Music and Politics: Notes instead of a review

Extract

I was afraid it would happen: after drafting only a page or two of the commissioned review, I see that I am already indulging in a kind of shadow-boxing, at the expense of the book and its author. The fact is that any thoughts I may have on the subject of music and politics find their natural expression in my own musical work. Putting them into words is, I discover, like trying to catch an eel with my bare hands: it tends to be somewhat cramping, and it does, of course, consume a great deal of time that would otherwise be spent on composition. If, nevertheless, I persevere, it is only because I am aware that the task may be of some use to me personally, in helping to clarify certain musical or aesthetic aims. But since the result cannot possibly be published as a review, I must ask myself whether observations and catchwords noted down for my own purposes are worth publishing at all, and whether in particular they have any point for readers who know nothing of my music. I am by no means sure of the answer. There is, however, one consolation. In the long run, a composer's pronouncements are relatively as insignificant as his creed or his party card. The only decisive factor is the music itself.