An interview with Sir Donald Runnicles

Very good! The people are very friendly, the orchestra is great - whether while making music or in the city in general, I feel very relaxed and inspired.

Yes, there are certain parallels (laughs). With a great orchestra, you are there as the conductor to set tempi, to negotiate transitions, tempo changes etc., but in between for long stretches you have to let go, to trust the orchestra, to never over-conduct! Letting go in the streetcar is described as ›rolling‹. But there is a difference of course. An automated speed control in an orchestra is unimaginable!

Where my suitcase happens to be in the moment! Adelle and I live mainly in Berlin, but we also have a home in Jackson Hole (Wyoming) and spend three or four months a year in America. I travel all over the world, and my wife joins me now that the children are grown up. And so wherever we are together at the moment is a kind of home.

That’s true. I’m from Edinburgh, and we lived outside the city, almost in the countryside. I grew up next to a golf course where I played golf almost every day as a boy, and yes, I love being in nature. When I went on long walks, I would have Bruckner and Wagner in my head. And Gustav Mahler! Composers who loved and lived in nature. You can really feel nature in Mahler’s symphonies in particular. In this sense, I’m a nature person.

I have conducted a lot of opera. Light, images, music and singing create a space, something three-dimensional. In Gustav Mahler, one invariably talks about a ›world of sound‹. One is truly surrounded by and immersed in this music. Both Gustav Mahler and Anton Bruckner worked very much with a sense of physical space - a ›cathedral of sound‹.The music can often seem from a great distance. Mahler himself wrote in his scores directions for the musicians to play ›as if from far away‹ and ›coming ever closer‹, creating this three-dimensional aspect in this music.

I hope the orchestra senses my need to give them space and freedom of expression. When it’s rolling, like here on the track, you shouldn’t disturb the ›machine‹. Just allow the orchestra to play! I’m there to indicate, so to speak, where to turn left or right, or where to slow down a bit... The concept of space is particularly important when we play pieces that are perhaps not so well known: What is foreground, what is background, who is most important right now? Illuminating the context and showing connections. That’s a very satisfying task for me as a conductor.

I experienced the orchestra for the first time at the end of 2022. As a conductor, you never know in advance whether the relationship will work. Do we speak the same language? Do we understand each other? It turned out fortunately to be an incredibly fulfilling week. In the very first rehearsal, I not only experienced great respect – it’s an incredibly respectful orchestra! - but also a willingness and desire to try things out. The orchestra also quickly understood that I was allowing and encouraging them to make music freely. There was a strong relationship within three days. That happens so rarely! My first concerts with the Dresdner Philharmonie were certainly not with the intention of becoming Chief Conductor! The fact that our inaugural collaboration eventually let to the appointment is quite wonderful.

One very important aspect which excites me: the beginning of a partnership with the great Scottish composer and conductor Sir James McMillan. I’ve known James for a very, very long time, have performed a number of pieces by him and have had the distinct privilege of having his Fourth Symphony dedicated to me. We will not only play the Fourth, but also premiere his Sixth Symphony.

The best thing about a symphony concert is that there is no more talking! One has rehearsed a lot and hopefully efficiently, and now it is time to let go. The audience is there for the first time, which immediately brings a different and exciting energy. The most amazing musical things can happen quite spontaneously without one having rehearsed or expected them in this particular way. Everything happens in the moment. Every time something quite unique takes place, and only in the concert!

When it comes to works that are perhaps somewhat unusual or not known at all, I think it’s helpful for the audience to hear from me why we are playing a particular piece. Why is it of importance to me? Why should it be heard in Dresden? Perhaps the orchestra or I have a special relationship with it which we are eager to share. It also affords me the opportunity to introduce the audience to specific musical motives which then give them points of reference and a form of map: ›Aha, I should listen out for this‹. Most importantly, I believe - a brief personal introduction builds up trust and can put an audience at ease. We are not in church, there is no altar rail- I seek a dialogue with our wonderful audiences. As we get to know one another they will surely develop a deeper insight into my relationship with the Dresdner Philharmonie. Perhaps not at every concert, but from time to time.

Oh yes, that's true! I have a flight simulator in Berlin and one in Jackson Hole. In the evening after an opera or a concert, I’m often still very ›charged up‹. The family is long asleep and then I go to the flight simulator and fly from Salzburg to Innsbruck.

It's more complicated than the tram! I usually ›fly‹ for about three quarters of an hour. it is the perfect ›objective‹ antidote. That evening’s musical performance will doubtless have been interpreted subjectively by many musicians and audience members alike. There is nothing subjective about flying. You take off safely and you land safely. No room for error! The perfect equalizer!