May I start with the apocalyptic? I’m afraid it’s that kind of world at the moment. Here’s former Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, quoted in the August 12 issue of The Spectator:
“While denying the Holocaust, [the Iranian president] is openly preparing the next one. Ahmadinejad is behaving exactly like an Islamist Hitler. He is using the same tactics of signaling in advance the act of destruction. That the same thing is happening is one thing, but that the West is reacting in the same way is unacceptable. What is history for?”
What is history for? I have asked it for a long time, through Srbrenica, Darfur, and so on. And now Netanyahu has asked it very powerfully.
Anyway . . .
‐Smiled on reading an article in the International Herald Tribune the other day. It was about a woman in Malaysia who’s in hiding for converting to Christianity. Her case, said the IHT, “has heightened a searing battle that has included street protests and death threats between groups advocating a secular interpretation of the Constitution, and Islamic groups that contend the Sharia courts should have supremacy in many matters.”
“Hmm,” I said to myself. “‘Death threats between groups . . .’ — flowing both ways? I’m sure.”
‐I’d like to admit something about myself — make a confession: When I heard that Guenter Grass had been in the SS, I had to fight glee (losingly). Oh, happy day. Of course Grass had been in the SS — that explains so much of his miserable, laureled, hectoring, bullying, hypocritical, morally confused career.
Bear in mind that — in addition to his other absurdities, most regarding Germany — he pronounced the attacks of 9/11 “the revenge of the poor on the rich.”
(How many times can bin Laden buy and sell all of us?)
I am tempted to refer to the author, in print, as GraSS — but a) that is jejune and b) it’s probably been done, a lot.
Look, I’m not proud of having been pleased at the news; and I shall repent of it forthwith. But sometimes we’re — “we”? — a little confessional here in Impromptus.
‐Do you remember having been pleased on learning of Mitterrand’s fascist past? That was hard not to grin at, wasn’t it? You might even have pumped your fist, once or twice. These folks are always against the liberal and democratic, no matter where they happen to be standing.
‐Friends, I wanted to be sure you saw this article — now rather “old,” August 11 — about the Chinese pilot who flew to the United States and did not fly back. He is a practitioner of Falun Gong. The authorities back in the PRC had promised him their usual hell.
Sometimes you hear that China isn’t a real Communist country anymore, given their version of capitalism (which is, of course, not really capitalism, or free economics). But the assault on thought, the assault on bodies, the breakup of families, the snitching, the weight of oppression — that sounds classically Communist to me.
Doesn’t it to you?
‐Also, wanted to be sure you knew the name of Chen Guangcheng. He is a Chinese human-rights activist — blind, incidentally. Chen has been sentenced to more than four years in prison, by this “non-Communist,” or “post-Communist,” state. According to Joseph Kahn in the IHT, Chen “sought to organize a class-action lawsuit against forced abortions and sterilizations” in Shandong Province. (The article is here.)
Dare we call Chen Guangcheng a pro-life hero, or martyr? Or would that cause too much wailing and gnashing of teeth?
By the way, I trust you remember the name of another blind human-rights hero, this one in Cuba: Juan Carlos González Leiva.
‐Muslim radicals want 100 percent of the world’s attention. But they shouldn’t get it all, you know? Only 98 percent or so.
‐Back when the gay-marriage issue was hot — it seems to me it’s just about over — a lot of us said, “Well, what about polygamy? If marriage is simply a matter of consent between adults, how in the world could the law prohibit polygamy?” And the answer — from many gay-marriage advocates — came, “Enough with your diversions. No one’s demanding legal polygamy. Talk about the issue at hand.”
I thought of that when reading this article, about a rally for the legalization of polygamy in Salt Lake City. A young man said, “I didn’t come here today to ask for your permission to live my beliefs. I shouldn’t have to.”
Anyway . . .
‐The other day, Nicolas Sarkozy, in France, suggested that maybe France should be choosy about its immigrants: skilled workers, for example, rather than unskilled ones. The reaction against him was fierce, as though he had expressed sheer heresy.
At about the same time Sarkozy was speaking, Mitt Romney was saying this: “It is wrong for us to build an absolute concrete wall against those with skills and enterprise and have a wide-open door for people with no education and no skills.”
Wowser. Looks like we got us a rather ballsy presidential candidate. (In both countries, possibly.)
(By the way, Romney was speaking in California, and for an account of that speech, please go here.)
‐On the subject of French politicians: Another presidential contender is Ségolène Royal, a Socialist. Interesting name for a Socialist leader, huh? And I don’t mean “Ségolène.”
‐Still on the subject of France: Was deep in the woods of that country last week, and boy, was it dark. I mean, at night. I realized that I hadn’t really seen the night in a long time. “It’s supposed to be dark at night,” said one of my companions. “Had you forgotten?” I had. City living will do that to you.
And the sky, with all those stars, looked like a planetarium.
There are no stars on the Upper West Side (where I reside) — except for the occasional movie actor on the sidewalk.
‐On my way to Europe, I had a discussion with a steward. (Are we still allowed to call them that? I know that stewardess is verboten . . .) I said that flights are routinely an hour, an hour and a half late from New York. He said, “Yes, and they’re always on time in Europe. With rare exceptions, they are on time.” I was a little skeptical but of course said nothing, talking to an expert.
Within Europe, I took five flights. Four were exactly on time. And the fifth? It was early, actually — I was shocked, taking off early. And I do mean taking off, not merely pulling back from the gate, in order to record a stat. I guess the relevant personnel simply figured that everyone had arrived and taken his seat — so why not leave?
‐anything . . .”
Maybe he’s not allowed to speak this way — company, or federal, regulations and all. But I much enjoyed it.
‐Would you like a little language? Every so often, when he sends us a piece, Paul Johnson — the great British historian and journalist — refers to “the Lebanon.” To my ears, “the Ukraine” and “the Sudan” do not sound antique; but to the next generation, they probably will. (It used to be a sign of staunch anti-Communism if, during Soviet days, you said “Ukraine” instead of “the Ukraine,” because we meant to signify a proper country, not merely a region.)
Anyway, I was reading some John Adams the other day — a letter to Abigail — and he refers to his state as “the Massachusetts.”
I was surprised, and tickled.
‐Want to talk a little Salzburg? I’d love to. I spent about nine days at the Festival, during which I reviewed about ten concerts and opera performances, and moderated a seminar series for the Salzburg Festival Society. I write about these seminars in the current National Review.
But I’d like to offer some additional morsels here. One of our interviewees was René Pape, the great, dynamic German bass. In the course of our talk, I asked whether he ever envied tenors and baritones for their roles. And he allowed that, when you’re 25, it’s kind of a drag to portray old men (as basses tend to do). “But I guess that’s better than 70-year-old tenors who try to be young lovers.”
Another of our guests was Thomas Hampson, the great American baritone, and pride of Spokane, Wash. During the course of that talk, I asked, “Do musicians have an obligation to perform new music, just because it’s new, or . . .” And before I could finish, Hampson said, “We have an obligation to perform new music only if it’s good. And if it’s not, we have a positive obligation not to perform it.”
Now, that may seem elementary, commonsensical, and unremarkable to you. But in the music world, it’s incredibly rare, refreshing, and astounding. Honestly, I was almost giddy.
‐Would you like some reviews from the Festival? I’ll lay a boatload on you, all published in the New York Sun.
For a review of the Festival’s Così fan tutte, go here.
For a review of Le nozze di Figaro, go here.
For a review of the pianist Maurizio Pollini, go here.
For a review of the Vienna Philharmonic, conducted by Riccardo Muti, go here.
For a review of La clemenza di Tito, go here.
For a review of The Magic Flute, go here.
For a review of Der Schauspieldirektor mixed with Bastien und Bastienne (weird thing), plus Betulia liberata, go here.
And for a review of the Vienna Philharmonic, conducted by Pierre Boulez, with Lang Lang, pianist, go here.
Music is a funny business, or can be. A few months ago, I actually walked out on Lang Lang, after one movement of a concerto. (I wrote about it for The New Criterion, here.) At Salzburg, his playing — of Mozart, the hometown hero — was amazingly, treasurably, unforgettably good.
As I said, weird.
‐Finally, a word about Mike Douglas. He passed on earlier in the month. I grew up on his TV talk show, and always liked him. And I especially liked him when I interviewed him on the phone one day. I was writing about Rosie O’Donnell, with whom he was friends. He was warm, amusing, knowledgeable — likable as hell.
Anyway, good to see you, dear readers, and I’ll talk to you soon.