The conductor wept
OrchestrasThe Israel Philharmonic Orchestra was conducted last night by Semyon Bychkov.
As they played the national anthem, Hatikvah, players report seeing tears streamiong down the conductor’s cheeks.
No need to comment. We can imagine what he was feeling.
UPDATES: Bychkov came to Israel of his own volition and without requesting a fee to conduct Mendelssohn’s fourth symphony and Dvorak’s eighth. He said a few words of hope and solidarity to musicians and audience before performing the national anthem.
.הוא פנה לקהל בדברים נרגשים מלאי אהבה ואחר כך ניצח על “התקווה” כשהוא מנצח ובוכה
On October 11 2023, a few days after Hamas massacred thousand of Jews, burned and cut Jewish children in half and raped Jewish girls and women, Muti gave an interview in Sarajevo (where Jews are not very popular).
https://www.face.ba/vijesti/bih/ekskluzivno-muti-palestinski-orkestar-postao-izraelska-filharmonija-ovo-vodi-ka-unistenju-svijeta/177778
In this interview, Muti said:
‘The first name (note: of the Israeli Phil), when Toscanini conducted the first concert in 1936 was the “Palestine Orchestra”. I never understood all this. One day you will explain to me, when we have a little more time. And then, a few decades later, for the ceremonial commemoration of that first concert, I was invited by the State of Israel to repeat that same concert and to conduct, as an Italian and as someone who comes from Toscanini’s school, the very same program that was performed under Toscanini’s baton in 1936. So, I still haven’t understood, because I’m not a politician, I repeat, why that orchestra used to be called the “Palestinian Orchestra” and today it’s called the “Israeli Philharmonic.” ‘
Here we go again…
No need to duplicate this comment in every post concerning Israel. There is no need to read this even once.
Can you please explain why this should not be read even once?
Not every post concerning Israel, only recent posts concerning the Israel Phil. Given slippedisc’s global reach, my intent is for the Israel Phil to be aware of this interview. You don’t have to read it, and are welcome to skip it.
Google could help Maestro Muti here. I don’t understand why his Mendelssohn sounds like Mozart and Google is no help with that……
He is simply stating a fact. Find another boogey man.
No, he’s not simply stating a fact, Muti understands very well why the orchestra changed name and he’s adding inflammatory commentary a few days after a terrible massacre, without any word to condemn it.
Why would he know why the orchestra changed its name? He’s Italian. Toscanini was Italian. He doesn’t know the history of Israel any more than you know the history of Mussolini.
It’s perfectly simple – was Muti being ironic? Back then there was no known nationality ‘Palestinians’ except the term that was pejoratively given by the British and others to the Jews who lived in what was formerly Israel and had been given many different named over the centuries (‘Palestine’ if I remember correctly, was also a scornful/provocative term created by the Romans as an insult to the Jews, based on the biblical enemies of the Jews the Philistines – who had no relationship to the Jews then, now or the Palestinians now). Anyway, Jews who lived in the land of Israel during the British mandate – and perhaps also under the Ottomans – had their nationality described as ‘Palestinian’ in their passport ie.Jews were the Palestinians, and the place was called Palestine by the British, hence the Palestine Symphony. Once it reverted to Israel, that orchestra quite properly changed its name to the Israel Philharmonic. BTW I’m not suggesting that the Palestinians (meaning the people we call Palestinians today) aren’t a nation now, since they identify as such, or that they shouldn’t be recognised as such, but they weren’t then.
Oh, stop it. Muti was stating a fact. The Israel Philharmonic literally says on its website that it began under the name “Palestine Orchestra”. https://www.ipo.co.il/en/history/
Muti is an Italian conductor, not an Israeli historian. He was invited to conduct a concert commemorating his Italian compatriot, Toscanini, conducting this orch which he observed now has a different name. He doesn’t understand, and he’s hoping for an explanation. That’s it. Most non-Israelis also are confused by this, and would ask the same question.
You can believe what you want. Everything Muti says is calculated. I know him personally and I believe that he wanted to provoke and make an antisemitic comment. There is nothing to “understand” about the name of the Israel Phil, it only needs to be accepted, like the nation.
Muti was there to commemorate the anniversary of an orchestra which had changed its name. It’s a fair question. Unless you know the pre and post 1948 history of Israel, you’re not going to know why. Few people outside of Israel do. Please try to realize that.
Maybe try to & educate people kindly about the name change (or maybe the Israel Philharmonic can do that) instead of accusing everyone indiscriminately of anti-semitism.
The average person with a high school diploma knows about the creation of the state of Israel. This interview happened less than a week after the Hamas atrocities, before Israel started any invasion; yet in this interview he did not condemn the massacre or empathize with the Israeli victims, but found the time to pretend he does not understand the orchestra name.
Absolutely not. Perhaps people in non-Israeli/Arab countries who were alive & following current events in 1948 may be aware of the political events which led to the creation of Israel, but that is definitely not the case now. There is quite a bit of history tied into the creation of Israel, which a large swath of non-Israeli/Arab people are only now just beginning to learn about. And yes, we are starting to inquire into this history because of Oct. 7.
Maybe Muti doesn’t agree with Netanyahu’s response to Oct. 7. Most of the world doesn’t. Maybe Muti found it more prudent not to express that, but simply to inquire about the change in name of the orchestra he was conducting.
I am curious: where did you go to high school?
In the US. It’s all we can do to try to educate high school students about US history. Israeli history is not a priority, unfortunately.
Let me add that growing up I attended enough classmates’ bat & bar mitzvahs & Jewish weddings to know that even among US Jewish citizens of my generation, Israeli history is not a big topic of conversation. We might have a general awareness that Israel is a new country, established just after WW2. A few well-informed people might be able to give the date as 1948. But I assure you that not many US citizens are aware, at least until now, of the history which led to the creation of Israel. I know about the British Mandate for Palestine which governed before 1948 only from reading Slipped Disc comments.
The lack of awareness in the US of Israel/Palestinian history is probably the very reason Israel has been able to receive unconditional military aid from the US. Until now, the US Congress & US voters haven’t known enough about the history of that region to understand that there might be a legitimate reason for Arab/Palestinian unrest there.
I can’t speak for Muti & Italy but I’d say US citizens’ general ignorance of Israeli/Palestinian history has served as an advantage to Israel.
And here’s the obligatory caveat: I denounce Hamas and the loss of Israeli lives on Oct 7. Is it OK to say Palestinian lives, too, or is that anti-semitic?
It may be ok to say that, but for more “clarity” one should “clarify” that all loss of Palestinian life in Gaza – at least after 2005 when Israel withdrew from the region completely – is the direct result of Hamas’ murderous actions.
M2N2K: 1. mourning a life lost is that & only that. It’s horrifying that you are politicizing even that simple sentiment.
2. Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005 because it was too expensive & problematic to continue their occupation there. Israel withdrew out of self interest, not as a benevolent gesture. Shortly afterward, Israel found a more convenient means of controlling Gaza, by imposing a merciless blockade which has brutalized Gaza ever since.
The blockade, which has caused devastating humanitarian damage to Gaza, was one of the elements provoking the attack on Oct. 7. There were many, many other reasons besides this: violent Israeli settlers violating international law who murder peaceful Palestinians & destroy their homes & crops, repeated harassment by Israeli police of Muslim worshippers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque, mass imprisonment of Palestinians by Israelis with no cause given – including children as young as 12 & 14.
What Hamas did was horrible and unforgivable, IMO, but the Oct. 7 attack was the result of decades of provocation by Israelis.
Since the critics of Maestro Muti here assume that everyone in the entire world should be so familiar with Israeli history that no one should dare inquire about the Israel Philharmonic’s new name, I suggest that they, too, might need a closer examination of the history of that region. Hamas didn’t just wake up on Oct. 7 & say “Let’s go invade Israel because we don’t like them.” As horrific as their actions were, they were reacting to a long & violent history with bad actions on both sides. Israel is not blameless here. And no, saying that is not anti-semitic, it is a political observation. Please learn to recognize the difference. Thank you.
Muti knows why when and by whom the IPO came to be – when he conducted that commemorative concert the relevant history was celebrated.
These days it seems a popular choice to rubbish Israel and the Jews, that’s all.
Yaron, I can understand that Jewish people see the country of Israel as being synonymous with Judaism, but I think that much of the rest of the world sees 2 separate entities: the nation of Israel & the Jewish faith. We may be very sympathetic with those of the Jewish faith but not agree with the politics of Israel as a country. That’s not anti-semitism & it doesn’t mean we’re “rubbishing” Jewish people.
There are many Jewish people who do not approve of Netanyahu. I don’t understand why it is when non-Jewish people don’t like him, they are accused of being anti-semitic or “rubbishing Jews”. Netanyahu is not Israel’s spiritual leader. He doesn’t represent the Jewish faith. He is a political leader. Criticizing him, what he does & the political actions of Israel as a nation is not anti-semitic or “rubbishing Jews”. It’s political criticism, not a cultural or religious one.
Clarity, if Muti really doesn’t understand why the orchestra changed its name why ask publicly. Why didn’t he privately ask a colleague? Because he was being deliberately provocative!
Genius Repairman, put yourself in an egotistical conductor’s shoes for a moment: someone with a big public presence who’s prone to grand gestures before his audience. People like that don’t tend to ask for much advice privately.
Muti’s connection with this event was very much about Toscanini, who was the teacher of his own teacher, Antonio Votto.
I suspect that Muti may have been a bit irritated to find out that the orch. he came to conduct to honor Toscanini was now a different orchestra, in name at least. It took the spotlight off of the connection between him & Toscanini.
So yes, maybe he was annoyed & was being provocative. But I’d be annoyed, too, if I came to conduct, my visit was all about the music & honoring my teacher’s teacher & I was expected to take a political stance on an ongoing conflict which I had little knowledge of or interest in. Italy has had its own turbulent history. Muti has no reason to be an expert on Israel’s history as well.
And just for the record, the EU, including Italy, is not very happy with Netanyahu and Israel’s political activities right now. The US is moving in that direction. This is not anti-semitism, it’s disagreeing with a bad politician who’s leading Israel.
In this interview, Muti was in Sarajevo for a concert that had nothing to do with the IPO, four days after the Hamas massacre. The reason for IPO change of name was explained to him decades ago when he conducted in the occasion of the anniversary if Toscanini’s concert. He was not asked by the interviewer about the IPO, he came up with that commentary to take an antisemitic stab at Israel. He said nothing about the massacre.
[redacted]
Frank, here’s what you’re missing: even if someone does take a “stab at Israel”, it’s not necessarily anti-semitic. Why is that so hard for Israelis to understand?
Israel is a nation. Judaism is a religion. Period. Criticizing Israel’s politics is exactly that. It does not inherently signify “hostility to or prejudice against Jewish people”.(Oxford definition of anti-semitism)
26% of the Israeli population is not Jewish. Israel the nation & the Jewish faith are not the same thing.
The word “anti-semitism” is being so over-used right now, it’s like the boy who cried wolf. As an attentive & sympathetic observer, it’s hard for me to recognize what may or may not genuinely be anti-semitism.
Absolutely everything which you & those who think as you do don’t like, you wildly accuse of being anti-semitic.
You are diluting the meaning of a word which should be used carefully to indicate clear & undeniable hatred and prejudice against the Jewish people, not as a rebuttal to political criticism of the country where many of them live.
What is the story of Bychkov and his late brother Jakov Kreizberg? Why were they estranged, and why does he never speak of his brother?
Bychlov and Kreizberg were half-brothers
When I’ve studied with both of them in Capella School for the boys in Sankt Petersburg , Russia they were both Bychkov’s. And for all of us they were brothers, not half-brothers.
Bychkov is a legend
Severely underrated conductor.
I’m not sure he’s so underrated. His performance of the Alpine Symphony with the Berlin Philharmonic, available in the BPH’s Digital Concert Hall, is one of the greatest orchestral performances ever recorded.
He’s a terrific conductor, and leads a magnificent orchestra in Prague.
And the Palestinians whom Netanyahu, the IDF and Israeli settlers have been targetting?
Would probably not have gone to the concert, Hammas terrorist attack on 7 October or not
It’s called defending yourself against mass murder, mass rape, ISIS-style outrages and even worse than ISIS, and attempted genocide. BTW Hamas flatly turned down an Egyptian ceasefire proposal just this week, that would have seen Hamas give up power in Gaza and its leaders leave. They care nothing for their own people.
James, don’t bother with the likes of John Soutter. They are a lost cause.
Netanyahu and Hamas are one and the same. Both have a destructive agenda in their heads. Netanyahu ignored the security warnings about Hamas’ attacks because the target was Israeli left-wing ‘peaceniks.’
The biggest mistake Israel keeps making is being much too humane and mild in its responses to murderous terrorists and their horrendous atrocities.
I was there.
Great playing.Great conducting.
Mr. Bychkov’s speech + playing the national anthem + 2500 people singing the anthem was a moving experience.
A wonderful musician and a mensch.
With a far-right government attempting to weaken the judiciary, and conducting a war that has turned almost the whole world against the country, there are ample reasons to weep for Israel of late.