Simon Rattle: From Birmingham to Berlin

This fantastic bio of Sir Simon Rattle gives all aspects of his personal and professional life. He is one of the very few conductors, or person in authority, who places his people before personal gain as denoted with his status with City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. This is trait of true leader. A must read for all who are interested in the classical music arena.

This book is a continuation of a previous book also written by Nicholas Kenyon. The previous book was written earlier in Rattle's career and was in need of an addendum considering Rattle's enormous progress as a conductor.Those looking for a book that reads well and provides one with the detail and information about the rise of Simon Rattle's career will find it here. It begins with his present postion as chief conductor of the berlin Philharmonic and covers his birth and musical upbringing, citing the influences that led Rattle to his career as a conductor. It also outlines both the triumphs and defeats (though few and far between in the "defeats" coumn) of his ascent.While all this is of course interesting and fascinating, I found the greatest strength of this book is the attempt at explaining what makes Rattle a conductor sought out by the world's top orchestras. There is a careful analysis of his method of studying a score (courtesy of his old teacher John Carewe), his thinking about programming, and his approach to rehearsing an orchestra, as well as his loyalty to the City of Birmingham orchestra despite the calls from much larger and more prestigious orchestras. This is a book that is much more than a mere biography. It has something to share with the casual reader and the professional musician.Conductors will find this particularly interesting reading.