Friday, September 23, 2011

A Composer Has Something Intelligent To Say!

Professor William A. Jacobson of Cornell Law School deemed Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech today at the United Nations a “masterpiece”, and I suspect that Professor Jacobson is right: the speech was a model of clarity and directness, purpose and resoluteness. Netanyahu’s address was a hallmark of what an address by a head of state should be. The world may not have encountered such a landmark address since the days of Ronald Reagan.

In vivid contrast to today’s elevated words from Netanyahu has been the vile anti-Semitic ranting of London’s press and music establishment the last couple of weeks, all in response to a public protest against a concert in London by the Israel Philharmonic, a protest in support of which numerous persons had issued public statements calling for a British boycott of the Israeli orchestra.

Four of the persons calling for a boycott—and even an outright ban—of the Israel Philharmonic were themselves members of one of London’s major orchestras, the London Philharmonic. Alas, the four persons were stupid enough to include the name of the London Philharmonic in their diatribe calling for the Israel Philharmonic to be banned from concertizing in Britain. The four London Philharmonic players were, quite naturally, disciplined—it was perfectly acceptable for them to have uttered publicly whatever foolishness they wished, but it was not acceptable for them to have publicly invoked the name of their orchestra (a player-administered body) in espousing such foolishness.

The self-governing orchestra suspended the players for nine months, and then reduced the suspensions to six months—with the result that the virulently anti-Semitic British press is in an uproar, claiming that “a certain faction” of financial guarantors of the orchestra (i.e., persons of the Jewish faith) is behind the “retribution”.

To Americans, the rampant anti-Semitism in today’s Britain is simply incomprehensible. Even taking into account the fact that Britain is now a Third-World country with a Third-World education system, the swiftness of Britain’s descent into anti-Semitism has been chilling. The descent began in the mid-1990s, and has snowballed into widespread madness, with the Guardian newspaper—now frequently referred to as the Guardian/Der Sturmer—proudly at the forefront of Britain’s deplorable anti-Semitic wave.

Winston Churchill would be appalled at what his country has become—but Julius Streicher would be pleased.


Happily, not everyone in Britain has been susceptible to the lunacy—and intelligent words were offered this week from an unexpected source: a composer, member of a profession not often known for acuity and temperance.

Scottish composer James MacMillan, perhaps best known for “The Confession Of Isobel Gowdie” and “Veni, Veni, Emmanuel”, two works founded upon MacMillan’s devout Roman Catholicism, had the following to say:

The Israeli/Arab controversy is too complex for self-advertising dilettantes to weigh in with an unintelligent contribution. Nuance and subtlety go out the window when bullies barge in, bawling about boycotts and bans.

The "artistic community" is out of its depth and beyond its comfort zone on this one, and they have previous experience in getting it wrong, tending to follow fashionable trends that will gain them brownie points with the liberal and power elites. There is nothing challenging or brave about their herd instinct.


In the past the “artistic community", alongside many other privileged middle-class “rebels”, disgraced themselves with ready apologias for Stalinism and the evils of Soviet Communism. I would hate to see history repeat itself with artists offering succor to the Islamo-fascists of Hamas and Hezbollah.

You don't have to agree with everything Israel does, but it is a beacon and oasis of democracy in a desert of authoritarian viciousness and anti-Semitism. We need a bit of proportion in reacting to this situation.

While the week featured an all-too-rare occurrence of a composer having something intelligent to say, the week also featured an all-too-common occurrence of a weblog proprietor making an “unintelligent contribution”, trying to attract attention to himself by “bawling about boycotts and bans”.

A leading rabble-rouser fanning the flames has been Mark Berry, instructor at Royal Holloway, University Of London. For the last week or more, Berry has been leading a charge all over the internet criticizing the London Philharmonic for its “suppression of free speech”—and writing that he has heard “whispers” about the “motives” of that “certain faction” of financial guarantors of the London Philharmonic (i.e., persons of the Jewish faith).

Berry was also co-signer of a letter published this week in the Guardian/Der Sturmer, a letter that—quite naturally—portrayed the London Philharmonic as chief villain of the entire affair.

For years, I have been keeping a jaundiced eye on Berry’s relentlessly anti-Semitic weblog, Boulezian, which is rather a trial to wade through. Berry needs to take a series of remedial writing courses—his writing is appalling muck—and he needs to take a series of courses in elementary logic. Berry also needs to choose a subject for his weblog about which he has some knowledge. An avowed Marxist, Berry should probably confine himself to writing about the life of Vladimir Lenin, or the glories of Joseph Stalin, or some such. As it stands now, whoever reads Boulezian does so, like myself, not because Berry has anything intelligent or original or worthwhile to say, but because Berry’s weblog reflects the mind of a troubled, half-educated weirdo.

In his sashaying turn around the internet during the last week, one of Berry’s recurrent themes has been that “music is politics”. Such opinion may be widespread among Marxists, but such opinion is not held by intelligent persons—and I believe it may be gainsaid that today no intelligent person can possibly be a Marxist (unless that person has severe psychological problems, which very well may be the source of Berry’s misfortunes, as online photographs of Berry would tend to suggest). If music is politics, then cooking is politics, as is gardening, and walking the dog.

“Music making is by its very nature a political act”—Mark Berry

“It is difficult to think of a more inherently political act than that of music-making”—Mark Berry

“Any claim that music is apolitical should be contested, since such a claim is itself ideological through and through, a typical ploy by those in positions of power to repress those who are not.”—Mark Berry

When I play a Schubert piano sonata, am I engaged in political activity? When I listen to a disc of Beethoven string quartets, am I committing a political deed? When the Minnesota Orchestra plays music of Debussy, are the players involved in political shenanigans?

Is not voting a more inherently political act than making music? And running for public office?

If music is politics, is politics music?

May one assume, in Berry’s warped world, that when American voters go to the polls next November to throw out America’s current president, it will be deemed a musical gesture?

It will certainly be music to some ears.

16 comments:

  1. Excellent post - one of your BEST.

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  2. Have you read about James Levine now being proclaimed a god? Does that mean he is now a candidate for POTUS in 2012, succeeding messiah?

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  3. I do not pay much attention to Levine. Nothing truthful about Levine ever appears in the American press, and the European press quite rightly ignores him.

    How many Levine discs are still in print? Levine made zillions of recordings, and all but a handful long ago exited the catalog.

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  4. Talking about vile attacks...you must be terribly proud of yourself for adding this misinformed rant on top of Igor's attention seeking posturing.

    Unfortunately the status quo in the middle east is attracting lazy polemicists (from both sides) that find it a great excuse to put out there their own vile views under that all too convenient banner.

    Rule 101 of blogging is not to make personal attacks and behave like a scorned Hollywood starlet when other bloggers tend to have diametrically opposite views to yours. After all blogging is about having a plurality of views and allowing the reader to make their own mind up.

    Now calm down and please do not read The Guardian, as it's clearly wasted on you.

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  5. Got to be the most stupid, self-defeating comment I've ever read:

    "Unfortunately the status quo in the middle east is attracting lazy polemicists (from both sides) that find it a great excuse to put out there their own vile views under that all too convenient banner."

    Such a you, you hypocritical wally.

    "Rule 101 of blogging is not to make personal attacks and behave like a scorned Hollywood starlet when other bloggers tend to have diametrically opposite views to yours."

    Er, and what exactly do you think you've been doing, you FOOL.

    "After all blogging is about having a plurality of views and allowing the reader to make their own mind up."

    So listen to your own advice. Let the reader decide. And Shut. Up.

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  6. I am a Jewish postgraduate student of Mark Berry. Rarely have I encountered a more helpful and thoughtful teacher - one who is always willing to dedicate his time to a (Jewish) student to which he has no administrative obligation.

    Not only is your post deeply offensive and misleading, it is also underlined by the typical specious argument that any criticism of Israel (in this case it is so indirect that I'm not even sure if it amounts to criticism of Israeli policy) is to be equated with anti-semitism. Lawyer's logic, I guess.

    It is vile, vindictive garbage such as this that makes it impossible for there to be any serious discourse in the diasporic Jewish community about issues surrounding Israel.

    If you were to have read much of Mark Berry's blog or serious academic work, you would discover that his understanding of and commitment to democratic ideas is more far-reaching and comprehensive than a pseudo-intellectual such as yourself.

    For irony's sake: Auf wiedersehen, und Shanah Tovah.

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  7. Not quite sure why I'm bothering to comment, actually, as it kind of acknowledges that this blogger matters.

    But I can't help asking - as a lawyer, do you not understand the concept of defamation?

    And do you really think that personal attacks strengthen your 'argument'?

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  8. No one here pays attention to Mark Berry. He is less than a nobody. I would not grant Mark Berry the attention he craves.

    Mark Berry is but one of countless fifth-rate academics polluting our national landscape. He is also a bit of a nut, as his website amply demonstrates.

    That said, I am pleased you pointed out how bad his writing is. On occasion, I look at his site, primarily to see how muddled and unintelligent is his writing and thinking. His writing about music is indeed the most awful claptrap, just about the worst writing about music to be found anywhere.

    And everyone here knows that The Guardian is the most appalling rubbish, and recognizes its extreme anti-Jewish bias.

    If you examine responses to anti-Semitism in the UK today, the responses always boil down to the same thing: “We are NOT anti-Semitic! We just don’t like Jews!”

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  9. My cousin studies at the LSE. He says the anti-Jewish venom is unbelievable. He was told to expect it, but it is ten times worse than he was warned against.

    The American students abhor it and say so, the Canadians play along with it, and the Australian students bristle. The Australians HATE the British, which my cousin doesn’t understand. The Americans make fun of the British but don’t hate them. The French look down their noses at the British. The Germans are divided.

    The British are backward. Things American students are expected to know are unknown to the British. The Americans call the British students “the lacunae”. It’s supposed to signify all the things they should know but don’t.

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  10. I'm commenting on this blog merely to protest at what is, without a doubt, one of the worst blogs I've ever read. Not only is your characterisation of Britain as anti-semitic wonderfully ironic, but hugely flawed. As a tall blonde acquaintance of Mark Berry's I am entitled more than most to comment on your blog. Mark is a very well regarded academic and as someone who has spent many hours in discussion with him on various academic topics, his opinions are both justifiable and inspiring. He does however devote his academic study to a subject that often has no real answers as such but relies on a community of academics like him to produce opinions which shed more light on subjects we can only speculate upon.
    In addition I suggest you fully research the reasons behind the boycott of the prom, as you clearly have not seeing as you mention only one or two, before you make a blog such as this which is not only a testament to your own ignorance but exists eternally now.
    I do not wish to indulge you anymore, but you have spectacularly shot yourself in the foot, as we brits say. Your ignorant treatment of the protest, warped view of the British public and our leading academics are a wonderful testament to one of the most famous stereotypes that Britain still holds about Americans - their stupidity.

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  11. You normally don't attract unintelligent commenters, but you certainly hit the jackpot with this one.

    I don't like MacMillan's music.

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  12. “A troubled, half-educated weirdo.” Oh, my. Berry shall never be able to live that down.

    Most Brits are not anti-Semites. Anti-Semites in Britain are a small but vocal minority, nourished by the BBC and too seldom called out by other news organizations. The situation has worsened of late, I grant you, and is destined to deteriorate further.

    The Left cannot be reasoned with, as the reactions to your writing prove. Reading the comments you have elicited is like wading through the insane comments on the Guardian website. Such people are ideologues; ideology has replaced religion in their lives, and they have become tenacious worshippers. As a result, they cannot see themselves, or anything else, in a clear light. They have no idea how foolish they have become.

    I find it remarkable that no one has bothered to mention that Tom Eisner, one of the LPO players suspended, had been repeatedly warned by the LPO to keep his political posturing off the concert platform and out of rehearsal halls. Eisner, of all people, should have known what he was setting himself up for. The man is a fool.

    Have you noticed that Jessica Duchen is keeping a very low profile?

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  13. "To Americans, the rampant anti-Semitism in today’s Britain is simply incomprehensible. Even taking into account the fact that Britain is now a Third-World country with a Third-World education system, the swiftness of Britain’s descent into anti-Semitism has been chilling. The descent began in the mid-1990s, and has snowballed into widespread madness, with the Guardian newspaper—now frequently referred to as the Guardian/Der Sturmer—proudly at the forefront of Britain’s deplorable anti-Semitic wave."

    Sorry but this is so Mark Steyn, shock-jock OTT and so totally out of touch with reality of the British situation that it undermines your argument.

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  14. Sitemeter is a useful tool.

    This is your third comment on this particular post, using a different name each time (and creating a brand new blogger profile each time).

    Of course, I hardly needed sitemeter to recognize this fact.

    Your blatantly-low IQ blows your attempted cover every time.

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  15. Your ability to discern my IQ from the technical details of my three attempts to post here applies only to my ICT skills and also distracts you from addressing my point that you have no factual basis for describing the UK as 'third world' and rampantly anti-semitic.

    ( I deny using a different name each time and creating a brand new blogger profile each time).

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  16. You are even dumber than I thought, difficult as that is to contemplate.

    First, sitemeter captures your IP address.

    Second, blogger reveals the month and year in which a profile has been created, as well as the number of profile views. Every time I click on one of the blogger profiles you have created, it is brand new—and, remarkably, I am always the very first person to view the profile in question.

    Apparently there are no bounds to your stupidity.

    Do not post here again.

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