Once upon a time, Saturday afternoons at 1 (at least, on the east coast of the United States where I live now) was when the Metropolitan Opera broadcast on American radio, from New York, a live Saturday matinée from the Met. I don’t think they do those radio broadcasts anymore, though the live Metropolitan Opera performances may be shown in some theaters for a hefty price.
The new Saturday afternoons at 1 (at least, on the east coast of the United States) coincides with 7 p.m. in Berlin. That’s when the Berlin Philharmonic live-streams its Saturday evening concerts.
I’ve written previously about subscribing to a year’s worth of streaming from the Berlin Philharmonic. At today’s concert — Saturday March 4 — I immediately noticed a new concertmaster. Because of the beautiful video from the Berlin Philharmonic’s live streams, I had often previously noticed her in the violin section, not least because of her bright blonde hair contrasted with her black outfits, plus the intensity of her playing. Today, in the live stream from Berlin, she took her seat as concertmaster for the first time. Her name is Vineta Sareika-Völkner. She is Latvian. She is the first female concertmaster ever in the Berlin Philharmonic.
Internet streaming is a miracle. But one day I hope to find myself inside that Berlin concert hall on a Saturday evening at 7 p.m.
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