The unknown life of Otto Klemperer
Otto Klemperer was one of the greatest classical conductors of the twentieth century. Less known is that he was obsessed by a mysterious "Black Dog" that brought him bad luck throughout his life.
Otto's first encounter with his nemesis occurred in 1889, when he was just four years old. He was walking with his parents in his hometown of Wrocław (now in Poland, but which was then part of Germany), when a large black dog appeared out of nowhere and jumped on his shoulders. Recalling the incident, Klemperer said: "Since then, I have always been afraid of dogs. Again and again, in various forms, I have seen this 'Black Dog', or one very similar, just before the catastrophe that has struck me and my private and professional life."
The subsequent "disasters" occurred more than forty years after that early childhood encounter, precisely at the moment when Klemperer had obtained a reputation as one of Germany's most important conductors. It was 1930, when Germany was becoming a dangerous place for Jews, such as Klemperer. However, this particular disaster was not the result of human persecution, but another encounter with a mysterious "Black Dog"!
During a rehearsal in a concert hall in Leipzig, an enormous "Black Dog" wandered into the hall. Moments later, Klemperer fell from the podium, which was positioned at a significant height. The conductor remained unconscious for several minutes and suffered a concussion. The resulting brain damage caused excruciating headaches and what Klemperer described as "frightening balance disturbances". Surgery was necessary, but not performed until 1939, after Klemperer and his family had to leave Germany to move to America. The operation left him partially paralyzed, with one side of his face contorted into a permanent "ugly scowl."
The third encounter occurred in Montreal in 1951, as he was about to board a plane for Europe. A "Black Dog" ran across the runway straight toward him. Concerned, Klemperer slipped and fell, breaking a hip. He was forced to spend the next eight months in a hospital in Canada, waiting another four years before being able to conduct standing up.
Yet another disaster occurred in 1959, when Klemperer was staying in a hotel in Zurich. He was in bed and smoking, when he drifted off to sleep and was assailed by an incredibly vivid dream about... a large black dog! He woke up with a start, only to discover that the lit cigarette had set the sheets on fire. He immediately grabbed what he thought was a bottle of water and threw it on the fire. In a panic, he did not realize that the bottle he grabbed contained not water, but a highly flammable liquid, camphor spirit. Klemperer suffered severe burns, remaining between life and death for months.
Shortly after recovering, while walking in public, he saw the fifth "Black Dog"... and immediately fell, breaking his hip again! After recovering from that accident, Klemperer moved to London to take up a new position as "conductor for life" with the Philharmonia Orchestra.
He lived until 1973, but fortunately, he had no more encounters with his nemesis, the large black dog!
Point of view recounted by Gilberto Serembe
