[BachIsBest]

I just scanned the first of the articles from ClassicFM.

Even though I had the unpleasant and unfortunate prognostication by various and sundry individuals (maybe they consider themselves 'journalists' but more like social engineers?) that classical music is 'racist' - I was wasn't ready for the tripe from ClassicFM. From the close of https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/composer-cancelled-fifth-symphony-elitist-vox-debate/

"The podcast ends with the line "Maybe it's time we break up with Beethoven once and for all…".
Breaking up with LVB, the Romantic so beloved for writing the unofficial anthem to the fall of the Berlin Wall and whose Ninth Symphony dreamed that 'all mankind will become brothers', seems a bit extreme.

But as such a giant of the music world, there's absolutely no reason we can't have a debate about his impact on it."

Time to stop listening to their station. I wonder what other music lovers think about this and would do about it.

They have tended to fall into this lately. They lent credence to the Beethoven is black theory (which is only slightly more credible than Qanon) https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/was-black-twitter-debates-african-heritage/ then also wrote about the very vox article in the op https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/news/twitter-debates-slate-article-fullnaming-composers/. As a university student, this stuff is everywhere now; I mean some of my professors have stickers on their doors saying that their offices are intellectual safe spaces.

 

[Roger Knox]

They have tended to fall into this lately. They lent credence to the Beethoven is black theory (which is only slightly more credible than Qanon) https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/was-black-twitter-debates-african-heritage/ then also wrote about the very vox article in the op https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/news/twitter-debates-slate-article-fullnaming-composers/. As a university student, this stuff is everywhere now; I mean some of my professors have stickers on their doors saying that their offices are intellectual safe spaces.

Yes, we cannot ignore what is going on. Rebellious rage led to destruction of icons in the Byzantine era, and heads chopped off statues of saints in Puritan England. Now, think of what could happen to those busts of Beethoven atop the world's pianos ... Before the axe-people get to them, they must all be converted to bobble-heads! Who would want to be seen harming a beatific Ludvig van, no longer a stiff-necked mononym, spreading positive energy and nodding approval of the piano student playing Für Elise?

 

[Caroline]

They have tended to fall into this lately. They lent credence to the Beethoven is black theory (which is only slightly more credible than Qanon) https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/was-black-twitter-debates-african-heritage/ then also wrote about the very vox article in the op https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/news/twitter-debates-slate-article-fullnaming-composers/. As a university student, this stuff is everywhere now; I mean some of my professors have stickers on their doors saying that their offices are intellectual safe spaces.

It's a sad thing that universities (from Latin universitatem, "the whole, aggregate," nurture and advocate for facts or their choosing and discourage opposing ones. Disappointing that college professors offices are labeled as 'safe spaces' in universities. Aren't all spaces safe? What an indictment of US universities - and students pay for this.

Beethoven required that his biography 'should there be interest' should be written 'in truth'. The race question for him has been debunked, although race would not change his music, its significance and beauty, or the interesting character he was.

 

[JAS]

I will add Florence Price to my previous list, as they happened to play one of her symphonies on the radio last night as I was coming home. It was certainly not the equal of Beethoven, but pleasant. It was a bit repetitive, but there were touches of Dvorak, and it was sufficiently enjoyable that I will seek out a CD. (I gather than only three of her four symphonies have been recorded at the moment.)

 

[science]

I just don't understand how a generation raised on South Park and Family Guy came to be the most hypersensitive & thin-skinned wimps. You'd think it would be the opposite.

Silliness like the occasion of this article are of concern to almost no one. Most younger people enjoy naughty jokes more than ever.

It's the realities of inequality that bother them.

And I understand perfectly how a generation of people raised on reactionary 80s pop culture became so indifferent to -- when not actually in favor of -- those inequalities.

 

[Nawdry]

I don't usually post about this sort of thing, but I just had to rant. I am really sick of this:

https://www.classicfm.com/composers/beethoven/composer-cancelled-fifth-symphony-elitist-vox-debate/

https://www.vox.com/switched-on-pop/21437085/beethoven-5th-symphony-elitist-classism-switched-on-pop

The Soviet Union as it was corrupted by Stalin clearly had its horrors, but it also had its great benefits and successes, and one of these was massive state support for its classical music cultural sector, which produced some of modern humanity's greatest composers and performance artists, and supported great symphony orchestras and classical organizations such as the Bolshoi Ballet. This had a huge positive influence on classical music worldwide. Efforts to "proletarianize" classical music - particularly the great composers such as Beethoven and all his symphonies - and make it more accessible to the masses were elements of state cultural policy.