Sir Simon Rattle

1955 Born in Liverpool. Studies percussion, violin and piano, and attends the Royal Academy of Music

1974-77 Assistant conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and Bournemouth Sinfonietta. Makes first recording of Deryck Cooke’s completion of Mahler’s Tenth Symphony with BSO in 1980.

1977 Makes debut at Glyndebourne Festival with Janácek’s ‘The Cunning Little Vixen’, and becomes assistant conductor of Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.

1979 Debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, becoming principal guest conductor between 1981 and 1994. Later holds posts with the Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

1980 Principal conductor and artistic adviser at City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, becoming music director in 1990.

1987 Founding patron of Birmingham Contemporary Music Group. Debuts with the Berlin Philharmonic, conducting Mahler’s Sixth Symphony, and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment in Mozart’s ‘Idomeneo’.

1988 Recording of Mahler’s Second Symphony, with CBSO, Arleen Auger, and Janet Baker, wins three Gramophone Awards including Record of the Year.

1997 Wins BAFTA for Channel 4 documentary ‘Leaving Home’, on twentieth-century music.

1999 Elected principal conductor and artistic director of Berlin Philharmonic. Takes up post in 2002 with performance of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony and world premiere of Thomas Adès’s ‘Asyla’ (available as a DVD on EMI).

2000 Second recording of Mahler’s Tenth, this time with the Berlin Philharmonic, wins Record of the Year at Gramophone Awards.

2003 Records complete cycle of Beethoven symphonies with Vienna Philharmonic.

2010 Will complete four-year cycle of Wagner’s Ring at the Salzburg Easter Festival.

From Birmingham to Berlin

Sir Simon Rattle is one of today’s greatest conductors. He made his name in two decades at the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, during which time he put classical music at the centre of the city’s cultural life and guided the orchestra’s move to the state-of-the-art Symphony Hall.

Having now renewed his contract at the Berlin Philharmonic, where he took over from Claudio Abbado in 2002, Rattle continues to nurture the future of classical music. His concerts have featured dozens of world premieres, including a Siegfried Matthus piece this year that featured him in a dual role as conductor and solo timpanist. A staunch champion of El Sistema and youth orchestras in general, Rattle has also overseen the Berlin Philharmonic’s move onto the internet, through its revolutionary ‘Digital Concert Hall’. A highly-rated discography features the symphonies of Beethoven, Mahler, Sibelius, and Brahms (to be released this September).

Essential discography

Mahler Symphony No 9 EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts Mahler's Ninth
Brahms Ein Deutsches Requiem EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts Brahms's Requiem
Holst The Planets EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts Holst's Planets Suite
Britten Les Illuminations etc EMI

Ian Bostridge, Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Bostridge sings Britten
R Strauss Ein Heldenleben EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts Ein Heldenleben
Stravinsky Symphonies EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts three Stravinsky symphonies
Schubert Symphony No 9 EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts Schubert's 'Great'
Mahler Symphony No 5 EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts Mahler's Fifth
Mahler Symphony No 10 EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle's second Mahler Ten
Haydn Symphonies 88-92 EMI

Berlin Philharmonic / Rattle

> Rattle conducts four Haydn symphonies

Search for more articles about Sir Simon Rattle in the Gramophone archive


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