Joel conducted most of the ten Mahler symphonies while in Braunschweig, with the exception of the 7th and 8th. The last one he conducted was Mahler’s 9th, in May 2014, which was received with delight by the critics. The Braunschweiger Zeitung newspaper wrote: “It starts with a stammer and ends with an ethereal breath. Mahler’s 9th spans a whole human lifespan. The initial single notes sound like a knock on the door of life on earth, before the entire orchestral apparatus lumbers over it. In the end, only the violins remain, whose high, delicate notes blow away to quietness, as if the soul itself sways over into immateriality.
One needs knowledge of the world, gravity and deepness of emotion for this symphony. Conducting the State Orchestra, General Director of Music Alexander Joel impressively demonstrated what a mature, stirringly modern and finely differentiated interpretation of this parting-with-the-world work he has mastered. Pleasantly concentrated when giving signs, but clearly demanding of emphasis and extreme pianissimos, he and the highly motivated musicians produced an emotionally charged expressiveness that got under one’s skin.”129
For Orchestra Director Martin Weller, who for seven years worked very closely and confidingly with Alexander Joel, the Mahler concert was a concluding highlight: “Not only did he conduct sublimely and deliver a coherent interpretation, but he mastered the difficult finale in an unbelievable piano sphere, while still upholding the tension. That once again impressed everyone enormously! Not only because that kind of thing is not to be expected from a conductor of his age. With that, Joel has left a lasting impression here.”
The fact that Braunschweig was not immediately able to find a suitable successor for the position of General Musical Director is proof that Joel has set the standard there. The conductor’s relationship with the State Orchestra resembled something close to a love affair. Looking back, Joel sings the praises of the atmosphere and the quality of the orchestra – the chemistry between him and the musicians was good right from the word go. They had a friendly way of going about things; the conductor wasn’t the ‘lion trainer’ type and preferred using charm and humor rather than the whip.
“Alexander Joel has brought the orchestra up to a new level and assembled a wonderful ensemble of singers,” confirms Jens Neundorff von Enzberg, Director of the Municipal Theater in Regensburg since 2012. He started at the State Theater at the same time as Alexander, and was Director of Opera and Dramatic Advisor there from 2007 until 2012.
“It wasn’t love at first sight, but we were soon getting on well with each other,” admits Jens Neundorff. “We were both young and both had to learn how to deal with responsibility. But we got together in the end. We have similar opinions about how to assess voices, but different points of view concerning styles of direction.”
Joel and Neundorff were both responsible in Braunschweig: the General Musical Director looked after the musical side of things, the Director of Opera the general management. “We made a lot of decisions together and developed the repertoire and the schedule together,” says Neundorff, “that’s really an ideal situation, but by no means common.”
Alexander Joel has developed enormously artistically, something his former Director of Opera, the Orchestra Director and music critics alike confirm. Among other things, he was able to expand his symphonic repertoire. Among the 80 concert programs he conducted in Braunschweig were all the Beethoven symphonies, eight of ten Mahler symphonies, five Bruckner symphonies, Brahms, Schumann, Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky; in other words the core of the essential repertoire.
He also placed emphasis upon developing a distinct sound. “I conducted 50 or 60 evenings in Braunschweig; in other words between 10 and 12 concert programs, in addition to five or six different operas,” explains Joel. “The conductor is responsible for molding the sound and the playing culture of an orchestra. The way you handle an orchestra is very important for its sound. I tend to slim the sound down, it should be flowing, floating, effervescent, but not too dry or too hard. The sound must fit the singers like a well-tailored suit of clothes.”
The following is an excerpt from an interview with Opera Magazine in June 2014: “‘Part of the role of the General Music Director is to train the orchestra’, he explains, using the more resonant German word erziehen to bring the point home. ‘You have to nail things down, to fine-tune the engine so that it sounds the way you want it and runs the way you want it to run. You need to be clear and logical in your conducting, so that there are no doubts about what you mean and so that everyone can follow you. But the most important thing is to be able to conduct in an organic way – and there’s no better place to learn to conduct organically than in a German repertoire house.’”130
Martin Weller explains: “Joel picks musicians who like to work with him. He expresses his artistic demands with his baton; he doesn’t need words for that. He has a communicative, conciliatory disposition. Unlike other conductors, he doesn’t let himself get bogged down with hostilities.”
Joel saw the development of a first-class ensemble of singers as one of his most important tasks and as a great opportunity. Some of these young singers have now made fine careers for themselves, singing in some of the world’s most renowned theaters in Vienna, Munich, Berlin and Dresden.
The Braunschweig General Director of Music has not shied away from big operas such as Richard Wagner’s Parsifal, Tristan and Lohengrin, as well as Richard Strauss’s Der Rosenkavalier and Salome, and Dmitri Shostakovich‘s Lady Macbeth. Consistent development has always been more important to him than quick success. “For me, it’s all about craftsmanship, a musical basis and quality”, says Joel. “I chose the slow way, and that’s paid off. There’s very little basis in the world of art, but there’s a lot of hot air.”
He regrets that only a minority of listeners and critics are truly capable of evaluating the quality of a conductor and fall for some of their bluffs. “Informed opera and concert audiences are getting fewer and fewer. Musical education in schools has been reduced drastically over the last 30 years. The result is that parents today are a lot less interested in music than in the past. Theaters are desperately trying to compensate for this deficit by offering special deals for children and young audiences. But theater people cannot replace music teachers. That’s a problem of society: when it comes down to it, we have to ask ourselves ‘what do we really value, what do we really consider important?’”
In today’s media world other criteria are often more important than artistic quality. But gimmickry and attracting attention whatever the cost are not for Alexander Joel. “Alex could have things a lot easier if he would conduct more unusual, more eccentric pieces,” says Jens Neundorff. “But it speaks for him that he doesn’t stray from his chosen path just for the sake of furthering his career. He’s convinced that he can only be good if he’s conducting music that completely excites him. That’s why you sometimes have to force him to do what’s good for him. He can be unbelievably stubborn, but he can be persuaded and will then try something new.”
According to Martin Weller, Joel has an intuitive approach to music, and undersells himself as a conductor: “He’s not an attention seeker, and doesn’t believe he needs to bestow a meaning upon things that are meaningful in themselves. At the same time, the individual works mean a great deal to him.”
Alexander Joel would never select pieces for purely tactical reasons. He sticks to his preference for Mozart, Puccini, Strauss, Wagner and Verdi, but has also become appreciative of more modern composers such as Alban Berg, Webern and Schönberg. “Nowadays many conductors try to work on Wagner and Strauss, because they’ve understood that it’s the only way to impress the music critics,” explains Joel. “In the opera it’s difficult to draw attention if you’re conducting Verdi, but you’ll always manage it with Strauss and Wagner. It’s absurd, but that’s the way it is.”
Jens Neundorff explains: “I think Alex is unbelievably talented: his misfortune is that he belongs to
an in-between generation. The older conductors held on to their chairs for too long and now everybody wants young conductors. It’s a new trend and a lot of them burn out in the process. But Alex will make his way because there’s a big demand for great conductors.”
And Martin Weller adds: “He is characterized by a relaxed, easygoing baton technique, which immediately reminds one of Carlos Kleiber. There’s nothing wrong with that at all. I would say Kleiber is Joel’s teacher, but he doesn’t imitate him. He learnt from Kleiber that you don’t have to whip the orchestra if you want a good sound. He has managed to develop his own ‘Joel sound’ in Braunschweig.” He strives for a romantic sound; harshness and severity are not to be found with him.
Alexander Joel sees recognition for his work in the growing number of international engagements. For example, in 2012 the Vlaamse Opera in Antwerp engaged him for Giuseppe Verdi’s La forza del destino, directed by Michael Thalheimer. Frieder Reininghaus wrote the following review of the opera in Germany’s Neue Musikzeitung magazine: “The new Verdi production by the Flemish opera company developed drive and power from the beginning. Alexander Joel was in complete control of the orchestra in Antwerp and elicited allegro brilliance and precisely-formed, beautifully elegiac passages.”131 While in Antwerp, Joel also conducted Mozart’s Don Giovanni and Richard Strauss’s Die Frau ohne Schatten [The Woman without a Shadow], and Verdi’s Don Carlos in a highly-praised production by Peter Konwitschny (2010). Alexander Joel counts the innovative directors Thalheimer and Konwitschny among his favorites.
Martin Weller considers Joel’s conducting of Die Frau ohne Schatten in Antwerp a master stroke: “He conducted Richard Strauss as Richard Strauss would have done. The singers could be heard without the sound being held back. He achieved this dynamic balance with simplicity.” Opera Now magazine remarked: “Some productions present Die Frau ohne Schatten as too much of an overwhelmingly good thing, but this was an exhilarating evening that ran the gamut from minute nuance to house-filling decibels. Alexander Joel’s superb conducting of Strauss’s huge score favoured transparency and momentum, even if – quite excusably – he indulged Thomas Johannes Mayer’s most glowingly expansive moments as Barak the Dyer.”132
Alexander Joel’s début at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden – one of the best opera houses in the world – was a highlight in this respect: In February 2013 he conducted Puccini‘s La Bohème there, and was so successful that he was immediately rebooked. During the 2014/15 season he will conduct a series of performances (La Bohème and La Traviata) in London); in the 2015/2016 season Carmen with, among others, star tenor Jonas Kaufmann. “Covent Garden is very special to me, a lifelong dream: my mother is English, I was born in London, studied law there and only left because I wanted to be a musician. At that time I didn’t even know if I would pass the entrance exam in Vienna. After my first performance in Covent Garden I went to my former university and cried. It was unbelievable, like a fairytale.”
Alexander Joel and Ha Young Lee at their wedding, April 2014 · © Steffen Radlmaier
In future, Alexander Joel aims to move in more of a symphonic direction, although (or because) he loves opera more than anything else: “When you’re a conductor, you depend upon so many things that you are unable to influence – from director to singers to stage designer.” He speaks from experience: “When opera goes well, it’s the bee’s knees; no other art form can compete. Regretfully, that doesn’t happen too often.”
Alexander Joel’s career took a further step forward in Wiesbaden (Germany) where, as part of the 2016/17 season, he conducts Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle (Der Ring des Nibelungen) for the first time, staged by renowned German director, Uwe Laufenberg.
Famous Last Words
“These are the last words I have to say.” The prophecy in the final song on the “River of Dreams” album (1993) has so far been fulfilled, much to the irritation of the record label and to the disappointment of countless fans. Billy Joel no longer wants or needs to write pop songs, even though the whole world is waiting for him to do so. “You can’t get blood from a stone. I can’t live the lives for my fans. And I never wrote for an audience. I never wrote for the radio. I never wrote for the record company. I never wrote for critics. I always wrote for me. It was all about: what do I wanna hear? What do I wanna create? What do I wanna record or write? What I like. Whatever had success in pop music, I was fortunate that when I wrote something that I liked to hear, a lot of people liked what I liked. And maybe it was because I was a part of that generation. I was very influenced by the Beatles. And perhaps people are hearing that in my music. I don’t know, I never have analyzed that. I don’t know to this day – and I’ve been asked that many times – why we are so successful. I don’t know.”
It seems a chapter has come to an end in Billy Joel’s life (for now). It is unlikely that we will see any new pop or rock songs from him, but there is still a chance that there will be some new music. He is still composing and trying out lots of things, mainly different kinds of instrumental music. This is likely the product of his dream of communication without words.
This is probably why it came as no surprise that, in 2011, Billy Joel prevented his official biography from being published at the very last minute. He paid back the million dollar advance. He’d changed his mind, wanting to protect his privacy, and was of the opinion that his songs already told his fans everything they could want to know about him. (In the end Billy Joel changed his mind again, agreeing to the publishing of a ’definitive‘ biography in autumn 2014.)
Perhaps it was a clever move for him to leave the recording industry at the height of his success. Maybe the performer is secretly plagued by the fear that he can no longer achieve the success and quality of the old songs quite as easily.
As long as he continues to enjoy it and his health allows it, Billy Joel intends to continue his concert appearances. Even though he no longer dances at the piano or climbs about on lighting cables like before, concerts are still a kind of lifeblood for him. “It’s almost a miracle, that you can manipulate sounds with other musicians. It’s a form of sorcery, witchcraft or magic. People really respond to this, because music is a universal language. I play in Japan – they understand. I play in Cuba – they understand. I play in Russia – they understand. To be able to do this is a very powerful thing you’re playing with. And that’s where the fun is. That’s great stuff and that’s why I continue to perform. But I don’t feel compelled to record anymore; I don’t feel compelled to show the world what I’m doing. For me the most important thing is that I’m creating. I’m still writing music and I still have fun performing. It’s a terrific job, it’s the best job I ever had and I had all kinds of jobs.”
Billy Joel at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, 2013 · © Steffen Radlmaier
He still has that unusual ability and charisma that can make entire sports arenas erupt. On stage, the small man transforms mysteriously into a larger-than-life rock hero. His audience has loved this about him for decades. And the mixture of entertainer qualities, stage charisma, irresistible melodies and pertinent lyrics are most likely what makes this underestimated performer so special. He is not someone who reinvents pop music – he perfects it. A master of the mainstream and one of the most important proponents of twentieth-century American mass culture. He is not a cult figure like Bob Dylan, not a workingman’s troubadour like Bruce Springsteen, not a poet like Paul Simon, not an intellectual like Randy Newman – he is a chameleon, an exceptionally gifted eclectic who uses the musical means available to him as the mood takes him. It is a huge advantage and a huge disadvantage at the same time: Billy Joel is highly adaptable and versatile, but he often sounds confusingly similar to his role models. His songs are almost better known than his name.
But he has seen many stars come and go and outlived many music trends – new wave, punk, disco, grunge, art rock, alternative rock, techno, ethno beat, rap, hip-hop and so on. Many crit
ics were always skeptical of his widespread success, as he himself is fully aware: “They were suspicious of me from the very beginning because I was so successful. If you have too many hits, then you’re soon classed as establishment, or as a music machine. People assume you make music just to get hits and make a load of money. That’s the accusation, although I’ve never done it like that. Besides, piano players are always suspect in rock and roll. If you don’t play guitar, then you’re not a real rock and roller. If you’ve had piano lessons, you must have been a rich kid. Actually the success of the hits was down to the record company. I wrote complete albums. The record company knew how to pick the right songs and the radio stations played them. But if you only know my hit songs, then you don’t really know who I am.”
Over time, the critics have become more merciful, the honors have amassed and Billy Joel is now regarded in the USA as a national treasure. Already recipient of numerous Grammys, in 2013 he was awarded the Kennedy Center Honor for his life‘s work, and in 2014 he received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.
“I couldn’t have been born at a better time. I was born at the highpoint of the baby boom, fell in love with pop music, learnt to play an instrument and, for different reasons, struck a chord with my generation…I was at the right place at the right time.”
The often self-doubting performer is pleased with the overall recognition he has attained, but it makes him wary too: “The problem with critics is, if you take the good ones seriously, then you have to take the bad ones seriously too. The best thing is to simply ignore them. You learn that with time. Artists are sensitive. For a while I really suffered under bad reviews. Then I put on a thicker skin and said to myself, ‘The only people who can really judge me, apart from myself, are other musicians that I respect.’ Somebody once gave me a list of people who like my music. It was quite an impressive list: Bob Dylan, Ray Charles, Leonard Bernstein, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Don Henley – they all like my music. So I must be doing something right.
Billy and the Joels--The American rock star and his German family story Page 24
