Our agony aunt has freelanced in the Berlin Phil and knows the situation from the inside.
Dear Alma,
I am a young musician trying to get a foothold on a career. I am still in a post-school program, have been taking auditions, and have won a number of competitions. I was very inspired, 18 months ago, when Vineta Sareika won the position of first concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic. I stayed up late drinking with my friends, we were so happy that she had broken through the strongest glass ceiling, and it gave us confidence that we could do so as well. And now, she has left the job. I have been very sad these past days, trying to make sense of it. Can you help me understand it, Alma?
Crushed
Dear Crushed,
I too have been feeling quite blue since the announcement. She lifted us up, showed us it could be done, and through concerts (if we are lucky enough to see one live), and the Digital Concerthall, we could (and can) see that she deserved that job and was more than rising to the occasion. We can never know the true reason she decided to leave, but we can know it took a tremendous amount of strength to decide to do so. This is the same strength that got her to this job, arguably the best orchestra job on the planet, and which took her through her childhood, excellent training, competition wins, and leading a major string quartet. It is that strength which allowed her to say “no more”.
There is no doubt in my mind that the job of concertmaster of the Berlin Philharmonic is demanding beyond compare, and that the judgment of peers is crushing (think of all of the colleagues she beat to win the position from
inside the orchestra). The press and audience are unforgiving. The sexism which lead to the 141 year block on having a woman concertmaster is both within and without that orchestra, woven through the tapestry of classical music.
Was it that pressure that took its toll? Was it the balance of home and work – being the mother of a young child? Or something else.
Crushed – the glass ceiling that Vineta Sareika punched through is now open. It is splintered, jagged, dangerous and has the blood of those who had pounded on it for all of those years soaked into it. But it is open. You can also push through. We all can. And together will clean that opening in the ceiling, creating a glorious stairway to it and above it. And one day we will look down at it, and thank Vineta for paving the way.
Questions for Alma? Please put them in the comments section or send to DearAlmaQuery@gmail.com
The post Dear Alma, Can you make sense of the Berlin Philharmonic? appeared first on Slippedisc.
