Not your mother's matinee
Soloist Chen Halevi rehearses at the Volkswagen Phaeton sedan assembly plant.
The New York Philharmonic created another level of musical drama entirely this week, when it performed Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg’s "Kraft" using parts of a luxury sedan as percussion instruments, and with a Volkswagen suspended above them.
Gilbert, the son of musician parents who played in the Philharmonic, believes passionately not only in the new and modern repertoire, but also in upholding the standards that made the orchestra famous.
In a meeting of tradition and technology, Gilbert's podium was backed by part of a Phaeton front grill.
The New York Philharmonic horn, wind, percussion and string players were kept busy rotating to different places and levels in the performance area for a piece Lindberg said is a celebration of sound and space.
A brake disk sit's on a table during the rehearsal.
Soloist Chen Halevi (right) plays precussion next to the wind section.
A Phaeron chassis is seen in the forground, as the orchestra rehearse. Regional Volkswagen CEO Hans-Joachim Rothenpieler called the concert a "special crazy idea".
Magnus Lindberg was the Composer in Residence at the New York Philharmonic from 2009 - 2012.
Conductor Alan Gilbert leads a performance, with a Volkswagen dangling precariously over his orchestra.
Gilbert (left) and Lindberg acknowledge the audience's applause after the performance.
Patrons leave the Glaeserne Manufaktur (transparent factory) where Germany's car maker Volkswagen AG assemble the luxury Phaeton model.
