Why the Detritus?

I enjoy Anne Midgette’s articles. She’s thoughtful. She’s articulate. She’s eloquent even—a nice fit with the venerable Washington Post. But today...

Somebody forgot to tell the violinist Hilary Hahn that Schoenberg is ugly.

This is, by far, the most disappointing thing I’ve ever read from a respectable, industrious, (how about) progressive critic. More importantly—because after all that was only my opinion—she crossed the boundary between impartiality and partiality. “Schoenberg is ugly” is declarative in the worst, most biased sense. This is something we expect from others, but not our Anne!

And now for something completely different:

The music of Arnold Schoenberg, of course, isn't ugly at all;

How can this be? She just said, “Schoenberg IS ugly.” I don’t get it. What kind of twisted negative rhetorical device is this?

(loud, pissed-off sigh)

Sorry. Well, I’m not sorry. No one gets to have it both ways. Either Schoenberg is or he isn’t. So, Anne, choose the form of the destructor.

in fact, he's one of the last of the romantics.

Let me understand this correctly. Schoenberg isn’t ugly, BECAUSE he’s a romantic composer; if he were a modernist, he’d be ugly. Is that really the direction you want to take this, Anne?

...

Fine.

Her new recording of the Schoenberg Violin Concerto on Deutsche Grammophon, released last month, shows no traces of the spiky, unpleasant angularity that represents Schoenberg in the popular consciousness.

You, Anne, and all critics are the everyday opinion-molders of the popular consciousness. Thus, Schoenberg’s reputation is your doing. You are the one(s) responsible for his unpleasantness. They are your descriptors.

I mean, listen, really listen, to what this says:

Both musicians [Esa-Pekka Salonen and Hahn] are smart enough not to get tied in knots by Schoenberg's score, and to see through it to the composer's inner romantic.

It says that the conductor and violinist smartly mined romanticism out of Schoenberg’s otherwise ugly, difficult, spiky, unpleasantly angular, dense, clotted, ferocious piece (all adjectives found previously within the article).

Do you now see how Schoenberg and modernism get their reputations? Reviews like this, which say, “Despite Schoenberg, the music is beautiful, because of the performers.” What kind of dismissive, backhanded logic forgets that the composer put those sounds, those romantic, angular notes, onto paper and not the performers? Apparently articles like these:

To sweeten the pill for non-initiates, Hahn pairs Schoenberg with Sibelius [...]

I am truly disgusted and disappointed, today. But, then again, this is why we are here: to defend good writing and trash the bad.

(By the way, I didn’t say “fuck” once, but I wanted to. Congrats Empiricus! Thank you.)
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Google Search of the Day!

Some poor, unsuspecting soul retrieved a link to the Detritus by Googling:

where is the fucking university of texas butler
opera center

I'm glad we could help!

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Un-Awesome Cowardly Tripe of the Worst Sort

(Please read the post immediately below, they are inter-related.)

This makes me want to...I don't even know. I am so pissed. Read this:

Discordant Note

Instead of...just getting really mad, I think I'll use my preferred apparatus. Embedded mockery!

This is the most graceless stunt I’ve seen a while.

More graceless than turning a serious journal of conservative thinking (started by my favorite conservative, William F. Buckley) into yet another rag of yelling ignorance? Because that shit is pretty fucking graceless.

Leon Fleisher, the conductor and pianist, received a Kennedy Center honor.

Wow, a true fact. Your head must be exploding. Can’t you spin this somehow?

As part of the weekend of festivities associated with this prestigious award, Fleisher was invited to attend a White House reception along with the four other honorees (Brian Wilson, Steve Martin, Diana Ross, and Martin Scorcese). This caused the conductor to wrestle with his conscience.

Understandably, I think. The current administration has, arguably, done more damage to this country, and our standing in the world, than anyone in a long, long time. Right? Duh? Also: Fuck artists with conscience. They have no right to have opinions. (Fleisher’s comments follow.)

In the past seven years, Bush administration policies have amounted to a systematic shredding of our nation's Constitution — the illegal war it initiated and perpetuates; the torturing of prisoners; the espousing of "values" that include a careful defense of the "rights" of embryos but show a profligate disregard for the lives of flesh-and-blood human beings; and the flagrant dismantling of environmental protections. These, among many other depressing policies, have left us weak and shamed at home and in the world.

For several weeks before the honors, I wrestled with this dilemma, deciding in the end that I would not attend the reception at the White House. That decision was met with deep, if understandable, disapproval by the powers that be. I was informed that I was hardly the first honoree to express such reserve; cited to me, among others, were Arthur Miller and Isaac Stern during the Reagan years and several during the present administration. I was asked to attend all of the scheduled events and to follow the well-established protocol of silence.

Well done, sir. You did not offend or shame your admirers (or, at least, the body representing the award you won). You attended, and had a little, quiet, personal protest against it. This seems like a sensible, measured response that satisfies the status quo while letting you express yourself. Which, after all, is what the Kennedy Center award celebrates.

Back to Mona Charen:

Silence? How about basic good manners?

Good manners…like not bombing the fuck out of a million innocent Iraqis? Good manners, like letting the Pakistani military dictatorship continue with our material and financial support because they’re our “allies” in the “war on terror”? Good manners like…I can’t even continue. This is not a political blog. It’s just that…

Listen Maestro, if your feelings were so strong you could have declined the honor.

Oooh, Maestro. Take that, celebrated 80-year old musician! Who the fuck do you think you’re picking on?

Instead you basked in the event (“I was pleased to be part of an event that raises money for the Kennedy Center and to be with my family and to see their joy at the ceremony”)

Yeah, he was being polite and decorous. (Decorous. Look it up. Maybe it's a liberal thing, I don't know.) It was made clear to him by the powers-that-be that not attending would be a major snub. Which would have been fine. But if you had READ his article, you’d realize that he really appreciates the Kennedy center, and wants to promote its well-being and funding.

and now you shoot over your shoulder at the president who feted you.

Yeah. Exactly! The kindergartener in the West Wing who wants to slash support to the arts while reading My Pet Goat? Yeah, wearing a little peace symbol and ribbon totally burned that dude. One little pianist/conducter (“Maestro”) is bringing down the establishment. If only!

Obviously, Fleisher, like every American is fully within his rights to express his views on anything in the world.

Um. Yes! That is totally the deal. But not really. You don’t really think that.

But to do it in this way, at this moment, is quite a shameful performance.

You are a fucking nerf-herder. You don’t have the first idea what “art” or an “artist” is. I’m pretty sure that your idea of “freedom” has no relation to mine, either. Which is fine. I guess, except that you are awful.

Your idea of free speech is aping Captain Fucktard. You are powerless in the face of a dissenting view that you cannot shout down. This article is a disgrace.

Booooo.

Really? Booooo? Jesus fucking christ on a donkey’s dick.

Editor’s note: Sorry, gentle readers. This is, deliberately, not a political blog. But when the hacks attack 80-year old, distinguished pianists, it counts as music criticism, and the gloves are off. Normalcy returns tomorrow!