Re: Germans and Klezmer

[Kame'a Media <media...>]

Lori/Maxwell Street wrote:

> > I would be happy if the discussion in this thread in a group (which claims 
> > to
> > concern music) wended its way out of that emotionally-charged arena of How
> > Committed to the Memories of the Fallen Are YOU and back into musical
> > questions.

People in hell would be "happy" to get ice-water, too;
doesn't mean it's forthcoming...

If you are not comfortable with some of the feelings expressed in this
forum, I suggest you use your Delete button and not attempt to stifle
what is for some, if not many of us, meaningful and necessary discussion.

I don't know you,-- but your postings, just about all of them
self-serving promotional items about your band, reveal a fig-leafing,
Smiley Face  and arrested approach to reality. The credo of:
=If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all=
is more offensive than any truth, no matter how strongly stated.

Heaven forfend that any unpleasantness intrude upon your pursuit
of the deutschmarks you mentioned .
(We all have to do business together, don't we, ladies and gentlemen?)

Should all Jewish music-makers not chance  alienatating anyone
with the rude mention of that nasty Holocaust stuff?
It is astonishing that you choose to believe that the Holocaust is
not relevant to the discussion of the state of Jewish music today.

The"emotional charge" you strive so mightily to avoid,
might actually do you some good.

You cannot be both a proud Jewish artist and a person
who steers away from any mention of that  which is controversial
for fear that someone, somewhere might take offense.

You cannot suck and blow at the same time.

Wolf



Thanks, Josh for your well-expressed thoughts and your
mature ability to acknowledge and understand  our anger.


>
>
> This theme is destined to come back again and again as long as the list
> exists. I've already seen it a few times in various guises. I think its
> one of the most basic and powerful controversies that contemporary
> klezmer music has to offer. Virtually all of the sociological themes
> that arise have a direct impact on the music itself. I don't see this at
> all as a separate issue, and tried to give one example of what I saw as
> a reason for the German klezmer groups preoccupation with pushing
> klezmer style to its outer limits. I could go into the pressure from the
> industry- how my group has continually been told to tell Hassidic
> stories on stage, why we don't we preach a bit about Jewish culture or
> how unhip we are playing traditional "...and besides, the German
> audiences are sick of traditional...they heard enough of that when
> Feidman got started, and that's why he was smart enough to change over
> to Gerschwin and Pauline Olivieros..." etc etc. But I personally don't
> want to be the only person to give my verbose analyses on th4ese things,
> when we've got INSIDERS who EXPERIENCE these emotions and have lived
> through the process of what it means to be playing Jewish music. Does
> anyone else see that this element is missing?
>
> The first question I want to ask is: Do we want dialogue on this list
> with this particular theme?
>
> We had the embryo of a dialogue happening with some of the German
> members of this list a few days ago. Yet, when the discussion got hot,
> they became silent, which I can totally understand, given the nature of
> the anger which was expressed. This is a delicate situation. I would not
> like to change ANYTHING in its contents, except to invite the Germans to
> give their side. Even if this ellicits a furious response from some on
> the list, we could learn an incredible amount if we could let the
> confrontation run its course.
>
> I don't know how Ari feels about this or what the policy of the list is
> on this "freedom of speech" clause. I would personally NOT ask the angry
> members of the list to tone themselves down - their anger is part of
> what's happening. It exists. Period. On the other hand, I don't want to
> see the valuable side of the German members scared off by this. Is there
> any way to include both sides and let the tape just roll?? Josh
>




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