Making music for music

The morning after his concert at the Mediterranean Conference Centre, in Valletta, on Saturday Riccardo Muti is tired, but satisfied.

His Malta experience was "very positive", the world-renowned conductor tells The Times, and he hopes to revisit the island - "as a tourist, although I detest the word.

"Everything ran smoothly and the people I met, those involved in the realisation and organisation of the concert, are both pleasant and professional".

Mro Muti described President Eddie Fenech Adami and the ministers he met on Saturday as "so engaging", highlighting his positive impressions of these encounters by saying: "In my life, I have met several big names, from Queen Elizabeth to a host of popes and Russian President Vladimir Putin," among many others.

"Simple, direct and cordial" are, for Mro Muti, the fundamental characteristics of the Maltese, which gripped him on his two-day visit.

"Us musicians get an immediate feel for things and now I will get the confirmation of my initial, instinctive impression," he says before leaving for an anticipated tour of the island yesterday, starting from St John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta to see the Caravaggio and moving on to Mdina.

The Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini, brought to Malta by Renaissance Productions Ltd directors Anton Tabone and Amabile Zammit, left the audience in awe on Saturday. Mro Muti's rendition of Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 had the audience itching to jump out of their seats, which they eventually did for a standing ovation.

Mro Muti lived up to their expectations and they to his. Despite ill-timed applauses, he did not silence the audience, as he is known to do, in irritation. On the contrary, he only had words of praise for the public. "They participated fully and followed the concert in total silence," he points out - silence being golden for the maestro, who does not take kindly to any form of disturbance and who requested that the air-conditioners be turned off during the concert.

Since he left one of the most coveted posts in the world of opera and classical music as music director of Milan's La Scala in April, after 20 years at its helm and amid a controversy that sent shockwaves through the world of classical music, Mro Muti has been said to be homeless. But that is far from the truth, he opens up to The Times on the sensitive issue he has so far kept mum about.

"On the contrary, I have had a home for too long. I have been musical director of an institution forever," from 1968, when he was appointed director of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, followed by several other prestigious posts.

"Even Karajan left the Berliner Philharmoniker," he points out. "Controversies apart, I am very happy to be free for the moment. There is no denying that the New York Philharmonic and others have asked me to direct their orchestras and that New York is still hoping I take up the offer."

On future plans: "I intend to guest conduct for the moment," he says, specifying his preference to work with certain orchestras that are "close to me" - the Wiener Philharmonic, the New York Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic and the Orchestra Luigi Cherubini, among others. "Of course, I will go to Paris and other cities, but these orchestras are a fundamental part of my life" with which he has a history.

"The years at La Scala were vital for me and also for the theatre. They make up a lifetime. But now I want to float in the air, without the heavy worries of a bureaucratic and administrative nature, which are part and parcel of the post. I'm very content at the moment because I do not wake up in the morning preoccupied about what is going on at La Scala etc..."

Mro Muti's new job, for the time being, is "making music for music" and he is excited about it. His next step is Salzburg with the Wiener Philharmonic in a couple of days for a new production of The Magic Flute, which anticipates the year of Mozart next year.

Being a conductor is "a life of immense sacrifice - of total and continuous studying. The amount of music that has been written is copious. To have a wide operatic and symphonic knowledge and a vast repertoire, so as not to always repeat the same few programmes, requires lifelong study to learn new things, but also to perfect old ones".

Mro Muti may be synonymous with extreme levels of perfection in the field of conducting, but that is not the way he sees it. "You never reach the apex. It is impossible and thank God for that, otherwise it would be the end. If you reach your destination it would mean you reached the end of the road - which would be death."

At 64, and with a list of achievements under his belt, Mro Muti intends to continue "searching, knowing that I will not find what I am looking for". But it is not a pessimistic thought. His philosophy of life is that "each and every one of us finds only a piece of the truth".

The conversation turns deep and philosophical. He explains that "the orchestra is the true symbol of society" because its ultimate aim is harmony between the various components, and that music transcends music, moving into every sphere of life - maybe a mere indication of the extent of his understanding of music and its importance in his own life.

It may be a mouthful first thing on a Sunday morning over breakfast at the Corinthia Palace Hotel, in Attard, but one that can be chewed on endlessly.

Explaining the intricacies of the workings of an orchestra, he says "it is fundamental that everyone is totally free, without going far enough to kill the other's freedom" - a contradiction that makes sense. "Everyone is free, but helps the other along the way. This is true democracy and that is why the orchestra is the true symbol of society."

And where does the conductor step in? His role in all this is of a primus inter pares - joining together and helping, but not commanding, says the man who has been called an autocrat. "Conductors are always looked upon as dictators, but it is not the case. The reality of the matter is that the conductor has a musical idea that he has to convincingly transmit to society as a whole. That depends on his charisma and knowledge - not authority, but intellectual and cultural guidance."

Relating a recent highlight in his career, Mro Muti refers to his concert in Tunisia last week, where, during the execution of Arrigo Boito's Mefistofile, between one movement and another, he stopped when the voice of the muazzin was heard.

"The timing was perfect; it was as though it was written in the music, just between movements. I was about to restart when I heard the call to prayer. I stopped for about four minutes. Everyone was silent - the choir, the orchestra and the 4,000-strong audience, that burst into applause at the end of the unplanned break. Then I started again," he passionately recounts, reliving the moment step by step.

It was a sign of respect on Mro Muti's part, whose world of music infiltrates every other aspect of life - from political to social, cultural and religious. "At that moment, that prayer was not to a particular god of a particular race."

The moral of the story: that various cultures and religions can coexist and that music unites everything.

And from the philosophical talk, Mro Muti just as easily lapses into more mundane topics, such as the physical side of conducting, evidenced in his strong, forceful and incessant arm movements during a performance. But he makes it a point to highlight that his trim physique is not due to that.

Speaking on the subject with as much seriousness as he affords weightier issues, he dispels the existing misconception that conductors lead a long life because their job entails exercise.

"It is not true that you lose weight when you conduct. You just lose liquids, salts and minerals, but then you drink and recover what you have lost, so much so that there are fat conductors... There is an element of physical exercise, but it is not balanced and only affects the upper body. The reality is that we lead a sedentary life."

From exercise to life errors, Mro Muti frequently mentions the word mistake. So what are his? "Many," he confesses, but gets out of listing them by quoting Oscar Wilde: "Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes".

"So you could say I am a man who is full of them," he admits.