Judaism in Opera. Judentum in der Oper

Is it politically correct to awaken the Jewish protagonists of old anti-Semitic Europe in today’s wavering, once-more dangerous Europe? Let me speak for myself, as a Jew, an Israeli, a historian, a writer and a woman with a voice: no. It is not politically correct to arouse the Jews of the old operas from their slumber. But we should.—Fania Oz-Salzberger Any approach to the sensitive and multifaceted theme of ‘Jewishness’ must be undertaken from a very broad perspective. The idea is to reflect upon religion, history and tradition, while discussing and examining perceptions of Jewishness. This publication makes an effort to cover the widest possible spectrum, in order to meet the challenge of this complex task. Entirely in keeping with the mandate of the European Academy of Music Theatre as a forum for dialogue between research and practice, it comprises articles by international scholars and artists, such as composers, directors, opera singers, cantors, artistic directors of opera houses and critics from Europe, Israel and the USA. This ensures many different perspectives, in view of the very broad scope of the theme. The title may be seen as a superficially provocative reference to Richard Wagner’s disastrous anti-Semitic essay Das Judentum in der Musik, however, that controversial pamphlet is not the theme of the articles in the present volume. Instead, it focuses on the enriching influence and the creative force of Jewish culture and Jewish artists in opera. 

Authors

Julie Brown, Aviel Cahn, David Conway, Chaya Czernowin, John Deathridge, Anat Feinberg, Ruth HaCohen, Hilde Haider, Jehoash Hirshberg, Ioan Holender, Andor Iszák, Vladimir Jurowski, Peter Konwitschny, Barrie Kosky, Moshe Leiser, Erik Levi, Benjamin Muller, Fania Oz-Salzberger, Frieder Reininghaus, Isolde Schmid-Reiter, Neil Shicoff, Mathias Spohr, Massimo Acanfora Torrefranca, Susanne Vill and Jossi Wieler 

Details

Editors: Isolde Schmid-Reiter & Aviel Cahn
368 pages, Paperback
Publisher: Conbrio (June 2017)
Languages: English/German
ISBN: 978-3-940768-68-1 

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