For eight seasons, Paul Witteman (75) presented the music program Podium Witteman† In addition to classical music, attention is paid to jazz, pop and world music. The last broadcast with Paul Witteman will be on Sunday 15 May. The program will continue on Sunday evening, the NTR is in discussion with the NPO about the form.
How did you come up with the idea to present Podium Witteman?
“That story goes way back to my high school days. Jan Tromp, later deputy editor-in-chief of de Volkskrant, was my classmate and later we studied together in Amsterdam. He once said to me: ‘You can talk so much about music, maybe you should do that in front of the television.’
“I then replied: ‘Music on television is almost always a catastrophe.’ As a viewer you are too far away, there is no bond. I did write about music, books and columns about performers, composers and pieces of music for de Volkskrant† At one point, Carel Kuyl, director of the NTR at the time, asked if I wanted to start a program. That’s how it came about.”
How did you bring the music close to the television viewer?
“First of all, there is always the form of a performing artist who talks about the music he plays, his working method, his sources of inspiration. We always play the music we like and hope the listener likes it too. The background stories are part of the enthusiasm of our presentation.
“Public Broadcasting has often had problems with music programmes. I have always strived for a balance between accessibility and specialism. Music seems like an elitist art form, but it is not. The accessible and intended for a wide audience lies in the stories behind the music. We also offered a stage to the Jonge Helden, young talent between 14 and 24 years old. This allows you to involve a new generation in classical music.”
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At the start of the series you showed yourself to be a great Bach enthusiast, later you paid attention to contemporary music.
“I owe this mainly to my alert and progressive editors. They are constantly looking for music that most people have never heard before. That’s what makes it exciting.
“The precondition is that we always bring the unknown in addition to the known. Take the brothers Lucas and Arthur Jussen, who recently released a CD with unknown Dutch repertoire. They have that in Podium Witteman that was an ideal broadcast: unknown music, the accompanying story and the piano playing of the talented brothers.”
Do you have a dream successor?
“I’m not really going to get involved in that. The question is what do you want as a broadcaster: do you take one of the editors who want to step up or do you prefer someone who comes from outside and makes his or her mark? In my view, editor Floris Kortie can fulfill that first task very well.
“I will remain involved in music and would like to serve as a jury member in a festival. But I will not compete with the continuation of my program under any name. I can’t imagine that the NPO won’t bring a new music program with my farewell. I am convinced that classical music is very hip, especially among the youngest generations. The Netherlands is bursting with upcoming talent. You can tell by the numbers of small and large festivals that are springing up like mushrooms. From the ratings of Podium Witteman shows how popular and much acclaimed music is, and I don’t mean just classical music, but also the lighter genre for which pianist Mike Boddé is responsible.”
Do you cherish a fond memory?
“For me, the performance of the then 92-year-old Israeli pianist Menahem Pressler was very surprising and enriching, in which he told that he learned the piano out of love for his father. During the Hitler period, Pressler’s father gave his son piano lessons, he was not allowed to perform himself.
“Pianist Thomas Beijer will come next Sunday and we will also visit the youngest generations. Six Young Heroes who made a career and also at Podium Witteman performed will play something for me. After Sunday evening I will definitely not leave the world of classical music. I will stay connected with it, but different from the last eight years.”