Here’s Finn Martin’s website, describing his ‘music aerial performance’ and all the buildings he has downscaled before his tragic death.

A Swedish saxophonist, Finn Martin, fell to his death on Friday night, while simultaneously playing his instrument and absailing down the outside of a building.

(photo: DPA, all rights reserved)

It appears the harness broke as he descended, according to local reports.

Do not try this at home.

A reporter rang from The Sun, asking for details of the family connection between Mahler and Beyoncé Knowles, as mentioned in my book, Why Mahler?

As a condition of the interview, he promised to mention the book in Britain’s biggest mass-mammary newspaper (so known for its topless page 3).

I opened the paper this morning and found a short sentence misquoting me, right beneath the boobs.

In a longer story online, the reporter mistitled the book, ‘Fate, death and Alma’ and made me out to have said: ‘Mahler would have liked Beyoncé’s music’. Oh, really?

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3795389/Beyonces-classy-genes-revealed.html

You couldn’t make it up…. so that’s what The Sun does.

I think I would rather have been phone-hacked.

In the last of the present series of the Lebrecht Interview I am talking to Dame Janet Baker, a singer who used to chill rehearsal rooms with the massive authority that she brought to every role and concert she undertook.

There was some trepidation among my colleagues about me interrogating the daunting Dame, but almost from the moment we shook hands in studio we both started having the time of our lives.

I tried to persuade Dame Janet to pursue the roots of her sense of responsibility in the events of her childhood. What emerged was a series of memories that brought us startlingly close to the forces that motivate her.

The Lebrecht Interview is tomorrow on BBC Radio 3 at 10.15 pm, after the Prom, and streamed online for a week.

Fabio Licitra spoke emotionally about his brother’s near-fatal accident at an awards ceremony in Ragusa. Salvatore is still in a coma in hospital at Catania after coming off his Vespa without wearing head protection. No change has been reported in his condition over recent days.

Fabio said that his brother, more prudent than himself, always wore a helmet. He removed it while looking for a different parking spot outside a restaurant. The tragedy happened over a ride of 200 metres. His girlfriend, riding pillion, was unharmed.

The distinguished cellist Steven Isserlis sent the following letter to the Guardian newspaper after the attack on the Israel Philharmonic at the Proms. It was not published there for almost a week, so we are giving it first airing here:

The protesters who disrupted the Prom by the Israel Philharmonic and Zubin Mehta are not only guilty of cultural hooliganism, but are deeply misguided. As musicians, the Israel Philharmonic and Maestro Mehta are an apolitical ensemble; it is no way comparable to, say, a group from apartheid South Africa, because there is no barrier to members of any race or religion joining the orchestra. Although it would be an exaggeration to say that music and politics are completely separate, there is no way that the orchestra (or the Prom audience) should be made to suffer because of the political actions of their government. As a performing musician, I would find it deeply unfair were my concerts in any country to be disrupted because protesters objected to the British government’s decision to invade Iraq, for instance.

I have played many times with the Israel Philharmonic orchestra, and have found them to be the warmest, most hospitable orchestra I know. Of course, there are a wide range of political opinions within the group, and their attitudes seldom coincide with those over here who condemn Israel, at a safe remove from any threat to their own lives; but on the whole, my friends in the orchestra (and elsewhere in Israel) are united by their desire to lead a peaceful life, their disgust at any disregard of human rights emanating from their own government or from any others in the region, and their belief in the two-state solution as the only possible way forward. To wreck their very rare and special concert over here gives a terrible impression of us all – haven’t the rioters done that already?

A man mounted the stage of the Councertgebouw in Amsterdam last night during a concert attended by Queen Beatrix, seized the microphone and invited the audience to share his faith in Allah. He spoke quietly and declared he was unarmed. Some musicians rose in alarm, as did members of the audience, but the Queen was reported to be undisturbed.

The man was arrested and remains today in police custody. He is described as Amsterdam born, aged 39.

The concert, by the Netherlands Philharmonic, marked the centenary of the Dutch Association of Composers.

Here is a Dutch report of the unfortunate event, with live video. And an eyewitness here.

Nabih Bulos is a Palestinian violinist who grew up in Jordan and has performed with Daniel Barenboim, Ivry Gitlis and Bono, as well as playing in the East-West Diwan Orchestra. In his response to the question raised by Ori Kam of the Jerusalem Quartet as to whether it can ever be right to disrupt a concert for political reasons, he argues that the British protesters damaged the very cause they claim to uphold. Read on, below:

First off, let me say that I have had the pleasure of playing with Mr. Kam on several occasions, and find him to be an artist, as well as a human being, of the first calibre.

With that said, I have two issues with what he said: The first regarding the IPO’s status as a representative of the state of Israel, and the second relates to the issue of the Palestinians in other, neighboring, Arab countries.

The Jerusalem Quartet is a private commercial entity. Its existence does not rely on any state funds from the Israeli government (if one ignores the illogical extreme that its members were perhaps trained in state conservatories (I’m sure Ori can elaborate on that), but this is a separate matter). The Israel Philharmonic is a different thing. Regardless of the amount of funding it receives today, it nevertheless maintains its place as a representative of Israel from the days of Bronislaw Huberman, on to Leonard Bernstein. Can there be any doubt of this when so many great artists played with that orchestra as an act of solidarity with the state of Israel?

Regarding the matter of Palestinians in other Arab countries, as other commentators have said, no action in those countries excuses the Israeli government’s actions towards Palestinians in Israel. This includes the introduction of laws outlawing any economic boycott of goods made in settlements in Israel, as well as attempts to introduce the words “Jewish state” in the constitution, and other more conventional campaigns of violence. Furthermore, I question the idea that any Palestinian refugee, whether in Lebanon or Syria or Jordan today, is suffering the same sort of situation in Gaza, where there is a siege that has lasted for far too long. Whereas no one will pretend that refugees in those countries are living like kings, one cannot equate that to the situation in Israel, where those people were displaced from their own homes or face bureaucratic difficulties for the most basic rights. Also, the refugee problem in Jordan and Syria and Lebanon is a result of the creation of Israel, not the result of any action by its neighbors. Even though I’m a Jordanian of Palestinian origin (one of the lucky people whose parents received citizenship before the Jordanian government stopped this practise) why should those countries take those people in? And before I am told that the reason is because they are Arabs, I would argue that the word “Arab” is a construct that has no basis in any political reality in a post Sykes-Picot world, if it ever did. Whereas it is true that the Arab spring interests me as an Arab, this does not mean that I will take up arms if Somalia or Algeria or Morocco or Yemen, or any of these other supposed Arab hotspots, escalate.

The major point is that the refugee problem in those countries will be dealt with once a lasting and just peace is achieved in Israel, a peace that admits the culpability of Israel in 1948 and offers a right of return or commensurate financial compensation a la the reparations that are still paid by Germany to this day. And as an example of the supposed claims of Jews from Arab countries in their flight to Israel, in the downtown of Beirut there are still buildings that were owned by Jews who emigrated and they are as of yet untouched by the government. Again, I am not claiming that everything is just and glorious in the Arab countries, but let us not lose sight of the original problem.

With all that said, I personally disagree with any sort of disruption of a musical event. It strikes me as a singularly unfair way of protest, and does nothing but cast a negative light on the cause one is trying to uphold. A protest outside of the hall, making people aware of the issues regarding the entity they are dealing with, etc… all this is legitimate, but once people enter into the concert hall, the choice has been made and in a free and open society such choices should be respected. [italics added by site editor]

Both the Rio and Sao Paolo newspapers are reporting a face-saving end to the eight-month standoff at the Brazil Symphony Orchestra, where 36 musicians were fired for refusing to reaudition for their jobs. It also mark the beginning of the end of the international boycott of the orchestra by leading soloists.

Slipped Disc has led the world in reporting this story throughout. Here’s a friend’s summary, which is hopefully the end of this sorry saga:

“An agreement reached on Friday(2 Sept) put an end to the eight-month crisis at the OSB(Brazilian Symphony Orch).

Twenty-six musicians who were sacked for not taking the re-evaluation exams were readmitted.They accepted to be part of another orchestra which will be administrated by the OSB Foundation(FOSB). Nine veteran musicians(65 and over) who had stopped playing to support their colleagues will return to their activities and can choose which orchestra in which they prefer to participate.
Five instrumentalists preferred NOT to return to the OSB and will receive termination fees with ALL the rights stipulated by Brazilian labor laws.
….The instrumentalists will return to the same jobs and will received salaries for the months they did not work.They however will not be granted the 50% pay increase of those remaining in the OSB(main orchestra) under Maestro Roberto Minzcuk.
Rio’s O Globo newspaper adds :”Another part of the agreement is the possible participation of the returning musicians in concerts of the current OSB .The invitation however could be refused during the first six months of the agreement and after this period,the refusal to perform with the big orchestra can only be justified when Maestro Minzcuk is the conductor.”
The agreement is valid until 31 August 2013.

Ori Kam, a viola player, joined the Jerusalem Quartet after it was attacked at the Wigmore Hall last year by some of the same agitators who disrupted the BBC Proms last night. Although he was not in the quartet at the time, his view is that of a musician unfairly targeted by a politically motivated fringe. Here’s what he writes to slipped disc:

I was pleased to come across this discussion. This is the proper venue to exchange different viewpoints on this issue. I wish there were more public forums to have this discussion rather than the disruptions of concerts, which achieve only further entrenchment into our prefabricated ideas.

I applaud anyone who, in this day and age, takes a step to further causes larger than our daily routines, regardless of eminence or importance. I also applaud anyone who stands up for palestinian human rights and for the cause of a palestinian state, because I believe that the sane and responsible elements in our regions need all the support they can get. That applies to Israel, the palestinian authority, as well as to all countries in the region.

Having said that, I would like to raise some point for thought on this issue.

First, why limit the fight to palestinian rights in Israel and the west bank? The refugee issue was a result of the war in 1948. Even in the most pro-arab historical narratives, the responsibility for this war lies in all the participating countries. In that case, should not the refugee issue be a shared responsibility of the region? Why focus only on the west bank and not the appalling condition of palestinians in Syria, Lebanon and Egypt? Their treatment there is far worse than in the west bank or gaza.

As for refugees, in the 1940?s the world was full of refugees. Some were jewish refugees from countries like Syria, Iraq, Morocco and Egypt. These refugees were never compensated nor do they demanded citizenship or property from the countries that expelled them. Jewish refugees from eastern europe are fighting still today for their property with little or no success. I’m not saying that this makes any of the situation “right”, but in the space of “right” and “wrong” one often loses sight of what’s possible.

Finally, I think we have to be careful in targeting individuals and private organizations, who appear in commercial (as opposed to state-sponsored) events. I and my quartet are individuals and not state representatives. Our concerts are commercial events, which are not supported or presented by the state. We can not be held responsible for our government’s actions. Who would imagine boycotting Lang Lang for human rights violations in China? Few consider boycotting products manufactured in China or firms that do business there. I’m sure many of the musicians who signed this letter regularly travel to China to perform with their orchestras. I am often left with the questions why is the standard different for Israelis? The New York Philharmonic or Lorin Maasel traveled to North Korea to entertain the Junta that is responsible unprecedented atrocities. Who ever considered disrupting any of their performances?

The Israel Philharmonic is not a state orchestra. It received minor government support for targeted outreach activities. Zubin Mehta has been a strong voice for cohabitation and peace in the region. I call for people who really care about our region to support sane, rational and cultured elements in our region. Not marginalize them further.

I am always happy to have my opinions challenged, and am looking forward to hearing your comments.

Ori Kam

Mark the date: 12 October 2011.

The Royal Opera House  Muscat still has a Coming Soon website but wagging tongues say it’s going to open in six weeks’ time with Franco’s Z’s jumbo Turandot, followed by a Carmen, who may be a little more decorous than usual.

Zeffirelli had Salvatore Licitra inked in as his Calaf. No word yet of a replacement since the outstanding tenor suffered his terrible accident.

I am posting three clips of video taken by a young friend at last night’s disrupted concert with the aim of countering the self-glorifying propaganda videos coming from the perpetrators themselves.

You’ll find the clips here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrfH9GMM_iE