Friday, November 15, 2002

The Luxury of Prejudice You would think that the war on terrorism is important enough that we should not be rejecting the help of any qualified American, especially if they have such in-demand skills as Arabic language proficiency. But no. According to this report, the US military has dismissed nine linguists, including six Arabic specialists, for violating the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. It is apparently still a greater priority for our armed forces to uphold the principle that uncloseted gays are unfit to serve, no matter how useful their talents might be in this national emergency. I desperately hope someone is forced to explain this idiocy. 9:26:48 AM    Emphasize This! []

Sex and Violins Joshua Bell is looking more and more like the next big thing in classical music. The 33 year-old Grammy Award-winning violinist was just here in Seattle on tour with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, where he was both guest director and featured soloist. He’s been touring madly for the past few years, showing his face in all the right places, including performing the Oscar-winning score to the respected art film The Red Violin a few years ago. Every generation, classical music produces one or two figures who attain wider recognition in the popular culture: Isaac Stern, Yitzhak Pearlman, Yo Yo Ma. Bell seems poised to be next. He has the upward career trajectory, the superstar look with his long brown hair and black silk shirts, and the $3 million Stradivarius. On Monday night, he made his case with lively performances of Bach and Haydn, followed by Mahler’s arrangement of Shubert’s Death and the Maiden. Bell’s virtuosity is impeccable, even to my untrained ear, and he holds the stage marvelously with his dynamic and demonstrative style. But I’ve seen him three times now and each time I am more and more convinced that there is a coldness, even an abrasive quality to his sound. It’s a very subjective opinion, but one that is further confirmed each time I’ve seen him.   Last night, by some quirk of the Symphony schedule, I found myself at my second performance of the week. Another violinist was featured, this time 27 year-old Nikolaj Znaider. Though not as seasoned or polished as Bell, Znaider offered a masterly rendition of Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto in G Minor, which benefited from the brisk, tight pace provided by guest conductor Yakov Kreizberg. And I couldn’t help noticing how much more pleasing Znaider’s warm, rounded tones were to my ears.   It’s too early to say whether Zniader will amount to anything. He also has performed and recorded widely, but he’s half a decade younger than Bell and has a ways to go in his career before recognition is available to him beyond the concert circuit. Most notably, however, he lacks the look – the star-power charisma that oozes from every pore of Joshua Bell. Even in the stately circles of classical music, branding is everything, and increasingly, Joshua Bell is looking like the choice of the next generation. 8:41:45 AM    Emphasize This! []