There are few places in the world better to experience Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony than Japan, where end of year performances are a nationwide phenomenon. Leading timpanist Shoichi Kubo, of the NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo, talks about his crucial role in Beethoven’s revolutionary choral symphony.
Can you introduce yourself, and talk about your current musical role and responsibilities?
After graduating from a music university in Japan, I studied for three years under Oswald Vogler – then a timpanist with the Berlin Philharmonic – in West Berlin, at a time when the Berlin Wall still stood. Returning to Japan, I worked with the NHK Symphony Orchestra (NHKSO) as a trainee, whilst also studying under Peter Sonderman – the former principal timpanist of the Dresden State Orchestra, then serving as a guest timpanist with the NHKSO.
I currently serve as principal timpanist of the NHKSO, whilst also teaching the next generation at two music universities: Tokyo College of Music and Musashino Academia Musicae. Having reached this stage in my life, I feel it is my duty to pass on to the next generation what I have learnt and been taught by the great masters who came before me.
Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony is a piece of extraordinary dimensions and emotional power. Can you talk a little about the importance of this piece, and its significance for Japanese audiences?
The scale of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony was exceptionally grand for the early 19th century. At a time when the percussion section of the double-woodwind orchestra – said to have been established by Haydn – consisted solely of timpani, Beethoven incorporated the bass drum, cymbals and triangle. True, Haydn and Mozart had already utilized these instruments, but here they’re employed to a much greater degree. Beethoven also made extensive use of wind instruments such as the piccolo and the contrabassoon within the symphony. Despite never being totally at ease at writing for voices, Beethoven incorporated significant vocal forces in the finale, featuring four soloists and large chorus. It’s a monumental work that makes extensive use of voices, within a symphony – a genre that was originally a purely instrumental form.
In Japan, the work is particularly popular, also among people who do not usually attend classical or orchestral concerts, largely because of the celebratory tone of the D major finale.
While timpani had been used in orchestras since the 1600s, Beethoven made them a significant feature of his orchestration. Can you talk about what the music is like to play as a timpanist?
In the Ninth Symphony, there are brilliant passages for the timpani, written almost without interruption, from the very beginning of the first movement right through to the end of the finale. It demonstrates just how much Beethoven loved the timpani and how frequently he employed them in his works. I will mention the second movement Scherzo in a moment, but Beethoven attached great significance to the intonation of the timpani. It is often said that timpani mallets in Beethoven’s day typically had wooden heads, but I don’t believe this to be the case. This is because wooden mallets cannot produce the unique, beautiful and clear timbre of the timpani with the sense of intonation that Beethoven had in mind.
By the early 19th century, when the Ninth Symphony was composed, some 75 years had already passed since Bach’s death. Although felt mallets had not yet appeared, various inventive methods – such as covering the heads of the mallets with cloth – must have been employed to ensure clear intonation. In fact, it seems that something resembling flannel mallets already existed at that time.
The timpani’s role in the second movement is an exciting moment in the orchestral repertoire, and an early instance of the timpani in a soloistic role. Can you talk about this rhythmically complex Scherzo?
A distinctive feature of the Ninth Symphony’s Scherzo is that the timpani determine the key. Up to the third bar, only two notes – D and A – are played, and at this stage it remains unclear whether the movement is in a major or minor key. It is only when the timpani play the third note, F, in the fifth bar, that D minor is established.
A further characteristic is that this instrument, unusually, plays a part in the melody. Beethoven assigns a portion of the melody to the timpani, first in the fifth bar, and then in the sections marked ‘Ritmo di tre battute’ (‘Three-bar rhythm’, from bar 177) and ‘Ritmo di quattro battute’ (‘Four-bar rhythm’, from bar 234). He thus entrusts the timpani – which until then had served as the cornerstone of functional harmony by performing cadences – with thematic motifs. In addition, the range was innovative for its time, with the timpani tuned to span a full octave, from F3 (highest note on the timpani at the time) to F2 (lowest note).
What are practicalities of rehearsing and performing a long work like this? In Japan, are there clear ideas about how the symphony should sound? What do different conductors bring to the piece?
The Ninth Symphony is a monumental work lasting over 70 minutes, and performing it is extremely demanding, both physically and mentally. Thorough preparation is essential, not only for the actual performance but also for rehearsals. In recent years in Japan, a wide variety of performances of the Ninth are held every year. With the increase in professional choirs, high-quality performances have become the norm. There has also been a rise in performances using period instruments, both by domestic ensembles and those from overseas. I doubt there is any other country in the world where the Ninth is performed so frequently each year.
What impression did the symphony make on you when you first heard it?
I first performed the Ninth when I was at secondary school, playing the triangle in a junior orchestra. I did not perform the timpani part until I became a university student, when I helped out in an amateur orchestra. I still remember being utterly overwhelmed by the greatness of the piece, feeling completely exhausted after the full performance had finished, and experiencing a profound sense of fulfilment.
Is there a recording or a memory of a performance that is particularly special to you?
Having studied in Berlin, I am particularly fond of Karajan’s performances with the Berlin Philharmonic. The live footage of their performance of the Ninth is truly magnificent. My teacher, Oswald Vogler, can be seen playing the timpani in it. As for my performances with the NHK Symphony Orchestra, the highlight has to be the charity concert for the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011. I’ll never forget the performance of the Ninth Symphony conducted by Zubin Mehta at the Tokyo Bunka Kaikan in Ueno.
If I had to name another, it would be the concert and CD recording with the Tokyo Mitaka Philharmonia (then known as the Tokyo Mozart Players), conducted by Ryusuke Numajiri. I played on a set of Viennese-style goatskin timpani!
Do you have a personal favourite passage in this symphony?
There are many parts of the Ninth that I love, but if I had to single out just one, it would be the fermata on “vor Gott” in the fourth movement in the old Breitkopf edition, just before the march begins. Whilst everyone else is playing fortissimo, only the timpani part makes a diminuendo. I really love that sound of “Gott” where just the timpani fade away.
Why should one come to hear a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony?
In today’s world, there are more wars and conflicts than ever before, and a greater prevalence of self-centered and nationalistic thinking. It is precisely because we live in such times that we must all become brothers and sisters (“Alle Menschen werden Brüder”)! For the sake of a more peaceful world, let us listen to the magnificent Ninth and strive to respect one another and deepen our mutual understanding!
Marek Janowski conducts the NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony from 17th to 22nd December at NHK Hall and on 23rd December at Suntory Hall, Tokyo.
See upcoming performances by NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo.
This article is also available in Japanese.
This article was sponsored by NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo.
