Karajan 1970s - a retrospective

Amazon has just published my review of Herbert von Karajan's 1970s recordings.  Click here to read my review.

It's a Done Deal

NOTE: I’ve received several comments to previous posts on the Telling Mansion – all anonymous. As stated on the frontispiece of my blog, I do not publish anonymous comments. If you wish for your comment to appear on the site, please include your name. Thanks.

 Last night, the Cuyahoga County Public Library board unanimously voted to sell the historic Telling Mansion to Richard Barone, a Cleveland investor who wants to use the building to house the American Porcelain Art Museum and Cultural Arts Center. Some of us foresaw this fate months ago, which is why we came together to form the Telling Mansion Preservation Organization: TeMPO.

I will defend neither the Library board’s decision nor the manner in which they arrived at it. It was contrary to the principles of open governance, and did not take the feelings of the affected citizens into account. However, per Ohio regulations the Library board is an independent entity – city and country officials are forbidden from blocking CCPL’s plans, just as they are not allowed to specify which books and other media the library may carry. So that begs the question: why did members of the Save the Mansion Library group take members of the Cuyahoga and South Euclid governments to task over the situation? Was it due to a lack of understanding of separation of powers on their part, simple desperation, or were certain members of that group using the library issue as a wedge against public servants they didn’t like?

While some members of the SML group may continue to shout “THIS IS NOT A DONE DEAL”, in reality – it is. Whatever one thinks of the library move, it’s now a certainty – no matter how many people picket, sign online petitions, hold “read-ins” or try to shout down speakers at local meetings. The question now is: should citizens continue to push the CCPL into remaining at a site it has neglected for the past decade and has decided to leave, or should we embrace a better guardian? Look for yourself at the deplorable condition of the floor tiles near the entry way or the stone wall running along the driveway. Observe for yourself how the gate house isn’t even open to the public. (I’ve been in the latter – the only possible use right now is as a haunted house.)

Wouldn’t it be more productive if citizens worked with Richard Barone, who wants to make good use of the Mansion, the grounds, and the gate house – which has been closed for years?

In June, members of TeMPO met with Mr. Barone and voiced several concerns: that the site be properly maintained and renovated with historical sensitivity; that the South Euclid-Lyndhurst Historical Society remains on site; that the site remain open for public use in addition to his proposed use as a museum; and that the site – including green space and watershed – be protected in perpetuity via the creation of a foundation with an endowment. Mr. Barone is interested in working with us to accomplish these goals. He reiterated such at a fundraiser TeMPO held in August.

It is doubly important that Mr. Barone is stepping in at this time, because his purchase does more to safeguard the Telling Mansion than the other options: selling to one of the other interested parties (both commercial) or keeping the Library there. At a recent meeting of the citizens’ steering committee for South Euclid’s new Master Plan, I learned that South Euclid’s other Mansion (in a secluded lot off Dorsh Road) may be for sale in the near future. The two mansions sit on adjoining parcels of land, and anyone who’s seen the properties could well envision a nightmare scenario in which both mansions are demolished and a new housing development put in their place.

What I find most objectionable are the accusations, made without any evidence, that TeMPO was secretly cobbled together by the CCPL, Mayor Welo, and Sunny Simon to clear the path for the library move. On the contrary, TeMPO is driven and run by local citizens from all walks of life and political persuasions, who work without compensation, who are solely concerned with the preservation of the Telling Mansion and grounds. Indeed, Mayor Welo’s opponent in the 2011 election, Robert Schoenewald, is a member of our board.

People can continue to scream “the Telling Mansion should be a library” until they’re blue in the face. Fact is, the library is going to move. We believe Mr. Barone’s proposal represents the best way forward for the Telling Mansion – South Euclid’s architectural gem.

Vladimir Horowitz never peeled potatoes

“How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” goes the old riddle. “Practice, practice, practice”, is the answer.

Vladimir Horowitz was fond of stating he only practiced a few hours a day, and cautioned students about over-practicing a musical work to the point that it became stale.  While he was usually coy about how he developed his technique, saying he learned it the same way he learned to speak four languages, he once confessed that in post-Revolutionary Russia “It was very cold, I was very hungry, and there was nothing to do but practice piano”.  There was no television, nor even any radio – and 78rpm discs were in very short supply at a time when the family subsisted on “rabbit ragout” – which was a euphemism used at a time when the stray cats and dogs in Kiev suddenly vanished.  To take his mind off the misery that surrounded him, young Volodya worked tirelessly and attentively at the piano – not merely at scales and etudes, but any music he could get his hands on: the standard piano repertoire, operas, orchestra scores (Horowitz was a fantastic site reader), and even the popular music of the day. 

Horowitz developed a technique so comprehensive that the standard repertoire became inadequate for fully displaying his skills, and he was – as he often pointed out – a frustrated composer.  He composed original works, but most famously offered arrangements, or transcriptions, of other composers’ music.  He almost never committed these transcriptions to paper, and many have tried, with varying success, to decipher the notes by listening to recordings and watching videos of his concerts.  Some of his arrangements changed over time, particularly his variations on the Gypsy Dance from Act II of Bizet’s Carmen.  Listening to the plethora of recordings, both officially published and “pirate” recordings of concerts, I’ve come to the conclusion that not only was Horowitz altering his work over the decades,  this most spontaneous of pianists often made changes “on the fly”.  

This kind of freedom, today heard only from jazz musicians, was common in the Classical and Romantic period.  Mozart and Beethoven were both spectacular improvisers, as was Liszt.  Being able to improvise leads to greater freedom in interpretation.  This freedom is part of what endeared Horowitz to the public, and drove anally retentive critics to distraction.  It also upset more than a few pianists, and I can only conclude that their sniping comments at Horowitz’s transcriptions were the result of enraged jealousy.  Particularly galling was Arthur Rubinstein’s hypo-criticism of Horowitz playing “all those Carmens, all those Danse Macabres” because Rubinstein himself played his own arrangements of Falla’s Ritual Fire Dance and the March from Prokofiev’s Love of Three Oranges.  The piano transcription has a respectable lineage going all the way back to Liszt and Busoni. 

Truth be told, most pianists prepare a work to within an inch of its life, then bring it to the stage with all the spontaneity of peeling potatoes.  This was never the case with Horowitz.

Horowitz's seamless transmission

Poulenc’s Toccata is hardly anyone’s definition of an easy piece – although it’s well laid out for the keyboard.  Parallel passages become repeated notes, then right handed filigree accompanied by left hand chords & jumps, then right hand chords accompanied by left hand chromatic runs – there are gear shifts, sometimes radical, every few bars.  I’ve heard about 15 recordings of the Toccata, by pianists major and minor – at corresponding tempos.  They all have something in common – whenever the pianist has to shift gears, there is a pause, a hesitation - however infinitesimal -  to allow the pianist time to regroup for the next sequence.

All except one: Vladimir Horowitz.  There are at least three recordings of Horowitz playing Poulenc’s Toccata: a studio recording from 1932, a live recording from Carnegie Hall from the 1940s and available for listening at the Yale University music library, and a 1966 performance from a Carnegie Hall concert made when the pianist was 63 (the last has circulated as a pirate recording for years, but Sony has recently released their copy as part of a boxed set).  Despite differences in interpretation, all three recordings feature breathtaking tempos, minimal use of the sustaining pedal, a broad dynamic range – and the most seamless, imperceptible shifting of gears.  It’s the equivalent of driving a manual transmission without having to use the clutch – although in this case there’s no grinding and no damage.

I believe this is what Michael Steinberg was referring to when he complained that Horowitz was at times apt to “steamroll the line into perfect flatness” in his very wrongheaded – and now deleted – appraisal of the pianist in the Groves Encyclopedia.  In fact, Horowitz merely was able to mask the gear changes that lesser pianists (and that’s just about everybody) were forced to make audibly.  His transmission was infinitely variable.

But make no mistake: Horowitz infallible transmission was not merely the result of some accident of birth.  He worked his ass off.  More on that in a later post.

Lessons from Seymour Avenue

Just 93 days ago, the people of Northeast Ohio and much of the world were stunned to learn that Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight had escaped alive after a decade in captivity.  Many had given up hope that Berry and DeJesus were alive, and few had ever heard of Knight.

 

Within three months, the perpetrator, Ariel Castro, pled guilty, was convicted and sentenced to life plus 1,000 years in prison.  While some called for the death penalty, the plea deal spared three young women the pain of an extended trial and appeals process.  Castro, whose family has rightly disowned him, had better hope he’s kept in solitary confinement – he would be unlikely to last long in the general prison population.  

 

A blight removed...

 

This morning, Castro’s home at 2207 Seymour Avenue, which had been in foreclosure, was demolished.  Two adjacent homes are likely to be torn down in the near future.  For those who live on Seymour Avenue, this must be welcome news – as will be the withdrawal of the media parade of the last three months.

 

The events of the past 93 days have been the definition of swift justice.  Some have opined that we should now collectively forget what happened and “move on”.  I differ.  In my own life, there are lessons I learned at bitter cost in my younger years, only to forget them and be forced to re-learn.  Here too, there are lessons to be learned which should not be forgotten.  One lesson is to be aware, keep one’s eyes and ears open to an unpleasant reality, and commit to changing it.

 

It wasn’t until after the three young women escaped that neighbors spoke of occasional pounding noises coming from the house. They said they believed it was the result of home renovations - although the deteriorating condition of the house belied that explanation. Probably no one suspected that their neighbor, known for blasting salsa music while cooking barbeque, was a monster who was serially raping, impregnating, and inducing miscarriages.  Or no one wanted to suspect it.  No one wants to confront the worst, especially when one lives in an area where things are already tough enough.  How often does one hear of incidents of drug dealing, rape, assault, and suicide – even in “better” neighborhoods?  How many of these incidents could have been prevented if neighbors had taken notice of the warning signs?  Be certain, I am not blaming the neighbors for what happened at 2207 Seymour Avenue – the fault lies with Ariel Castro alone.

 

The first step is getting to know one’s neighbors, and allowing them to get to know you.  Being curious about one’s neighbors doesn’t equate with being Gladys Kravitz.  You don’t have to constantly knock on someone’s door asking to borrow a cup of sugar to take notice of what’s going on.  But if something nags the back of your mind, bring it up for discussion or, if warranted, report it to the authorities.

 

Being aware and involved does not make one the “boss” of the neighborhood.  Concern for bettering one’s area ought not to descend into a turf war or into vigilantism.  If you need to report something to the police, do so – and once done, back off and let them do their jobs.  If George Zimmerman had done what the police dispatcher told him to do, Trayvon Martin would still be alive.

 

Participate in efforts to enhance your area.  Neighborhood groups have been popping up in South Euclid, spearheaded by committed citizens – and the results have been positive.  There’s more to citizenship in a democracy than paying taxes, voting, then going home to watch Netflix or surf the ‘net. 

 

There has been talk of turning that land beneath the three homes on Seymour Avenue into a community garden.  That would be a positive step, so long as the garden is maintained – which hasn’t always been the case.  A park would be another positive development.

 

Finally, our local, state and federal governments must act aggressively to ameliorate the glut of distressed and abandoned housing.  While the worst of the foreclosure crisis may be behind us, there are still too many abandoned houses on the market.  We must creatively work to address these eyesores, which reduce property values, thereby reducing funds to local government and impacting services, creating a downward spiral.  The situation in East Cleveland is an extreme local example of this trend – and I will address that in a future post.  More ways need to be found to improve and sell – or, if that is not practical – demolished these houses.

Should East Cleveland be dissolved?

Last week, the nation learned of a serial killer in East Cleveland. Michael Madison has been tied to the deaths of three women, thus far. Coming two months after the revelation that three young women had been held for three years by Ariel Castro, the image of our region’s recovery – still remembered for the burning river and default embarrassments of the 1970s – was further tarnished.

It gives little comfort to those of us in Cuyahoga County to rationalize that the recent events occurred in areas that few of us willingly visit – or even drive through.

Recently, I was describing Puerto Rico to a friend, who asked if it was dangerous. I replied that, like any place, Puerto Rico had good and bad areas – and described Bayamon as the East Cleveland of Puerto Rico.

There was a time when East Cleveland was one of the tonier areas in the county, with an economy driven by General Electric’s Nela Park facility, literally a “powerhouse” for activity. Large, beautiful homes lined the streets, and residents included John D. Rockefeller, Jr.

Today, aside from a few homes in the Forest Hill neighborhood bordering Cleveland Heights, most of East Cleveland is run down. Many of the once luxurious homes were divided into multi-tenant units over the decades, neglected, and as often or not have been foreclosed or abandoned. Today, the population in East Cleveland is less than half of its peak in 1930.

East Cleveland’s political history has been one of embarrassment after embarrassment. Corruption; Graft; Double Dipping. The previous mayor was ousted from office after several embarrassing photos of him wearing women’s clothes came to light. The current mayor, Gary Norton, has been waging a heroic effort over the last three years to get East Cleveland on the road to a solid recovery. For all his hard work, East Cleveland has only a smattering of development to show – mostly on its border with Cleveland’s University Circle.

Several years ago, I wrote a blog post about the possibility of South Euclid merging with Lyndhurst. Judging by web hits, it was one of my most popular posts and received positive commentary. Given the recently aborted plans to merge several suburbs in southeast Cuyahoga County, I have no illusion this will happen anytime soon.

There are times when the most radical solution is justified, and I believe this is such a time. Thus, I propose that the municipality of East Cleveland be dissolved and the territory divided between the cities of Cleveland and Cleveland Heights.

Moving in a roughly diagonal line, Cleveland Heights would gain all the territory in Lakeview cemetery, as well as the territory in Mayfield Cemetery. The line would continue with the now divided Forest Hill/Rockefeller Park and all streets to the east of Terrace Road going to Cleveland Heights. Cleveland would gain the remaining territory, including all the properties on Forest Hill Avenue and Terrace Road, with Terrace Road divided from North Taylor onward – leading to the northeastern boundary of Cleveland Heights being North Noble Road. (An alternative to the above would use the center of Forest Hill Avenue and Terrace Road as the boundary line.) A benefit would be that most streets which are currently divided between East Cleveland and Cleveland/Cleveland Heights would now fall within one municipality. Also, the confusing, zigzag border that exists between East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights would be replaced with a border largely conforming to geological boundaries.

Two options...

Of course, fiddling around with the boundaries does not equate an instant fix to the myriad problems facing what is now East Cleveland. Those remain: poverty, resulting in a tax base so anemic that basic government services cannot be adequately delivered, resulting in lawlessness, causing people to flee – further driving down property values and tax revenue, resulting in an urban dead zone in which economic development is out of the question.

The absorption of this territory would stretch the budget of the two acquiring municipalities, particularly Cleveland. What would be required to bring this area to its potential is a combination of federal block grants, state funds, and corporate investment. One need only remember how steeply crime rates dropped in the 1990s to appreciate how much better East Cleveland could be.

I believe the dissolution of East Cleveland is the best way forward for the citizens of that beleaguered area, and would benefit everyone, except for those who’ve profited from East Cleveland’s decades long decline.

Russia’s Olympics: To boycott or not to boycott?

Although not widely reported in the mainstream media, the Russian legislature unanimously passed, and President Vladimir Putin has signed, draconianlegislation forbidding any discussion which touches on homosexuality in anything but the most negative terms.  It’s a tragedy and an outrage that the country of Tchaikovsky, Diaghilev, and Nureyev – all homosexuals who contributed to Russian and human culture – should pursue such a retrograde course.

There was a time when people dared to hope that Russia was evolving into a more open society.  Mikhail Gorbachev, a man who deserves history’s gratitude, first opened the floodgates of Glasnost – until the reforms of Perestroika ran away faster than he could control and the Soviet Union was disbanded.  A culture of openness continued under Boris Yeltsin, under whom consensual same-sex acts were decriminalized.  But the vacuum caused by Yeltsin’s incompetence and ill health led to former KGB head Vladimir Putin taking control – promising law and order.  He apparently intends to remain in power for life, and has become as autocratic as any Russian leader since Stalin. Thus, while former countries in the Soviet sphere, most notably the Czech Republic, embrace openness and tolerance, Russia has been moving backwards and appears destined to become a Christian version of Iran.

Many in the LGBT community have called for the United States and other LGBT friendly nations to boycott the2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia.  Leaving aside the question as to whether the United States deserves to be called an LGBT welcoming nation, history has already demonstrated that a boycott would be a mistake.  I understand why individual LGBT athletes would want to boycott the games – either out of principle or due to concerns for their own safety.  But boycotts by nations would do nothing to advance the causes of LGBT rights in Russia, would only further isolate Russia (and LGBT Russians) from the rest of the world, and would quell opportunities for our athletes.  Let’s take a look at history:

The 1936 Summer Olympics were held in Berlin, the center of Nazi Germany.  There were calls to boycott the games due to the Nazis’ racial and anti-Semitic policies.  At the insistence of Franklin Roosevelt, America participated. When Jesse Owens won four gold medals for the 100 meter and 200 meter sprints, the long jump, and the 4X100 meter sprint relay, he threw mud in the face of Hitler’s theories on Aryan racial supremacy.

In 1980, 65 nations, led by the United States, boycotted the Summer Olympics in Moscow to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.  The boycott did nothing to change Soviet policy: the Russians remained in Afghanistan for another nine years.  Nor did the boycott do anything to harm the Soviets’ image – not that they ever cared about appearances.

But the boycott did harm the many athletes who were unable to participate.  As Greg Louganis wrote: 

”The boycott was a terrible disappointment.  All of us had been working toward the games, and now suddenly it was gone.  To make matters worse, we were all expected to fall in line behind the president.  I never paid much attention to politics, so I really didn’t care why we were boycotting.  Whether the goal was to humiliate the Soviets for invading Afghanistan or to express dramatically our government’s disapproval of the invasion, the bottom line was that we weren’t going to compete.  The athletes and the fans paid the price for the message.” 

 

Louganis went on to note that even though he was able to resume his Olympic career in 1984 and 1988, for many, 1980 was their last chance to compete.

In 1984, the Soviets and 14 other nations responded with their own boycott of the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, to even less effect.

In short, the idea that a boycott of the Olympics would have prevented the Holocaust, brought about Soviet withdrawal in Afghanistan, or prevented Western victory in the Cold War is beyond fallacious – it’s nonsensical.  It’s the kind of idea raised by New York activists like Michelangelo Signorile and Harvey Fierstein – both of whom live in gayborhoods and neither of whom have any idea what it’s like for aspiring athletes – gay or straight - growing up in flyover country.

A much better enterprise would be to use the power of the purse and persuade sponsors, including Coca-Cola, Visa, Samsung, and other corporations, to refrain from advertising at the games – and failing that, to boycott them.  Even better would be for the International Olympics Committee to move the games to a more appropriate venue, perhaps London or Vancouver.  A boycott of Russian made products could also be effective.  There has been talk of boycotting Russian Vodka (which might lead people to realize that Polish Vodka is superior at any rate) as well as those stupid nesting dolls.  Further, a voluntary boycott of tourism and visiting performance artists in Russia would drive home how the civilized world feels about the thuggery taking over Russia.  If Russians want to trot out their homophobia for all to see, right thinking companies should see to it that such behavior is unprofitable.  In the meantime, the Western powers, including the United States, should reform their immigration laws and welcome LGBT from countries which oppress them.  That’s a more effective way to help LGBT people throughout the world.