Kaiser-lindemann: Hommage A Nelson M., Op. 27

Description

At Home with NelsonMandelaAfter I had read the last pages of Nelson Mandela's autobiography ALong Walk to Freedom during a holiday in Hawaii in 1995, I was so moved bythe charisma and the human greatness of this man that from then on one burningwish never left me: the wish to meet him personally, to feel his strength atfirst hand, to be allowed to take his hand and look into his eyes.Imaginative fantasies?I felt that by using music as mediator between all people of this worldI might have a chance of being able to transform my wish into reality. The ideaof commissioning a composition dedicated to Mandela occupied me more and more.Title: Hommage ?á Nelson M. for cello and percussion. With thiscombination of instruments I wanted to create a musical bridge between theEuropean music tradition and the native feeling for rhythm of the blackpopulation of South Africa.In the composer Wilhelm Kaiser-Lindemann I found an ally; we exchangedideas, and he began to write the composition. Our common objective: the firstperformance should take place in South Africa with Mandela as guest of honour.Thanks to my friendship with Johannes Rau, who was at the timeMinister-President of Northrhine?¡-Westfalen and is now President of Germany, Iwas then able to deliver a letter to Mandela during his state visit to Germanyin which I informed him about our idea which had been engendered by my ferventadmiration for him.Unfortunately it turned out impossible to realise our plans for aconcert in South Africa. Since, however, I was determined to release thecomposition and its message into the world as quickly as possible, the firstperformance took place in December 1996 in the Tonhalle, the concert hall inD??sseldorf, before an audience which was deeply moved by the music. Then in1997 I received an invitation to give a concert in the Nico Theatre in CapeTown on 14th September - Heritage Day in South Africa - including Hommage ?áNelson M., with the president as guest of honour in the front row. My joywas indescribable, but also my disappointment when Mandela called off hisattendance the day before the concert. As President he had to attend to otherrepresentational duties on this national holiday.However, he sent his closest friend, Govan Mbeki, to my concert. The85-year-old came backstage after the concert, obviously very moved, and invitedme to visit him in Parliament the next day. What a warm-hearted encounter!Govan Mbeki, who had been imprisoned together with Mandela on Robben Island for24 years, assured me that he would tell his friend Nelson Mandela all about theconcert in detail.I flew back to Germany, and received an invitation from PresidentMandela a few weeks later to visit him in his residence in Cape Town. In themost exciting moments of my life I gave a completely private concert - onlyfive people were present - for the State President. I played parts of thecomposition and explained connections between his autobiography and the musicalideas resulting from it. These hap