Dear Alma, My string quartet is split over Israel and Gaza
NewsDear Alma,
My string quartet is split over Israel and Gaza.
Three of us are horrified at the Hamas massacres in Israel, absolutely gutted. The fourth is a hardcore BDS supporter who thinks the world would be a better place without Israel (and maybe Jews). My problem is this. We’re on tour and a manager asks us for a statement before the concert. What can I say that won’t (a) lose us a player or (b) alienate half the audience?
In the Hot Seat
Dear In the Hot Seat,
Take a moment to collect yourself. You are in a professional quartet, asked by (in essence) your boss to do a task. It’s not personal, it’s business. We have all been to the family get-togethers where we seat Aunt Delilah and Uncle Chad at opposite ends of the table, cringing every time a word is spoken, dreading the inevitable drunken screaming match about (fill in the blank). You and your colleagues are not Delilah and Chad. You have had differences of opinions for as long as you have played together. You are not friends or relatives, you are in a working relationship which requires specific behaviors to maintain a functioning work environment.
As musicians, we are often ambassadors to the audience. We are public figures, and it is expected that we make verbal or printed public statements about large-scale tragedies as well as present an openness through our choice of repertoire and other aspects of ourselves and organization. The request from your manager is not surprising.
In the Hot Seat, I must say that from the tone in your letter, I am concerned about you. You are in pain, a pain we can feel and almost touch in your words. A pain that you must process now, and continue to internalize in this impossible time. Be strong, grieve, but you must not bring this into your work situation. I am concerned with your ability to handle this with calm and composure. You are (understandably) angry and upset, and I know that the words I am using are not even close to the magnitude of your current state. I hope that you can find a balance within yourself before you take the step to find a group statement. I know you can do it, because diplomacy in a quartet is the only hope for survival. We have to exercise this fundamental skill every single day, and constantly during rehearsal, to keep it fresh, malleable, and true.
Taking this into account, and in order to avoid the blow-up you fear above, do not engage in conversations which you know will lead to disagreement. If you find yourself in such a situation, politely state “I respect your views, but I would prefer not to talk about this”.
Because you are assigned a task, find several points that you all agree on, and that you believe are universal beliefs which will be accepted by the audience. Make a list of a handful, and then have everyone vote on which they agree on (which can be done anonymously). When you have found 4 that you all agree to be true, craft your statement. If you cannot craft the statement yourselves, give the 4 beliefs to the manager and have them write the statement. If you cannot verbally address the audience, have the statement printed or read by the presenter before the concert.
There are no words that can express the tragedy which is occurring as I write this. By showing humanity and caring to your audiences, and playing with a true heart, you can help them to try to process their own anger, grief, and despair. We owe that to them, and to ourselves.
Tell the manager: “It is our longstanding practice to refrain from comment on current affairs and armed conflicts when appearing in our professional capacity as a quartet. Accordingly, we do not wish to make any statement at this time.”.
I do not know where this quartet is performing, but I can say that, here in London, I have been to several concerts in the last couple of weeks, and none of them has had any kind of statement.
Or, failing the above, you could use Daniel Barenboim’s statement?
Their manager asked for it. The circumstances are unclear but they are working for a manager and they need to follow the request, which may have been made by the hiring organization.
The concept of “working for a manger” does allow for politely declining a request. The English term “manager” can encompass various kind of power imbalance, most of which do *not* demand unquestioning obedience. It sounds like “manager” in this context is a concert promoter or artist agent, not a conductor nor a “line manager” of the office variety nor a commanding officer of the military variety. Unless the quartet’s contract of engagement provides explicitly for the making of statements on current affairs and armed conflicts on request, it is likely that the manager does *not* have the authority to insist on a statement being made.
It’s a made up letter
Daniel Barenboim’s statement? A person who has been so vile in his personal and public life? I would skip the statement, but I would be quite worried about your racist colleague, though.
Lose the BDS supporter. Now. Seriously.
You can get sued for discrimination for firing someone for having different views. You would have to prove they actually believe anything beyond rights for Palestinians.
Don’t waste your time. Point out that one of the quartet thinks that murdering children is a good idea and let the audience puzzle over which one of you it could be. While enjoying the music, that is.
Are you even employed? By your response, I doubt it.
Given the view of the members of this string quartet on the ongoing conflict, any common statement cannot be anything other than bizarre. Why do artists MUST do political statements?
Their boss asked for it.
Things like:
Our thoughts go to the suffering in Israel and Gaza. This tragedy has taken much innocent life. Let us have a moment of silence for the victims of this terrible situation.
Musicians are “public figures” who need to make a political statement? As an audience member, I care no more about the political opinions of musicians than I care about those of Hollywood movie stars, which is to say very little. Keep them out of your professional life.
But the notion that one of the quartet thinks the world would be a better place without Jews is deeply disturbing. I do not see how the three of you can work with a hateful racist. I do not see a long future for this ensemble.
This is a problem. I have had to work with these
Type of people. I had to stay in the job because
It was hard to find employment. Also i could not
Afford to resign. Thank goodness iam retired.
And work with racists.
It is a letter of opinion, not a fact that the other member wants a world without Jews. They are a Palestinian rights supporter and the writer may be heatedly reading into it.
Photo showing Yuja Wang in a tizzy because her manager has refused her request to play all 27 Mozart piano concertos in one sitting…………
By all means kill each other and post the video on the social media.
This is similar to Dover where the first violinist always made politically incorrect comments during rehearsals and it bothered the violist so much, she left. The first violinist also refused to be vaccinated for a long time so I believe they lost concerts over that. Quartets with split opinion sucks.
I have worked with these type of people.
I had to stay because. It was hard to find employment.
And i could not afford to resign.
Lucky iam retired and do not have work with staff
Who are racists.
Well stated advice – keep it professional. If you do want to make a change in your group, do it with thought and planning.
Well said. Keep it professional.
If you need to switch a player, do it responsibly.
Plenty of string quartets have people on different sides of issues, just like people in work places. Just do your job that you are hired to do.
I have some trouble believing in Dear Alma at the best of times. This one really stretches credibility to the breaking point. I find it very hard to believe that in a working group as intimate as a quartet — and, I know, there are plenty where players are far from pally with one another — three players who would be so very exercised about the tragedies unfolding in the Middle east right now could work with someone who thinks the world would be a better place without Israel, and maybe without Jews.
BDS is a political position. Many hold it, many deplore it. But it does not advocate genocide. It advocates a form of embargo, of the sort that has been practised elsewhere against regimes the source of the embargo opposes. If a colleague holds that view, there may be a difference of political opinion within the group, one that members can agree to disagree over.
But I find it hard to believe that a group like this would sanction a member whose views are as extreme, racist and homicidal — genocidal, even — as this member is painted. I have had to work with people who have loudly objected to Jewish colleagues taking time off at Yom Kippur — having no understanding that the High Holidays are as important in Judaism as Christmas and Easter are in the Christian calendar upon which the working year is based. But if that represents a kind of unconscious bias, as it is popular to characterise less than perfect inter-racial relations, it is a far cry from failing to sympathise with the victims of October 7 and beyond, let alone wanting Israel to be destroyed, with everyone in it.
There seems to be some antipathy on this site toward people like Barenboim, who lament innocent victims of every background. If this sort of nonsensical set-up is supposed to colour posters’ reactions to that, it has probably failed. It certainly should have.
classical arts should transcend all politics and religions and focus soley on talent… in theory, that is.