Richard Wagner (1813-1883), composer of the monumental four-opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen, was an anti-Semite. Making it even more difficult to separate the man from the music was the fact that Hitler was an admirer, as were many Nazis. To this day, there has not been a single staging of a Wagner opera in the State of Israel, a situation that will not change any time soon, what with ISIS terrorists behaving like Nazis. (Memo to John Adams: Write an opera “explaining” those beheadings.) There is no contradiction as such between, on one hand, noxious or absurd personal beliefs and, on the other, artistic talent or creativity -- even in cases of spillover. While it may be hard to enjoy or appreciate a work of art that expresses or exemplifies an abhorrent theme, its aesthetic value may not necessarily be nullified. Leni Riefenstahl’s movies of Nazi rallies, studied in film school, are examples usually cited. As the Wagner example shows, it is possible to be...(Read Full Post)