A scene in the forest

Daniel Barenboim may be the hardest working man in Berlin. Barely a week goes by in this town where he can’t be found in front of the piano, down in the pit of the Schiller Theater, or on the podium leading the Berlin Staatskapelle. His ubiquity is matched only by a depth of musicianship – and a willingness to take chances – found today in only a handful of conductors. Even when one does not agree with a particular reading, there can be no doubting Herr Barenboim’s absolute committment; and, more often than not, he is able to coax performances of matchless intensity from even the most familiar of scores. In a city that values music, he is a much beloved figure. So it was only fitting that he should choose Berlin as the concluding stop on his summer tour with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra; and perhaps it was a surge of end-of-tour…