| |
 |
Israeli deputies demand ban on Wagner concert
|
RICHARD WAGNER -- composer of genius to some, for others a harbinger of the Holocaust -- received a roasting in the Israeli Knesset on Wednesday, as deputies tried to block a performance of one of his operas at a state-sponsored music festival in July.
"If there is a hell, there can be no doubt that Richard Wagner has a place of honour there, and it can give him nothing but pleasure to know that the Jews -- of whom he spoke so much evil -- are playing one of his works," said Shaul Yaholam of the National Religious Party.
The storm broke out over plans to stage the first act of Wagner's Die Walkuere at the country's premier cultural event, the Festival of Israel -- even though the man who will conduct the piece, Daniel Barenboim, is himself of Israeli origin.
The 19th century composer was until recently the object of a blanket ban in Israel because of his well-known anti-semitism and the honour he was accorded by the leaders of Nazi Germany, notably by Adolf Hitler himself.
The taboo has now eased -- and Wagner's works are played occasionally on state radio and in concert halls -- but July's performance by the Berlin Staatskapelle breaks new ground because of the state's strong association with the festival.
Minister without Portfolio Raanan Cohen of the Labour party said that while he had no enthusiasm for the project, nor could the government step in to outlaw it.
"Playing Wagner is not a crime, and we do not intend to interfere in the artistic programme of the festival ... It is inconceivable in the 21st century to resort to the methods of political commissars," he said.
The deputies voted by 17 to none to refer the matter to a debate in a plenary session of the parliament next week.(SD-Agencies)
|
|
|
|
