The Flemish region of Belgium is not known as a hotbed of anti-Semitism. Far from it: The largest city in Flanders, Antwerp, was a refuge for Jews expelled from Spain and Portugal in the 16th century, and today is a center of Haredi Orthodox Judaism in Europe.
Given that history, the decision by a music festival in Ghent, a city that prides itself on being a major Flemish cultural center, to disinvite the Munich Philharmonic and its Israeli conductor, Lahav Shani, was a shock, both artistically and politically.
The Flanders Festival Ghent stated: “Lahav Shani has spoken out several times in the past in favor of peace and reconciliation, but in light of his position as chief conductor of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, we cannot provide sufficient clarity regarding his stance on the genocidal regime in Tel Aviv. In line with the call from the [Flemish] Minister of Culture, the Ghent city council, and the Ghent cultural sector, we choose not to enter into collaborations with partners who do not unequivocally distance themselves from these principles.”
That Shani works with both the Israel Philharmonic and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra, founded by the Israeli pianist-conductor Daniel Barenboim and the late Edward Said, a Palestinian academic and activist, to bring together Israeli and Arab musicians, evidently did not factor in Ghent’s calculation. (Naming the seat of the Israeli government as Tel Aviv, not Jerusalem, Israel’s capital, is a telling detail in the festival’s statement.)
Reaction has been swift, and not just from cultural and political figures in Munich. Among others denouncing the Ghent ban are the Rotterdam Philharmonic, where Shani is completing an eight-year tenure as chief conductor this season; the Berlin Philharmonic and Berlin State Opera (the city’s Konzerthaus will stage the concert that Ghent canceled); the European Commission, based in Brussels; pianists Martha Argerich and András Schiff, harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani, violinist Renaud Capuçon, cellist Steven Isserlis and more than 100 other musicians who have added their names to a statement of protest.
The most potentially potent statements of disapproval have come from Belgium’s prime minister, Bart De Wever. His initial reaction: “Imposing a professional ban on someone solely because of their background is reckless and irresponsible, to say the least.” Subsequently visiting Shani and the orchestra in Essen, Germany, to apologize for their cancellation, De Wever said, “There is no place for anti-Semitism or racism in Belgium. Never.”
Those quotes via Norman Lebrecht’s Slipped Disc blog, where coverage of the uproar is ongoing:
UPDATE (Sept. 15): Reporting for Canada’s CBC network, Abby Hughes writes that the musicians’ protest statement has garnered more than 11,000 signatures.
Letter V 