David Latane: >I wouldn't give up my Bohm Mozart personally -- [if the?]
figure of Yehudi Menuhin didn't mind playing and
recording with the man after the war I can forgive a
drunken remark or two--in vino veritas is usually not
veritas in toto, often only in in vino stupidus. <
Is it for you to forgive? Would you be so tolerant if you met a drunken German in the bus or whatever screaming "Saujude" or "Da hilft nur noch Zyklon B" (both things I have met with)? Certain things said are unforgivable.
Personally, I have never liked Böhm's music-making much, but that has nothing to do with his political affiliations, I agree. There were several conductors who "arrangierten sich" with the Nazis to different degrees, but Böhm seems to have been pretty rabid about the "elimination" of "degenerate music" etc- if you read French, go to this site : http://www.google.fr/search?q=cache:Ng9_Hlxw4ycJ:www.fndirp.asso.fr/ReichMusique.htm+b%C3%B6hm+%26+the+nazis&hl=fr ; another interesting approach to *Great Conductors of the Third Reich* is here: http://secure2.ihwy.com/shop/showdetl.cfm?&DID=21&Product_ID=1883&CATID=159
Menuhin performed very seldom with Böhm - a random check gives me 2 post-war concerts, both pirated; there are however no official recordings to my knowledge. This may be significant. Anyway, Menuhin's choice to act forgivingly was his own & cannot somehow confirm our own attitude. And I wonder if he had read or heard about Böhm's anti-Jewish rantings in print.
best
mj
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