Composers vilified for their politics

[scanaholic]

Alfor just gave us Khrennikov's 1st piano concerto--if not a minor masterpiece, at least a fun Op.1. So why don't we hear more from other politically correct (or incorrect, viewed from the historical viewpoint) composers?

[rob]

I've moved this thread to a more appropriate forum. We've been down this road before, with not altogether happy results. So we (ie my colleague admins and I) will monitor this thread carefully.

As fas as Khrennikov is concerned, the Wikipedia page is a good portal to the many conficting views of the man and the value of his music:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khrennikov

Perhaps a more controversial issue would be the postion of composers in Nazi Germany. My friend Klavierelch is something of an expert in this area.

[klavierelch]

I wouldn't really call me an expert on this matter. There certainly are better experts around.
But indeed it is a topic which interests me much. And of course as a German you can't escape it if you look at the German musical scene from the 1920s onwards.
There are a lot of questions which could be discussed seriously:

How do the political beliefs of a composer affect his music?
Is it possible to deduce aspects of musical style from political beliefs?
Is it possible to deduce the political beliefs from aspects of musical style (and no this question is not the same as the question before)? (E.g. is there a typical Nazi style different from for example a typical Stalinist style? Or is a march just a march, whether it is for Nazis, communists or monarchists?)
Can we separate the music of a composer from his beliefs (A well known question from the famous Wagner case)?
Should we judge music only for itself or in context with the believes and actions of the composer?
What differences in judging should be made between composers who were active supporters of regimes and composers who were simple followers (in German we call them "Mitläufer") for whatever reasons (e.g. cowardice or accommodativeness)?
And how to solve the dilemma of appreciating good music written by a composer with questionable beliefs (e.g. the c sharp minor string quartet of the extremely antisemitic Pfitzner, who was a fierce admirer of Hitler as early as 1923)?

And there are certainly more questions. Especially the music history of Germany/Austria and the Soviet Union in the 20th century is a wide field for discussion, but also the musical scenes of Italy (Mussolini), Spain (Franco), Greece etc. are full of examples which could be discussed.

[scanaholic]

And if Entartete Musik is now more and more appreciated, why not revive the opposite of it, i.e. music that was politically correct in its day but now unjustly neglected because of the composers' politics?

[rob]

And if Entartete Musik is now more and more appreciated, why not revive the opposite of it, i.e. music that was politically correct in its day but now unjustly neglected because of the composers' politics?

I suspect that much, or perhaps even most of the music regarded as acceptable by unacceptable regimes conformed so well to the limited view of aesthetic matters inherent in the regime that the result was usually ultra-conservative with little originality. Music that has nothing new to say tends not to excite. That is not to say that originality is everything, but it is harder to be entirely convincing using a language without some kind of contemporary extension to the medium. Music like all languages is a living entity, and failing to move along with it may lead to a museum culture.

Pfitzner is an interesting case. Always an ultra-conservative he nevertheless created works of considerable value - not always quite to my taste it is true - but works that I know are fairly universally admired despite breaking little, or perhaps even no new ground.

I am talking in generalities here though. And individual examples that contradict this broad view can no doubt be easily found. A very big and interesting subject.

Personally I'd like to see discussion of the avant garde in the USSR immediately before and after Lenin's death.

Rob

[davida march]

http://orelfoundation.org/index.php/journal

This is an interesting Journal in the making about mid-20th century composer diaspora from Europe

[rob]

I meant to give Lev Knipper a (dis)honourable mention here.

He was a member of the USSR's Secret Police, the NKVD!!!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lev_Knipper

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NKVD

[Op. XXXIX]

Erik Levi's book 'Music in the Third Reich' is a must read for anyone interested in the subject. Unfortunately it appears to be out of print, though Amazon has a few third party sellers with rather depressing prices.

It was a fascinating book, my only complaint being I wish the author had gone into more detail in some areas. IMO, the book was far too short.