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Israeli Opera to uphold Wagner boycott over link to Nazis
By Haggai Hitron, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: Wagner, Israel News, Hitler 

Conductor David Stern, the new musical director of the Israeli opera, has indicated that he will uphold a decades-old ban on performing the works of Richard Wagner, a favorite composer of Adolf Hitler.

Nazi propaganda appropriated Wagner's works and anti-Jewish writings, and, as a result, his operas have never been staged in Israel. Attempts to perform his compositions have been halted by protests, led in some cases by Holocaust survivors.

Stern told reporters Sunday that Wagner and his works will remain a sensitive topic in Israel for many years.
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"I don't think it's such a great loss to Israeli audiences. I still conduct Wagner in other places around the world, but there are many other things that are worthwhile to conduct here," he said.

Stern takes the podium for the first time this week.

Under Stern's baton, the opera will return to performing Georgian-born Israeli composer Yosef Bardanashvili's "A Journey to the End of the Millennium," based on the novel by author A.B. Yehoshua and directed by Omri Nitzan.

Stern added that he is a fan of the French repertoire and would be happy to emphasize those works in the Opera's future performances.

Stern is replacing Asher Fisch, who left the Opera after accusing General Director Hana Munitz of making decisions while ignoring artistic considerations. Munitz said yesterday that Stern was one of the leading candidates to replace Fisch, and that he accepted the offer almost immediately.

Stern, the son of renowned violinist Isaac Stern, has accumulated a formidable reputation of his own and proven his conducting talent in previous performances with the Israeli Opera.

Regarding his family legacy, Stern said, "My father was in New York, and his soul is there and that's where his career blossomed. I've lived from a young age in Paris, and worked as a musician in two areas my father never dealt with: ancient music and opera."

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      1.   Listen to this and tell me that the ban is correct 10:14  |  Clickfool 01/12/08
      2.   Wagner was a Nazi before there were Nazis 10:45  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 01/12/08
      3.   Music 10:47  |  Clickfool 01/12/08
      4.   Favorite composer ? 10:47  |  Akiva 01/12/08
      5.   Let`s honor Wagner`s will 11:01  |  Shlomo from Tel-Aviv 01/12/08
      6.   To Shlomo 11:19  |  Akiva 01/12/08
      7.   #4, Akiva 11:51  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 01/12/08
      8.   At the very least, be sensitive to survivors and boucott it 12:13  |  Harvey 01/12/08
      9.   To Cipora 12:13  |  Akiva 01/12/08
      10.   R we still affraid of the nazis? R U? 12:16  |  Nayek em Aoun 01/12/08
      11.   Wagners grandchildren 12:26  |  ron 01/12/08
      12.   Anti-semitic composers 12:35  |  Steve A 01/12/08
      13.   So what ?! 12:43  |  Akiva 01/12/08
      14.   No.3 From a Welsh Pygmy. 12:56  |  Gerald 01/12/08
      15.   steve #12 13:41  |  ron 01/12/08
      16.   Thankfully Hitler wasn`t a Mozart fan 13:42  |  Mark Lincoln 01/12/08
      17.   For Gerald # 14 14:03  |  Clickfool 01/12/08
      18.   Wagner´s Music in Israel 14:15  |  Erico Stern 01/12/08
      19.   Wagner 14:19  |  just me 01/12/08
      20.   cjk 2 14:46  |  potobac 01/12/08
      21.   to Erico Stern 15:36  |  Mike 01/12/08
      22.   pathetic 15:42  |  curious george 01/12/08
      23.   It is up to the Opera 16:40  |  Mark Lincoln 01/12/08
      24.   Wagner in Israel 17:44  |  Richard 01/12/08
      25.   Wagner´s Jewish friend 17:52  |  Erico Stern 01/12/08
      26.   Ridiculous 17:52  |  JR 01/12/08
      27.   Clickfool 17:55  |  JR 01/12/08
      28.   what about Richard Strauss 18:00  |  BENJAMIN YAFET 01/12/08
      29.   Clarification 18:09  |  JR 01/12/08
      30.   Richard Strauss a nazi ?! 18:27  |  Akiva 01/12/08
      31.   For JR # 25 19:10  |  Clickfool 01/12/08
      32.   There are so, so many composers to perform 19:33  |  Serge 01/12/08
      33.   Everyone missed the point on Wagner ban 19:42  |  David 01/12/08
      34.   To Curious George 20:24  |  Mike 01/12/08
      35.   Wagner 20:48  |  Rob 01/12/08
      36.   The important point in this "discussion" 21:04  |  Israeli cititzen 01/12/08
      37.   To David 21:29  |  Akiva 01/12/08
      38.   Thank you #33 21:54  |  reality check 01/12/08
      39.   Richard Strauss - a Nazi? 22:00  |  Erico Stern 01/12/08
      40.   Wanne hear Wagner, buy the CD! 22:05  |  Tom Lobo Meyer 01/12/08
      41.   Wagner 22:27  |  Birdi 01/12/08
      42.   Composers 22:35  |  Tony Price 01/12/08
      43.   Where to draw the line? 22:44  |  Morris Valentine 01/12/08
      44.   It`s not the censorship line, it`s the offense of the other 22:50  |  Israeli cititzen 01/12/08
      45.   Mark Lincoln 23:01  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 01/12/08
      46.   #1 Clickfool 23:01  |  Jim 01/12/08
      47.   #10 Nayek am Aoun 23:32  |  Jim 01/12/08
      48.   #19 just me 23:48  |  Jim 01/12/08
      49.   #33 David 00:08  |  Jim 02/12/08
      50.   #20, potobac 00:09  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 02/12/08
      51.   #34 Mike 00:13  |  Jim 02/12/08
      52.   #36 Israeli Citizen 00:19  |  Jim 02/12/08
      53.   #38 reality check 00:25  |  Jim 02/12/08
      54.   to Jim 00:56  |  Mike 02/12/08
      55.   What If... 01:37  |  Heather Czerniak 02/12/08
      56.   Bravo Daniel... 02:43  |  Michael F 02/12/08
      57.   To David in Chicago 03:30  |  Morris Valentine 02/12/08
      58.   #47 Mike 04:20  |  Jim 02/12/08
      59.   #47 Mike 04:40  |  Jim 02/12/08
      60.   Wagner - wasted on Israel 04:58  |  Bill 02/12/08
      61.   How curious this is seen as a political issue 06:46  |  Mark Lincoln 02/12/08
      62.   Banning Wagner is cultural fascism 08:02  |  L A 02/12/08
      63.   #59, Mark Lincoln 08:28  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 02/12/08
      64.   True art recognises no borders 08:31  |  Tuomas 02/12/08
      65.   This ban is childish and ridiculous 08:49  |  Jean-Paul DOGUET 02/12/08
      66.   Mark Twain wrote more about Wagner... 09:56  |  S 02/12/08
      67.   Wagner NO and IKEA YES.....Why? 12:49  |  eli 02/12/08
      68.   Not all Holocaust survivors 13:07  |  chelemer 02/12/08
      69.   to Jim 13:44  |  Mike 02/12/08
      70.   Wagner 15:00  |  burkhart Berthold 02/12/08
      71.   The gift of music and power of choice 15:20  |  Jonathan 02/12/08
      72.   Wagner was a genius, while Stern is merely the son of a genius 17:08  |  Danny 02/12/08
      73.   A ban that is cheap and easy 22:19  |  Ross 04/12/08
      74.   Wagner ban is nothing but great hypochrisy 18:45  |  Avi 17/12/08
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