This announcement was made by the National Youth Orchestra following their joint concert at the 2018 Easter Festival with members of the Berliner Philharmoniker at the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden. Since the Berlin Philharmonic made known in 2013 that it would support the National Youth Orchestra as its sponsor orchestra, Sir Simon has regularly stood at the podium of the highly esteemed young orchestra.
"I love this orchestra. You play beautifully and you are our future. With the music in your hands, I am full of hope," said Mr Rattle after receiving the certificate.
Year after year, Sir Simon Rattle worked with the orchestra's talented young musicians. "The award of the honorary conductorship is intended to express appreciation for the special musical friendship and inspiration that we have been able to experience through Sir Simon Rattle over the past eight years and opens up a shared perspective," said Sönke Lentz, orchestra director of the National Youth Orchestra on the presentation of the certificate.
Both the Berlin Philharmonic, as sponsor of the National Youth Orchestra, and the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, with its annual invitation to the Easter Festival, contributed significantly to the realisation of this extraordinary collaboration. "Until today, a total of 473 musicians of the Bundesjugendorchester have been able to enjoy your artistic inspiration, valuable accompaniment, inspiring motivation and warm friendship," said concertmaster Felix Hörter, thanking Sir Simon Rattle at the end of the concert.
Prior to the award ceremony, the Berlin Philharmonic and the National Youth Orchestra presented Béla Bartók's "The Wooden Prince" as part of the 2018 Easter Festival in Baden-Baden. Bartók's impressionistic early work was based on a fairy tale by the Hungarian screenwriter, director and poet Béla Balász. Just like every year, the Easter Festival was once again a celebration of diversity. For example, the Berliner Barocksolisten with concertmaster Daishin Kashimoto, the Wind Sonnet of the Berlin Philharmonic, Sir Simon Rattle and the National Youth Orchestra shared the big stage.
