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From: dep@allegra.UUCP (Dewayne Perry)
Newsgroups: net.music.classical
Subject: Re: Music and nazism
Message-ID: <4935@allegra.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 13-Aug-85 09:29:42 EDT
Article-I.D.: allegra.4935
Posted: Tue Aug 13 09:29:42 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 15-Aug-85 00:28:07 EDT
References: <1516@bbncca.ARPA> <452@olivee.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill
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<notCism: the approach to composition that refuses to recognize ....>

I wasn't going to add to this at all - the responses to this have been
quite good and to the point in addition to being informative (I even
agreed with Rosen - egads :-).  Music is to be judged on musical grounds,
not political grounds.  Performers and performances are to be judged
also on musical grounds.  Whether the composer/performer has a particular
political position, is of a particular race, is of a particular religion, etc.,
is immaterial, except to the extent that it affects the quality of the
composition/performance.  Even her/his personality is completely immaterial
when judging the product.

What seems to me to be far more important is where the state affects the
music itself.  A good case in point is the state response of Russia to
the "formalism" of Prokofiev and Shostokovich.  Both had to beg forgivness
and promise not to do it again in order to continue composing.  That is
something to get incensed about (independent of whether you think that
there music is better or worse because of it).  The extent to which the
Nazis suppressed and destroyed music/composers/musicians/performances
is what is important.  The extent to which inidivuals participated is
a measure of their culpability.  Their individual art, on the other
hand, is independent of all this crap.

to paraphrase: I may think that you are a jerk [fill in your own epithets]
but I will defend to the death your right to be a great artist.
(on the other hand if your stuff is mediocre, I may have to reconsider :-).

Dewayne Perry