Krakowski debate/review etc.

[Ari Davidow <ari...>]

Whew!

What a lot of words while I was at work.

I do want to make a few things clear to the list.

First off, as someone else noted, Krakowski has every right
to bring his grievance to a mailing list devoted to Jewish
music--especially since he knows that I read that list.

It is a scary thing writing reviews that stay online. It
is essential that the subjects of those reviews have the
right to discuss them, to disagree with them, or to appeal
for others to review the reviewer. It is bad enough when
writers in traditional media write reviews--at least it
vanishes quickly. Reviews on my web page stay up indefinitely
and are indexed and accessible at all times to people around
the world. That's a factor that I consider when I write the
reviews, but it also means that we have to find new ways of
ensuring that the people about whom I write have access to
redress if they feel that the review is in error or is unfair.

Personally, I cannot imagine writing words that one does not
intend. One thing this medium gives the =reviewer= is the
opportunity to be reviewed. That has to be a good thing.

In that light, although I appreciate the sentiment, I do wish
to discourage anyone from supporting either me or Krakowski
(unless there are points where I am simply stating incorrect
facts in the review, or misrepresenting the review here) who
is not expressing an opinion based on the review itself. I
do encourage people to read the review and comment on it if
it seems relevant. I do write trying to be relevant.

I'm going to try to avoid specifics about the review (except
to note that I am often accused of saying things that I don't,
actually say, except for one occasion where what I wrote could
easily be read as including, in part, the idea that no authors
of songs that Krakowski sings went through the Holocaust--that
was not the intent of the statement. It is, as Krakowski notes,
an absurd idea. I don't think most people would read the sentence
in that way, but it surely can and will immediately be reworded).

I did bring up an issue in the review of how we view the Holocaust.
I don't believe that my points were those attributed to me by
Krakowski, but would be most happy were readers of this mailing
list to read the review and be willing to discuss views of the
Holocaust and of the world of Jewish life in Eastern Europe 
prior to the Holocaust. I do make the claim in the review that
I feel that Krakowski's selection of material stresses a sentimental
and one-dimensional view of that world, a view which I characterize
as embracing "victims' songs and victims' pieties". Earlier in the
review I also note that I feel that the song selection would be
more appropriate to Anatevka--an imaginary world of a time gone
by, and an imaginary world that we no longer embrace as 
particularly representative of Eastern Europe as it was.

I try very hard to write reviews such that my personal
hesitations come through and yet still make that recording sound
attractive to those who would be interested in what the artist
is trying to do. More than usual, I think that readers of this 
review will sense that I had problems with some issues surrounding
the recording, and that, while there is much to like, I don't at
all find it breaking new ground or particularly compelling.
Artists make recordings (and any art) in response to their own
sense of what is important and what sounds good and what is 
important to record. I can react to that, but I don't want to
create the impression that I have problems with that process,
or problems with the fact that some people will disagree with
what I write!

Finally, I am sorry that Wolf felt it better to eschew my offer
to talk over his voluminous notes in person. I am glad that he,
at least, did seek further discussion, and if that means that
both his recording, and the issues it raises to be discussed
further, so much the better. That is one of the reasons this
list exists.

ari

P.S. Once again, the review is at
   http://www.well.com/user/ari/klez/bands/krakowski/trans/krakowski.trans.html

and his pages about the recording (including sound clips) are at:
   http://www.kamea.com/