Music and Morals

By Sara Friedman

 

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Can a bad person write good music? If so, should we be morally opposed to listening to that music? The issue of morals and music is not new, and is not simply a product of our politically correct times. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart wrote operas which were later decried as too scandalous to be performed as written. Ludwig van Beethoven pronounced Die Zauberfloete to be the only one of
Mozarts operas that was deserving of its music; Don Giovanni and especially Cosi fan tutti were deemed too vulgar for Mozarts divine scores.

Today we tend to view art from our own moral standpoint, which clashes with the context in which the piece was created. This does not have to be a problem or offense. Classical music is a part of Western civilization; its masterpieces and controversies provide interesting avenues for cultural exploration.

The great example of the debate on whether to separate the personality of an artist from his art is undoubtedly Richard Wagner. The virulent anti-Semite, womanizer, and egomaniac is almost synonymous with Nazism, despite having died fifty years before Adolf Hitler took power in Germany.
Wagner was by most measures a despicable human being; many have argued that this invalidates his art. He used poor mad Prince Ludwig of Bavaria to cover his debts, and finally died of a heart attack sustained while screaming at his wife. Furthermore, a strong endorsement by Hitler could not have done more to strengthen his posthumous reception.

However, when one delves deeper into Wagners life and works, his association with Nazism becomes less and less probable. Wagner was a left-wing revolutionary  supposedly making hand grenades for the May Revolts in Dresden in 1848  agitating for democracy over absolute rule. His opera Parsifal, a favorite of Hitlers, was eventually banned by Goebbels because its message ran counter to Nazi ideology. The opera advocates pacifism and compassion  and bears more similarity to Buddhist philosophy than to Aryan white supremicism. Wagners anti-Semitism is undeniable, but it is overly simplistic to assert that he and his works are synonymous with Nazism.

How many people who refuse to listen to Wagner because of his anti-Semitism wouldnt flinch at hearing Carmina Burana? O Fortuna, which opens and closes the piece, is ubiquitous; it features in everything from epic battle scene soundtracks to commercials. For its 70 years of existence, the cantata has been roundly lampooned as primitive and simplistic by music critics. Yet it packs an undeniable punch. The lush, expansive orchestra, the full chorus, the strong, erratic rhythms, all contribute a sort of primal, base satisfaction to the listener.

Weve somehow overlooked, perhaps forgotten, that Carmina Burana is an example of Nazi art. Moreover Carl Orff, its composer, provides one of the most stomach-turning examples of compliance. When his close friend and collaborator, who helped Orff arrange the medieval texts for Carmina Burana, was arrested as a member of Die Weisse Rose, Orff could think only of himself, hoping the association wouldnt taint his own reputation and doing nothing to intervene on his friends behalf. At his denazification trial, Orff claimed to be a co- founder of Die Weisse Rose to evade punishment; of course, no one had been left alive to counter the validity of this statement. Orff would also later claim that the Nazis hated his masterpiece  though the eroticism of the texts may have given them pause, Carmina Burana was exceedingly popular in the Third Reich. Carmina Burana is also very popular in Israel, where public performance of Wagners music remains under an unofficial ban.

The politically correct classical music lover of today could not afford to ignore conductors. But here there are even more landmines. Herbert von Karajan, the Austrian conductor of Greek descent who became the wealthiest classical musician in history, is particularly guilty; he registered for Nazi membership on two separate occasions. Wilhelm Fuertwangler, though quite often linked with Nazism, never actually joined the Nazi Party. Despite working to protect Jews in his orchestra, Fuertwangler remained in Germany during most of the war and was Hitlers favorite conductor; his career was to a large extent devastated by this association.

Ludwig van Beethovens 9th Symphony has become an important part of our cultural consciousness.
Played at the Olympics, at the fall of the Berlin Wall, as the national anthem of former colonies
(Rhodesia) as the European Unions unofficial hymn, the choruss paean to brotherhood, acceptance, and love resonates with everyone worldwide. But Hitler also loved Beethovens 9th Symphony, having the piece played every year for his birthday.

Filtering for sexism eliminates even more. In an exceedingly selfish move, Gustav Mahler forbade his wife Alma Schindler, a talented musician in her own right, from composing, claiming that their family needed only one composer, and that would be him. One glance at Mozarts letters would render his music unsuitable for prudes (he also composed a short piece titled Leck mich im Arsch.)

It is exceedingly difficult to look back into history and find people whose personal viewpoints have stood the test of time. It is also difficult to judge a composers life and works through the lens of our historical hindsight. Meanings imposed on music rob it of its voice, and of our own powers of interpretation. Music, the most abstract of all art, is what it awakes in its listener.

 

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