Musical world pricks up its ears as a force for change meets a leader of tradition

In September 2002, Sir Simon Rattle becomes artistic director and principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, an event regarded by many observers of orchestras and orchestral life as a change of major significance.

As Nicholas Kenyon remarks in the opening sentence of Simon Rattle: From Birmingham to Berlin , this "could change the musical world, and the musical world is ready for a change". It is a measure of the standing of the Berlin Philharmonic, and the stature that it attained, notably under Wilhelm Furtwängler and Herbert von Karajan, that the first half of this observation seems no overstatement, even if the readiness of other parts of the musical world to assimilate the results of this change remains to be seen. What is clear, however, is that the choice of Rattle for this post - with an institution identified more with a deeply ingrained reverence for the past than with an appetite for the present - has, as Kenyon points out, signalled a commitment to "creating a new model of an orchestra for the 21st century". While others have attempted to bring about changes of this kind, and the orchestral world has seen major shifts in the past decade, the creation of a future-oriented orchestral model for an institution with the history and traditions of the Berlin Philharmonic will be something to watch.

As Kenyon demonstrates, both the orchestra and its new music director are strong and determined musical forces; while the paths that led them to this historic point have crossed before, the years ahead are likely to produce drama and excitement.

Kenyon's book, which updates his biography, Simon Rattle: The Making of a Conductor (1987), takes us to this point, providing in a cleverly constructed and eminently readable volume, an informative, broadly sympathetic, while balanced account of the "story so far". It focuses principally on the path that Rattle as conductor has forged to date, from his early student years, through early professional opportunities, to the 18-year commitment that he made to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO) - the period from 1980 to 1998 during which both he and the orchestra came of age musically. The updated biography benefits from the fact that since 1987, Kenyon, now controller of the BBC Proms, Live Events and Television Classical Music, has had both opportunity and reason to keep his eye (and ear) on the development of Rattle and the CBSO. The results of this are evident in the selection of material and in the range of people quoted.

The book is an enjoyable read. It is, in the best sense, journalistic in approach: there is a vividness and immediacy about the writing. Since material obtained from interviews with key subjects is central - Rattle himself, and those who have been closest to him professionally, mainly during the Birmingham years: it is a book of many voices. Kenyon handles this material imaginatively, producing through what are sometimes the subtlest of juxtapositions, a perceptive account of Rattle's progress and the musical changes that happened in Birmingham. Each of the chapters is headed by an eye-catching quotation from one of the interviews ("The stakes are just so high for everyone"; "It had to be hard sometimes"; "On the whole I'm in favour of monogamy"; "This is the place where ideas are allowed"). The impact of the material is enhanced by the deft construction of the book. Time is handled in a cinematic way, and the chief protagonists are presented with the dramatist's touch. After raising the curtain with Rattle in 2000, and the Berlin Philharmonic between 1987 (when Rattle first conducted the orchestra) and now, Kenyon looks back to Rattle's early years - at home, at school and in the local youth orchestra. The subsequent progression is punctuated with three interludes - the first with John Carewe, Rattle's mentor and adviser ("The most vital meeting of them all"), the second with Rattle himself ("The music business is completely unnatural"), the third ("It's difficult for geniuses") with friends, colleagues, critics and composers. The resulting mosaic challenges readers to put the picture together for themselves, but provides a rich vein of material to quarry in doing so.

This will be a valuable sourcebook for readers with many different interests, and the style and method of organisation of the material ensure that there is plenty for all. Particularly welcome is the opportunity it provides for in-depth study of Rattle's approach to programming, and the effect of this on the CBSO as well as on Birmingham audiences, and in ever-widening circles. There is as yet relatively little available in print about the Rattle phenomenon, and this book, with its useful discography and index, fills a real need.

Janet Ritterman is director, Royal College of Music.