high standing. I think that’s great. Audiences are quite open, depending on where they are. In Berlin you get the impression that everything is possible. But I don’t know whether that’s really the case. At least you have the feeling that the audience is very open-minded. In Cologne it’s the same. I think a lot is changing everywhere at the moment, for instance through ideas like “Yellow Lounges”, where classical music is played in clubs. I find this very positive.
You seem to have no inhibitions about music beyond the boundaries of the classics…
I just think it’s healthy to be open to music. It’s nonsense to think that because you play classical music, you’re in some way better. At this year’s Beethoven Festival in Bonn I’m playing with the young German rock band Bakkushan. It’ll be a duel between Baroque and rock. We want to test which music has more drive. It’ll be a prime “battle royal” between the two types of music.
Whether rock or Baroque, what would you say is the underlying power of music?
The most important thing is that music appeals directly to your emotions without you having to understand much about it. It is independent of language or religion. I think music is the most powerful source of inspiration.
The interview was conducted by Janet Schayan.
