Abbado in Berlin: The first year

The vote was over, and a decision had been made: Claudio Abbado was the new chief conductor of the Berliner Philharmoniker. So it was in 1989, when – for the first time – the orchestra itself decided who was to be its artistic director. The result was a surprise for the music world – and also for Abbado himself. This documentary from 1990 traces the first year of the new chief conductor in Berlin, the special atmosphere of new beginnings and the diverse expectations the musicians had of Herbert von Karajan’s successor.

A film by Bob Eisenhardt, Susan Froemke and Peter Gelb (1992)

Claudio Abbado

Ulrich Eckhardt

Siiri Schütz

Hellmut Stern

Wolfgang Stresemann

© 1991 CAMI Video