[Leica] Peter's article on Wagner is up

[mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)]

> Peter's article is well written. I appreciate his willingness to make
> allowances for others' musical preferences.
> I detest Wagner's racism and his music. For 7 years beginning in 1938 I
> heard little else. It was an integral part of the political environment as
> was the antisemitism that Wagner and his ilk espoused. The "undesirable"
> composers, conductors, and performers who did not flee were murdered.
> Oliver
> 


I live in the Upper West Side of New York city one of the most historically
famous long standing Jewish neighborhoods in the world.
Down the street the multiplex known as Lincoln Center - Metropolitan Opera
House had the epic Wagner Ring cycle dominating the summer season just over.
Half the people in the audience, on the stage and in the orchestra were
easily Jewish.

Das Rheingold (The Rhinegold)
Die Walk?re (The Valkyrie)
Siegfried
G?tterd?mmerung (The Twilight of the Gods)

Many of the great recordings of Wager were conducted by Leonard Bernstein,
Lorin Maazel and many other Jewish conductors. They all got by it. They
didn't seem to feel Wagner wrote Hitler's speeches but was what was on the
record player.

The Wagner Ring cycle was also picked up by a few people other than the Nazi
propaganda machine.
George Lukas - Star Wars
J. R. R. Tolkien - The Lord of the Rings.



Mark William Rabiner