Klarinet Archive - Posting 000084.txt from 1998/10

From: Neil Leupold <nleupold@-----.edu>
Subj: Re: [kl] Wagner
Date: Fri, 2 Oct 1998 02:32:08 -0400

On Thu, 1 Oct 1998, George Landis wrote:

> Wagner was a brilliant composer who made an incredible contribution
> to music and theater. We don't have to accept what he, or anyone else,
> thought about any given subject to enjoy the musical experience.

This is entirely the point of the debate, Mr. Landis, and your
statement above can not be read as a truth -- but merely as
a prescription. There are many people who feel that an artist
and his/her art are inseparable, and that the humanity of the
artist has a direct impact on a person's ability to appreciate
the art. I don't hold to this view immoveably, but I do find
sometimes that after discovering what a cruddy person a particular
"genius" was in his/her day, I have less respect for his/her con-
tribution to the world.

Neil

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