The Berlin Staatskapelle is not the best orchestra in Germany, but it may be the definitive German orchestra. Under the baton of Daniel Barenboim, the Staatskapelle has again become an international force in the music world, and its distinctly German sound is an immediately recognizable beacon, in an era when many orchestras are beginning to sound alike. But what is a “German sound,” and are German orchestras really any more equipped to play German music than orchestras based in the UK or the US? Barenboim believes in the sound, and can explain it right down to the special German method of attacking a note.