Furtwangler: Hero or Villain?
I was recently reading about Arthur Rubinstein and came across his threat to boycott the CSO if Furtwangler was appointed. I've read a bit on Karajan and Bohm but never Furtwangler so I read his Wikipedia page. I was expecting to read he was a card carrying Nazi cheerleader but found quite the opposite. Based on the information available, I'm shocked he wasn't put to death. To betray disobey Hitler and Goebbels so many times seems like a recipe for disaster. Now I realize there's more to the story and perhaps Rubinstein didn't have all the information at the time either. Perhaps he did and felt justified in his actions. I'm certainly interested in reading more on both men and also the dynamic between Furtwangler and the up and coming Karajan. I'd appreciate if anyone could direct me to some good literature on the topic. As for the topic here, what are your thoughts? Does Furtwangler deserve a tainted reputation or did he make the most of a lose/lose situation and continue to fight for what he believed to be right?
I was recently reading about Arthur Rubinstein and came across his threat to boycott the CSO if Furtwangler was appointed. I've read a bit on Karajan and Bohm but never Furtwangler so I read his Wikipedia page. I was expecting to read he was a card carrying Nazi cheerleader but found quite the opposite. Based on the information available, I'm shocked he wasn't put to death. To betray disobey Hitler and Goebbels so many times seems like a recipe for disaster. Now I realize there's more to the story and perhaps Rubinstein didn't have all the information at the time either. Perhaps he did and felt justified in his actions. I'm certainly interested in reading more on both men and also the dynamic between Furtwangler and the up and coming Karajan. I'd appreciate if anyone could direct me to some good literature on the topic. As for the topic here, what are your thoughts? Does Furtwangler deserve a tainted reputation or did he make the most of a lose/lose situation and continue to fight for what he believed to be right?