Disavow some Russian artists. Don’t cancel Russian art
Shunning the country’s back catalogue means giving up a guide to the darkness, and out of it
“ART AND politics should have nothing to do with each other.” So says Wilhelm Furtwängler in “Taking Sides”, a play by Ronald Harwood that imagines an interrogation of the German maestro in 1946. In real life Furtwängler never joined the Nazi party and saved Jewish musicians, but he stayed in the Reich and performed for Hitler’s birthday. “I believe in music,” the character says. His is a popular tune. “I am an artist,” protests Anna Netrebko (pictured), a superstar Russian soprano who has repudiated the war in Ukraine but not Vladimir Putin. “My purpose is to unite people across political divides.”
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “Crime and punishments”
Culture March 19th 2022
- Vladimir Putin’s war endangers Ukraine’s cultural heritage
- Six books that explain the history and culture of Ukraine
- Disavow some Russian artists. Don’t cancel Russian art
- African-Americans have shaped American cuisine in surprising ways
- A swashbuckling smuggler’s tale
- Sandy Hook was a turning-point in America’s battle over truth
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