Chamber Ensemble Will Bring Its ‘Viennese Style’ to Arts Center

“It will be a catastroph’!” exclaimed Gerhard Hetzel the moment he answered the telephone Saturday morning at the Salisbury Hotel in Manhattan.

The founder and first violinist of the Vienna Chamber Ensemble was not feeling some kind of presentiment regarding the group’s performance tonight (under the aegis of the Orange County Philharmonic Society) at the Orange County Performing Arts Center.

Nothing of the sort. Rather, convinced that his English would not suffice for an interview, Hetzel had decided he ought not try to speak at all unless a colleague he had asked to interpret showed up.

After linguistic inhibitions had been tempered by a bit of friendly generic palaver and the assurance that he could lapse into German when necessary, it became clear that Hetzel is unassuming about anything having to do with himself.

Some of this may be family training, but surely the unique musical situation in Vienna is a contributing factor.

Hetzel holds the position of concertmaster for the Vienna Philharmonic, one of the most prestigious posts in all of music. But, he points out, he is not the only one.

“We are four concertmasters in the orchestra. The Philharmonic is also the orchestra for the State Opera, and in the opera orchestra, we are five !

“Each player participates in the symphony orchestra, the opera orchestra, and also we each have our solo careers, we play chamber music, and we all teach at the High School for Music.

“Impossible for one person to be everywhere always, of course. We are 148 players. When the Philharmonic goes on tour, it is about two-thirds who go, and one-third remains to play for the Opera. One tour I stay and my colleague goes, another time it is different.”

Although Hetzel does not consider himself to have been a prodigy on the violin--”not like (Yehudi) Menuhin or so”--recognition did come at an early age.

Before he went to Vienna, he was for some time Concertmaster of the RIAS (Radio Berlin) Orchestra under Lorin Maazel. He was made concertmaster in Vienna at just 29. Did this make him the youngest concertmaster in the celebrated orchestra’s history?

“Oh, no, I think not the youngest but the oldest for concertmaster. It is usual for players to begin in the orchestra at age 14 or 15, as substitutes, and soon become regular members. My teacher, Wolfgang Schneiderhan, was already concertmaster from 17 years old. When I came from Berlin in 1969 to be concertmaster, I was already an ‘old one’ of 29, so I was not exceptional.”

Within a year of joining the Philharmonic, Hetzel had created the Vienna Chamber Ensemble, made up of first chair players from the orchestra. They found themselves in demand from the outset. Clearly, the ensemble was answering an important need.

That modesty again: “No, there was nothing missing in music, of course, but for me it was the greatest pleasure to play the great chamber music with my colleagues, the music ‘too small’ for full orchestra.”

Besides Hetzel, the ensemble consists of second violinist Klaus Maetzel, cellist Adalbert Skocic, double bassist Franz Bauer, violist Hatto Beyerle, clarinetist Norbert Taubl, bassoonist Michael Werba (the son of pianist Erik), and two French horn players, Franz Soellner and Volker Altman.

Why two horns?

“Ah, that is interesting. The Mozart Divertimenti are all written for two horns, and if we use the original instruments, which I think is very important, we have then two horns.

“And why is Mozart doing this? He wrote for the players he has this evening, do you see, and in that town he had two horns. The old Vienna Octet, which Willi Boskovsky led, was playing with one horn and bassoon. I don’t think it is so bad to do this, of course, but it isn’t original, so for this Mozart we are nine instead of eight” like Boskovsky.

The ensemble is promoted as an exponent of “the true and genuine Viennese style,” but when it comes to an explanation of this specialty, words in every language fail.

“I am not sure if we (the musicians) know what it means. Two generations before us, they meant something different by ‘Viennese style.’ It is a more instinctive connection to the emotion in the music, not so analytical . . . at first.

“But as soon as you say that, the opposite is also true. Schoenberg, the most analytical of musicians, came from Vienna, so it is very dangerous to say one thing or another.

“It is tradition, yes, and tradition means to keep the same things over some time, keep the same sense. But Mahler said tradition is schlamperei (slovenliness), not exact enough.

“Maybe it is not even a way of playing music but a way of life, to think that music is a very important thing in the life. Music is very important for people in Vienna--also theater and opera. To say ‘Viennese style’ works very well for publicists, but it is dangerous for musicians.”

The Vienna Chamber Ensemble plays tonight at 8 at the Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa. Tickets: $6 to $20. Information: (714) 556-2787.