Art and politics

Art is, in itself, neutral, but it can easily be misused for political ends. History shows many examples and the difficulty is to consider the work of art without including its political message. The glorifying ceiling paintings in the hall of mirrors at the Versailles palace are embarrassing propaganda, but from a purely aesthetic point of view, they are not bad art, although it is superficial and rings with a hollow pathos:

 

Charles le Brun: 'The King governs by himself'

Similar paintings were made for Napoleon, and of course the 20th century is filled to the brim with  artistic/ethical embarrassment. In music, Beethoven's symphonies were used as symbols both of the nazi regime in Germany and the allies. The German conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler remained in Germany, in spite of his increasing understanding of the regime's nature, but not enough: his conducting for nazi officials under a big swastika will forever cling to his legacy (a fascinating book on that subject was written by Furtwängler's 'Jewish' secretary, Berta Geissmar: 'The Baton and the Jackboot', Hamish Hamilton, London 1944, 1947).

https://www.amazon.com/baton-jackboot-Recollections-musical-life/dp/B0007J06BW

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/tony-woodcock/the-baton-and-the-jackboo_b_5868206.html?guccounter=1 

Nonetheless, it seems to me that musicians in the classical music world should try to keep the art form as much as possible 'clean' from politics, but in the same time keep a watchful eye on what happens in the surrounding world, and speak-out when civilizational values are threatened or worse. Serious art and classical music symbolize the human spirit in its best form, and serving political propaganda is debasing and reduces this spirit to prostitution. As writer and holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel said:

'Always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.'

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elie_Wiesel