Berlin Philharmonic's Beethoven marathon a missed opportunity

New York

TAKING on Beethoven's nine symphonies in a concentrated marathon of concerts has long seemed almost a requisite undertaking for any conductor of stature - the ultimate public statement of artistic gravitas.

Still, that Simon Rattle, conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic, is presenting a Beethoven cycle at Carnegie Hall on five consecutive evenings, starting Tuesday, seems a little surprising. After all, his tenure in Berlin, which began in 2002 and will end in 2018, has been a bracing antidote to the notion that a conductor proves himself solely in the totemic standards. Rattle arrived from the City of Birmingham Symphony in England, bent on bringing the world-renowned Berlin orchestra into the 21st century. With the sometimes grudging support of the organisation and the players, he delivered. Under his leadership, the Philharmonic has become a risk-taking ensemble with strong ties to living composers and an essential contributor to the cultural education of young Berliners.